A collection of 11 photographs featuring drag queens from the 1985 Miss Fire Island pageant, held in Cherry Grove. Silver prints, the images measuring approximately 168x111 mm; 6 5/8x4 3/8 inches, the mounts 254x203 mm; 10x8 inches. 1985.
Cherry Grove, along with Fire Island Pines, became a safe haven for the LGBTQ+ community beginning in the 1950s. Isolated, particularly at the time, because of its location off Long Island, the town supposedly acquired its aura as a mecca when Christopher Isherwood and W.H. Auden arrived dressed as Dionysus and Ganymede, carried on a golden litter by singing followers. The Miss Fire Island Pageant originated in 1966, and has been held ever since, one of the biggest and most dazzling events of the summer.
