An Essential Guide to LGBTQ+ Philadelphia

The heart of LGTBQ+ residential life and culture in Philadelphia since World War II can be found in The Gayborhood, a nickname dating back to the 1995 Outfest (now OurFest). The vibrant community — which includes the blocks from Broad Street to 11th Street between Chestnut Street and Pine Street — is home to scores of LGBTQ+-owned and -friendly bars, restaurants, shops, theaters and institutions, plus annual events like the Philadelphia Pride March & Pride Festival and OurFest (see below). In 2007, 36 rainbow street signs were dedicated around the neighborhood, and have since greatly multiplied.

Over the last two decades, 13th Street has grown into the neighborhood’s own Restaurant Row. The transformation kicked off in 2004 when spouses/business partners chef Marcie Turney and Valerie Safran opened the now-shuttered Lolita. Today, the couple owns a slew of Gayborhood spots including Bud & Marilyn’s modern comfort food, trattoria Little Nonna’s, Mediterranean-inspired Barbuzzo, gastropub Darling Jack’s Tavern and artisanal chocolateria marcie blaine. Other restaurateurs soon followed, creating destinations like hidden upscale taqueria El Vez, plant-based charlie was a sinner., sushi and cocktail bar Double Knot, and LGBTQ+-owned brunchtime fave Winkel.

Along with craveable restaurants, a plethora of trendy indie boutiques, outfitters and gift shops have sprung up around The Gayborhood as well. Grab your reusable tote and indulge with a day of retail therapy at LGBTQ+-owned spots like Open House for kitschy homegoods and apparel, Verde’s jewelry and accessories (and artisanal chocolate), and natural bath and body products at Duross & Langel. Other great nearby shops include high-end throwback fan gear outlet Shibe Vintage Sports and lifestyle boutiques Lapstone & Hammer and Common Ground for the latest in sneakers and apparel.

The Gayborhood really kicks into gear after dark when culture and community come together at any of its bevy of chic and fabulous bars and nightclubs filled with singing, dancing, burlesque, cabarets and revues. Catch a legendary drag show at Franky Bradley’s, quench your thirst at Miami-styled cocktail bar Cockatoo, escape into the ’70s-inspired Backroom at Blind Barber speakeasy or hit the floor at after-hours club Voyeur. More neighborhood faves include Woody’s, Tabu Lounge & Sports Bar, Bike Stop, Level Up, U Bar and Knock Restaurant & Bar.

In the Roaring ’20s, Camac Street between Locust Street and Spruce Street was a bustling nightlife hub known as “Philly’s Greenwich Village,” with a speakeasy called Maxine’s at its heart. In 1982, gay club Raffles took over the site, becoming a safe space for LGBTQ+ folks to gather, socialize and express themselves. A decade later, the spot transitioned to Tavern on Camac — arguably the oldest continuously operating LGBTQ+ bar in Philadelphia — offering a distinct experience on each floor: a tavern at ground level, a piano lounge downstairs and a dance club upstairs.

Named for the trailblazing James Baldwin gay novel, Philly AIDS Thrift @ Giovanni’s Room is the oldest LGBTQ+ bookstore in the nation. Founded on South Street in 1973 (and relocated to its current site in 1979), non-profit thrift store Philly AIDS Thrift (see below) took over management in 2014. The self-proclaimed feminist bookstore offers thousands of queer books and magazines (and even Playbills), plus shelves of art, movies, music and apparel from the thrift shop. Proceeds from both stores benefit people living with HIV and AIDS. A refurbished state historical marker is located outside.

Occupying several rented spaces from 1976 to 1995 before settling into its very own home in 1996, the William Way LGBT Community Center is Philadelphia’s principal LGBTQ+ social, cultural and educational hub — and one of the oldest LGBTQ+ community centers in the nation. Named for gay activist and philanthropist William Way, the center offers programming, support services, events and meeting spaces for the LGBTQ+ community. On the block-long western exterior wall of the building, artist Ann Northrup’s mural Pride & Progress depicts a tribute to Philadelphia’s LGBTQ+ history and culture.

First appearing in 2015, the Gayborhood intersection of 13th and Locust streets features vibrant rainbow painted crosswalks, now an essential Gayborhood landmark (and popular selfie site). Originally striped with the classic ROYGBV six-color design, the city refreshed the rainbow road in 2023 with all 11 Progress Pride colors — adding in black, brown, pink, light blue and white — and swapping out traditional paint for thermoplastic designed to withstand wear and tear. The crosswalks were originally dedicated during the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the first Philadelphia Gay Rights Demonstrations (see below).

The Gayborhood got a little funky in 2021 when South Philly artist Ash Ryan completed her three-story Lil Nas X mural tribute on the exterior wall of Writer’s Block Rehab. Owner Ram Krishnan commissioned the work to pay tribute to the rapper, singer, songwriter and LGBTQ+ icon as an innovator representative of today’s Black and queer culture. Ryan created the 36-by-36-foot mural — featuring three characters from Nas X’s autobiographical hit Montero (Call Me By Your Name) — in just over a week with the help of 138 cans of spray paint.

Completed in 2023, the Finally on 13th Mural (between Spruce and Pine) is a collaboration between multidisciplinary artist Nile Livingston and Jacen Bowman (of reality competition show Legendary) to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Philadelphia’s ballroom scene. The work pays homage to past and present ballroom icons, including Michael Gaston — credited with throwing Philly’s first ball — and commentator Kevin Jz Prodigy, just off Beyoncé’s Renaissance tour. The city’s first mural specifically honoring Black and Brown LGBTQ+ culture, the work exudes the vibrancy, joy and resilience of the community and the neighborhood it calls home.

Take a guided tour through the neighborhood during a Philly Gayborhood & LGBTQ History Tour from Beyond the Bell Tours. These excursions promise to “get under the skin of queer Philly” while touching on controversies and hidden histories of the community, recounting stories of iconic LGBTQ+ activists, exploring modern social issues and uncovering the history of Pride itself. Tours spotlight important community sites like Giovanni’s Room, Attic Youth Center, Barbara Gittings House, Tavern on Camac and the AIDS Memorial Mural. The organization also offers a dedicated Trans History Tour.

Get your history straight with a number of historic LGBTQ+ markers sprinkled throughout the Gayborhood.

• John E. Fryer, M.D. Historical Marker: This plaque honors late activist Dr. John Fryer, who was expelled from the University of Pennsylvania’s psychiatric residency program in 1965 on the basis of his homosexuality, which was then classified as a mental illness. In 1972, as a member of the Temple University School of Medicine faculty, “Dr. Anonymous” offered electrifying testimony to his peers resulting in the classification’s reversal.
• Edith “Edie” Windsor Historical Marker: Honoring Philadelphia-born-and-raised Edith Windsor, this official panel recounts the activist’s landmark lawsuit fighting for marriage equality. Windsor v. U.S. was argued in front of the Supreme Court, and led to the dismantling of the Defense of Marriage Act in 2013. The result: federal agencies were required to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples.
• Philadelphia Gay News Historical Marker: Standing in front of their former offices at 13th and Locust streets, this indicator sign marks the site where the Philadelphia Gay News was founded in 1976 on its way to becoming one of the nation’s most award-winning weekly newspapers of any sort. In the five decades since, the paper has covered scores of critical LGBTQ+ issues, including the HIV/AIDS epidemic and the fight for marriage rights.
• AIDS Library of Philadelphia Historical Marker: In 1987, a group of volunteer librarians and activists came together on this spot to found the AIDS Library of Philadelphia, the nation’s first organization to provide a source for comprehensive information on AIDS and the epidemic. By providing a place of knowledge, the library helped combat society’s unfounded AIDS fears and change societal attitudes toward the LGBTQ+ community, changing the course of the epidemic.

Independence Hall didn’t cease being a bastion of freedom in 1776. It remained a symbolic location for many groups seeking justice over the centuries. On the Fourth of July in 1965, the hall was the site of the first of the nation’s earliest organized recurring gay rights demonstrations, which occurred annually on Independence Day for the next three years. Collectively known as the Annual Reminders, pioneering LGBTQ+ activist Barbara Gittings (see below) was a key organizer of the pickets. Today, the Gay Rights Demonstrations Historical Marker commemorates this first peaceful protest demanding civil rights for the LGBTQ+ community.

Over 300 LGBTQ+ activists and organizers gathered at the Arch Street Meeting House — the historic home of a 200-year-old Quaker congregation — in February of 1979 to discuss strategies and coordinate efforts for advancing legal protections for the LGBTQ+ community. Their primary purpose was to plan the first National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights, which happened that October, attracting 100,000 demonstrators and defining a national civil rights movement. Visitors can view the Philadelphia Conference Historical Marker outside, and are welcome inside on select days.

Philadelphia’s Historic District was a vital location during the birth of the nation’s LGBTQ+ rights movement, both as site of the Annual Reminders protests of the 1960s (see above) and through a greater symbolism of the freedom and justice for all Americans fought for here for centuries. From the Delaware River to 7th Street between Vine and Lombard are the colonial-yet-contemporary neighborhoods of Old City and Society Hill, as well as Independence National Historical Park — home of the Liberty Bell, an important symbol of the abolitionist movement and Civil Rights broadly.

In 1973, Quaker landlords defied then-commonplace discrimination against LGBTQ+ tenants by renting the storefront at 60 N. 3rd Street to gay activists who founded Hats Off, the city’s first LGBTQ+ coffeehouse. The community space (now a shoe store) — which offered a place for people to gather, socialize, and find support and a safe space — was the direct predecessor of the William Way LGBT Community Center (see above). Today, Old City buzzes with galleries, boutiques, BYO restaurants, lively bars — and more coffeehouses including Menagerie Coffee, a stylish and inviting queer couple-owned café.

Located outside the African American Museum in Philadelphia, the Alain LeRoy Locke Historical Marker honors the prominent educator, writer and arts patron for his contributions to Black art and culture. The Philadelphia native became the first African American Rhodes Scholar before acquiring his Ph.D. at Harvard University, later becoming known as a philosopher of race and culture referred to as “Dean of the Harlem Renaissance.” Like most gay men in the first half of the 20th century, Locke remained closeted, while greatly influencing the development of Black culture and thought.

The most elegant of the five public squares laid out by William Penn, tree-lined Rittenhouse Square park has been sanctuary for LGBTQ+ Philadelphians dating back to the 1930s. The park served as starting spot of Philadelphia’s first Pride parade in 1972, and just a block west was the site of the LGBTQ+ sit-in at Dewey’s diner (see below) in 1965. Today, Rittenhouse Square’s benches and lawns are filled with all manner of Philadelphians, and the neighborhood has grown into the city’s busiest center of trendy shopping, upscale dining and chic nightlife.

In 1982, legislation was passed inside City Hall prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation, helping the city become one of the first to enact such an ordinance. Its plazas have also become a central gathering site for protests, including those organized by the Gay Activists Alliance in the 1970s against police harassment and mistreatment of LGBTQ+ individuals. The stunning architectural marvel (and former world’s tallest building) has also become a popular spot for LGBTQ+ couples to wed and receive marriage licenses since 2014 when Pennsylvania enacted marriage equality.

Some of the most important locations in Philadelphia’s LGBTQ+ history also took place outside the Gayborhood, noted by these historical markers.

• Dewey’s Sit-in Historical Marker: During the turbulent 1960s, sit-in occupancies were a common Civil Rights protest against discriminatory restaurants and cafes. One of the nation’s first LGBTQ+-led sit-ins took place at Dewey’s diner (a block west of Rittenhouse Square) in 1965 to protest LGBTQ+ patrons being denied service. In an early win for LGBTQ+ rights, the protest directly led to the diner ending its discriminatory policy, an event honored by signage at this spot.
• Barbara Gittings Historical Marker: A pioneer in the LGBTQ+ rights movement and Philadelphia resident her entire adult life, activist Barbara Gittings edited The Ladder (the nation’s first lesbian magazine), co-organized the Annual Reminders protests at Independence Hall (see above) and led charges both to promote LGBTQ+ literature in public libraries and change psychiatry’s classification of homosexuality as a mental illness. This historic marker honors the home she shared with partner photojournalist Kay Lahusen. Across Broad Street, a street sign declares a portion of Locust Street in the Gayborhood as Barbara Gittings Way.
• Gloria Casarez Historical Marker: Located on the North apron of City Hall, this plaque — Pennsylvania’s first historical marker honoring a Latino person — is dedicated to influential civil rights activist Gloria Casarez. Casarez advocated for the LGBTQ+ community, people of color and those experiencing homelessness, and served as Philadelphia’s first Director of the Office of LGBT Affairs. A third mural to honor Casarez (the previous two having been painted over) can be seen at GALAEI on Fontain Street in Norris Square.

World famous South Street owes much of its vibrancy to the artists and hippies — and especially queer folk — who turned it into a welcoming enclave in the late 1960s and early ’70s. It’s where radical gay collective Gazoo founded Philadelphia’s Gay Liberation Front and bisexual blues singer Bessie Smith performed at early 20th century Black-owned Royal Theatre. Aside from cheesesteak joints and eclectic shops, South Street is home one of Philly’s best-loved drag shows at dive bar extraordinaire Bob & Barbara’s Lounge, LGBTQ+ punk art haven Tattooed Mom and LGBTQ+-owned boutique Workshop Underground.

Founded in 2005, Philly AIDS Thrift initially operated as a small secondhand shop helping support local HIV/AIDS organizations through sales of donated items, including clothing, furniture, books and household goods. In the years since, it has become a beloved gathering spot for those affected by AIDS and a community hub promoting sustainability, involvement and support. In 2022, a mural entitled All At Once went up above the shop on 5th Street which honors Philadelphia’s Black trans women. The Thrift also runs historic Giovanni’s Room bookstore in the Gayborhood (see above).

Located in South Philly’s Point Breeze neighborhood, the three-story tall We the Youth mural is an original work created by Pennsylvania native and LGBTQ+ pop artist Keith Haring in 1987. Over the years, Mural Arts Philadelphia has helped repair and maintain the piece — one of many in the organization’s collection created by LGBTQ+ artists or about queer history, activism and culture — to preserve Haring’s work and legacy. Below the mural along 22nd Street is the Keith Haring Garden pocket park with benches and picnic tables to observe the mural up close.

Painted on the side of LGBTQ+-owned Cake Life Bake Shop in Fishtown is the We Are Universal Mural, erected in 2021, celebrating Philadelphians from the trans, gender-nonconforming and non-binary communities. Created by artist Kah Yangni, the mural depicts residents of West Philadelphia’s Morris Home — the only recovery program in the nation for trans and gender-nonconforming individuals — under a tree surrounded by blooming flowers, plants and a butterfly in flight, alongside text created by the residents.

Two centuries before “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was signed, challenged and repealed, General Washington’s ragtag army at Valley Forge was transformed into a professional fighting force by Prussian military genius Friedrich von Steuben, of whom Benjamin Franklin had written of his “affections for the same sex.” Recruited by Franklin to become the Continental Army’s Inspector General and Major General, von Steuben is honored with a bronze monument at the bucolic Historical Park’s Varnum’s Picnic Area. (Find another statue of the Prussian behind the Philadelphia Museum of Art).

In the 1940s, the Bucks County riverside hamlet of New Hope became a popular destination for Broadway-bound performers and musicians including Helen Hayes, Shirley Booth, Hume Cronyn, June Lockhart and Grace Kelly. The artsy village remains a beloved destination for LGBTQ+ visitors (and residents), offering a respite from city life with stellar restaurants, breweries, boutiques and galleries, including Karla’s Restaurant (an LGBTQ+ fave since the ’70s), the Whiskey Lounge at Logan Inn speakeasy and Bucks County Playhouse. Each May, the town hosts New Hope Celebrates PrideFest (see below).

Philly’s Gayborhood doesn’t have a monopoly on festive Pride-inspired street crossings. A handful of towns in the Philly countryside have joined in the Rainbow Crosswalk celebration.

• Phoenixville: The artsy Chester County community of Phoenixville has displayed a six-stripe rainbow “Pride Walk” along each side of the Bridge Street corridor’s downtown intersection with Church Street since a painting party for the 2022 Chester County Pride Fest.
• Swarthmore: Over in Delco, an 11-stripe Progress Pride rainbow crosses the intersection of South Chester Road and Park Avenue adjacent to the SEPTA train station in Swarthmore, one of the smallest municipalities in the nation with a rainbow crosswalk.
• Doylestown: The Bucks County county seat of Doylestown dedicated a crosswalk painted with a full Progress Pride flag at the south end of Printer’s Alley at E. State Street between Evolution Candy and the former Zen Den building to kick off its 2023 Pride Fest Block Party.

Back in 1972, Philadelphia held the city’s first Gay Pride Parade. That spirit lives today through the Philadelphia Pride March and Pride Festival, celebrated annually since 1988 and now one of the largest in the nation. The day kicks off with a Pride March through Center City and features a welcome ceremony, speeches, music and plenty of dancing. The parade ends at 13th and Locust, spilling into the supersized Pride Festival with over hundreds of artists and vendors, food trucks, live performances and more.

Philly doesn’t revel in Pride just in June. Each October since 1990, the city has held the annual OURfest (which stands for “Our Uniting Resilience Festival”) to celebrate National Coming Out Day. The Fair and Festival block party portion of the event (known as OutFest until 2022) features live performances, speeches, craft and apparel vendors, festival food and scores of organizations offering NCOD resources and promoting LGBTQ+ visibility. But the newest attraction as of 2023 is the Ourfest Parade, the nation’s first ever National Coming Out Day Parade.

The annual Philly Black Pride is an advocacy event celebrating and empowering Philadelphia’s Black LGBTQ+ community. The four-day Pride event (held yearly on the same week as the Penn Relays) brings together between 3,000 and 5,000 attendees for a long weekend of “partying with a purpose” celebrations and community building. Through events and activities including parties, panel discussions, workshops, cultural events, physical- and mental-health resources and community gatherings throughout the city, Philly Black Pride promotes visibility, resilience, and solidarity, while advocating for social justice, equality, and empowerment.

Drawing 15,000 spectators annually since 2003, New Hope Celebrates PrideFest welcomes visitors from across the region (and beyond) each May to one of the nation’s first Prides of the year. The festival starts with the Lambertville/New Hope Pride Parade — the only such event which crosses a state line, beginning in New Jersey before crossing the bridge into Pennsylvania — with over 1,000 marchers, floats and marching bands, plus a 100-foot Equality Flag. The event culminates with the New Hope Pride Fair in Pride Park with vendors, games, food, live music and a cocktail contest.

A free event celebrated across the border of two counties, the Bucks-Mont PRIDE Festival is held each year inside and outside Abington Art Center in Abington Township. Founded in 2017, the family-friendly event (hosted by The Welcome Project PA) celebrates pride in Bucks and Montgomery counties (and across the region) with live music, DJs, cheer squads, food, games, activities, an art and sculpture show and a number of local organizations offering resources and plenty of tchotchkes to fill your tote.

The Philadelphia region’s one-of-a-kind county of Delco celebrates Pride Month with the annual Delaware County Pride in Upper Darby. First held in 2021, the event starts with a mile-long Pride Parade through the heart of the borough with marchers and multiple performance stages. The parade funnels into the popular Pride on State, a street-wide fair with events and activities focused on LGBTQ+ youth and young adults. The party culminates the following weekend with the Pride Festival outside the Township Municipal Building featuring vendors, music, DJs, dancing, kid-friendly activities and more.

The one-week, two-weekend-long Doylestown Pride Festival is the Bucks County county seat’s annual fete, offering a schedule of pop-up events such as film screenings at County Theater, book signings, programming at the Michener Museum, a drag brunch, cocktail contest, bike ride and dedicated music day. The fest begins with a Pride Flag rising at the old courthouse followed by a mini-block party on Printer’s Alley, and culminates nine days later with a large block party on East State Street with live music, DJ’s, drag performances and lots of food and vendors.

Festive folks gather along Bridge Street in Phoenixville (between Starr Street and Main Street) for PrideFest Chester County, an annual tradition since 2017 hosted by the LGBT Equality Alliance of Chester County. The all-ages street fair and festival offers a “vibrant celebration of love, diversity and community” with music, art, and entertainment, vendors, games, programming at the historic Colonial Theater, fun and colorful activities for adults and kids alike and shopping at restaurants and shops along the downtown corridor (with special discounts).

Created in 2022, Pride in the Park is organized and run by local students from Narberth and the surrounding Lower Merion Township. Held in Narberth Park and serving as a fundraiser for The Attic Youth Shelter, the youth-led celebration features LGBTQ+ and allied artists, live entertainment, dance performances, local vendors, festival food and booths offering information and resources from community organizations.

In addition to managing both OURfest and the Philadelphia Pride March and Pride Festival (see above), the Philly Pride 365 initiative provides support and visibility for the Philadelphia LGBTQ+ community throughout the year. The organization, operated by non-profit GALAEI, Philly Pride 365 provides a hub for resources and organizes dozens of other events, activities and educational workshops all year long, in addition to its community, advocacy and awareness programs.