The 1986 Winter Gay Games
900 Albion Street, St. Paul
At the time of its construction, the Riverside School served an expanding suburban neighborhood that sprawled at the feet of Highland Park’s River bluffs. However, and as suburbanization advanced to the city limits, families left the neighborhood to queer populations. The former school was situated near two ice skating arenas and the Highland Park Golf Course. In fact, the Minnesota Committee of the IGOA hosted the first co-chairs conference on January 21-22,1984 at this site.
Unfortunately, financial and volunteer resources were not as readily present as organizers had hoped. The Committee awarded Twin Cities rights to host the 1986 Winter Games from the International Committee, yet these circumstances inhibited the games from taking place. Despite this, the basic organization of the formal bid remains evident in the Gay Games to this day.\
(1)Letter sent to Dr. Tom Waddell from Mayor Donald M. Fraser and George Latimer. January 12th, 1983. From “The International 1986 Gay/Lesbian Winter Olympic Games” by Jean-Nickolaus Tretter and Robin Karas. Courtesy of the Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
Part of Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN: 100 Queer Places in Minnesota History, (1860-1969), (1969-2010)