A Brief History of the Stonewall Inn

In honor of Pride Month, we’re celebrating NYC’s most iconic and influential sites in the fight for gay rights. Perhaps the most well-known landmark of the gay rights movement is the Stonewall Inn in NYC’s West Village.

The Stonewall Inn’s current location at 51-53 Christopher Street opened as a bar and restaurant in 1934 by Victor Bonavia. The bar ran until 1964, when a fire destroyed the interior. However, the history of the Stonewall Inn proved to flourish even after the devastating fire. In 1966, the Inn was invested in by members of the Mafia, who turned it into a gay bar and nightclub. At the time, homosexuality was not socially accepted, so the Mafia members blackmailed wealthy customers and demanded regular payoffs in return for keeping patrons’ identities undercover. The Mafia also bribed police in an attempt to avoid getting shutdown for the open prostitution, illegal alcohol sales, and drug rings that operated out of the Stonewall at the time.

The historical significance of the Stonewall Inn really gets underway on the night of June 28, 1969. Police raided the Inn and arrested many of the customers, while also seizing the alcohol. However, the raid took longer than expected, which gave ample time for a group of Stonewall patrons to violently demonstrate against the police. Soon, more people outside the bar joined the riots. The demonstration ultimately amounted to a violent protest between early gay rights supporters and police forces. The clash went on for about three hours before the scene was able to be resolved.

The Stonewall Inn closed after the riots, but, luckily, was reopened in the early 1990s. In June 1999, the Greenwich Village Society for Historical Preservation and the Organization of Lesbian and Gay Architects and Designers succeeded in getting the Stonewall Inn recognized on the National Register of Historic Places. It was later declared a National Historic Landmark in February 2000.

Today, the Stonewall Inn is remembered as one of the most influential and important sites in the gay rights movement. You can visit the Inn at its Christopher Street location for a drink with friends, themed parties, and simply to admire the history and memory of the fight for LGBTQ rights and equality.

To learn more about the Stonewall join us on our Pride Running Tour on Saturday, June 26th at 7 am.

Happy Pride Month, everyone!