Henrietta Hudson
Henrietta Hudson exterior in 2022
Map
Restaurant information
Established1991
Owner(s)Lisa Cannistraci
Street address438 Hudson Street
CityNew York City
StateNew York
CountryUnited States of America

Henrietta Hudson, originally named Henrietta Hudson Bar & Girl, is a queer[1] restaurant and lounge in Manhattan's West Village neighborhood.[2] It operated as a lesbian bar from 1991 to 2014. Until it rebranded in 2021,[3] it was one of three remaining lesbian bars in New York City.[4][5][6] Henrietta Hudson's location is the original location of the Cubbyhole bar,[7] which had the distinction of being lesbian-owned and managed.[8][9][10]

History

Lisa Cannistraci and bar owner Minnie Rivera opened Henrietta Hudson in 1991 as a lesbian-centric bar.[7] The establishment became New York City's longest-operating lesbian bar after the closure of other similar venues.[11][4][12][13][14] Gay liberation icon Stormé DeLarverie was a bouncer at Henrietta Hudson well into her 80s.[6]

Part of the bar's ongoing evolution included removal of the "lesbian bar" descriptor in 2014.[15] In a 2019 interview, Lisa Cannistraci said she did not "care whether or not it is known specifically as a lesbian bar...I just want people to come and have a great experience."[12] Following its closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Cannistraci announced plans to rebrand and expand Henrietta Hudson into a "café, lounge, bistro, coffee house, [and] cocktail place".[3][16][17]

The rebranding, however, resulted in controversy due to Cannistraci soliciting financial contributions from lesbians with a "Save the Bar" crowdfunding for Henrietta Hudson,[18][19][20] and also participating in the Lesbian Bar Project fundraising campaign to save lesbian bars,[21][22] despite using the donations to reopen the venue as a "queer" space no longer catering exclusively to lesbians.[23]

See also

References

  1. ^ Goldberg, Shoshana K.; Rothblum, Esther D.; Meyer, Ilan H.; Russell, Stephen T. (2020). "Exploring the Q in LGBTQ: Demographic characteristic and sexuality of queer people in a U.S. representative sample of sexual minorities" (PDF). Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity. 7 (1): 101–112. doi:10.1037/sgd0000359. ISSN 2329-0382. PMC 8132578. PMID 34017899.
  2. ^ Long, Kat (November 4, 2011). "Henrietta Hudson Celebrates 20 Years". GO. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  3. ^ a b Bellamy-Walker, Tat (April 29, 2021). "Henrietta Hudson Is Returning With a New Look". Gay City News. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  4. ^ a b Assunção, Muri (May 19, 2019). "Last call for lesbian bars: the ever-changing nightlife for LGBTQ women in New York". New York Daily News. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  5. ^ Wong, Kristen (June 28, 2019). "The Curious Disappearance of the Lesbian Bar". The Story Exchange. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  6. ^ a b Anderson, Melissa (June 21, 2017). "Why Are All The Lesbian Bars Disappearing?". The Village Voice. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  7. ^ a b McCroy, Winnie (June 26, 2013). "A Rainy Night and a Day at the Beach with Lisa Cannistraci". Gay City News. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  8. ^ Gilbert, Marcia (June 21, 2018). "Hats Off To 'Our' Tanya: A Dedication To Cubbyhole Owner Tanya Saunders". GO. Retrieved 26 May 2021.
  9. ^ Gourarie, Chava (May 24, 2021). "There Are Just 21 Lesbian Bars Left in the US, and Some Won't Reopen". Commercial Observer. Observer Media. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  10. ^ Marloff, Sarah (21 January 2021). "The Rise and Fall of America's Lesbian Bars". Smithsonian. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  11. ^ Albo, Mike (May 30, 2017). "The Absolute Best Lesbian Night in New York". New York. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  12. ^ a b Sprayregen, Molly (June 15, 2019). "How The Owner Of NYC's Oldest Lesbian Bar Has Kept It Open (And Thriving) For Almost Thirty Years". Forbes. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  13. ^ Bianco, Marcie (February 19, 2019). "How Some Lesbian Bars Are Surviving (and Thriving) in 2019". OUT. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  14. ^ Compton, Julie (April 4, 2021). "A year into pandemic, America's remaining lesbian bars are barely hanging on". NBC News. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  15. ^ Carmel, Julia (April 15, 2021). "How Are There Only Three Lesbian Bars in New York City?". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  16. ^ Hoeffner, Melissa Kravitz (May 4, 2021). "The High-Design Return of Henrietta Hudson "Everything's collaborative."". New York. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  17. ^ Allen, Samantha; Lang, Nico (December 16, 2020). "America's Last Lesbian Bars Will Survive COVID — But They Need Your Help". Them. Retrieved 25 May 2021.
  18. ^ "Support Henriettas" (April 8, 2020). GoFundMe. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  19. ^ Hudson, David (March 9, 2021). "#SaveOurSpaces: Henrietta Hudson – a slice of New York history "built by Lesbians"". GayCities. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  20. ^ "10 Bars Need Our Help to Stay Open". Chilled Magazine. August 18, 2020. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  21. ^ Kim, Michelle (October 28, 2020). "Only 15 U.S. Lesbian Bars Are Left Standing. This New Fundraiser Aims to Save Them". Them. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  22. ^ Zelaya, Ian (October 29, 2020). "Jägermeister Launches Call to Action to Save 15 Remaining Lesbian Bars in the US". Adweek. Archived from the original on November 1, 2020. Retrieved 15 June 2021.
  23. ^ McDonnell, Kelly (May 25, 2021). "Queer Bar Henrietta Hudson Reopens With New Look and Some Pushback". Tagg Magazine. Retrieved 14 June 2021.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Henrietta Hudson.
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