The Stonewall Inn, a State Historic Site in our system, is the most well-known place in LGBTQ American history. In June 1969, following a routine police raid, patrons at the Mafia-run Stonewall Inn, as well as young queer and trans people who lived or regularly congregated in Greenwich Village, spontaneously erupted in multiple nights of protest. The event was a turning point in the ongoing LGBTQ rights movement and sparked its growth in New York City, New York State, and across the nation. Organizations and groups formed around the country to promote LGBTQ rights, and thousands of people became active in the movement.

LGBTQ history often focuses on large coastal cities like New York and San Francisco. However, the gay liberation movement that emerged in the wake of Stonewall reverberated in small towns and rural settings as well. One such example is the Lavender Hill commune in central New York, listed in the New York State Register of Historic Places on December 5, 2024, and in the National Register of Historic Places on February 3, 2025.