	Login Cart Advanced Search
Our List Bestsellers Current Bestsellers All-Time Bestsellers Activism General Economic Justice Environmental Justice Education Reform Racial Justice Community Action Immigration Reform American Society General Anthropology Cultural Studies General Latin American Native American Myths Made In America Economics Law and Society Philosophy Sociology Sports and Society Child and Family Issues Adoption General Media and Technology Beacon Classics Biography and Memoir Autobiography and Memoir Biography Disability Disability Environment and Conservation Energy and Climate Conservation Food and Agriculture Wildlife Nature and Environment Concord Library Series Gardening General Biography and Memoir Feminism and Gender Feminism Gender Women's History Women's Literature Black Women Writers Bluestreak Series General Women's Lives Sexuality Biography and Memoir History American History General Early American History 19th Century American History 20th Century American History 21st Century American History African American History General The King Legacy ReVisioning History Adult Editions Young Readers Editions World History Africa Asia Central and South America Europe Middle East Literature and the Arts Fiction Poetry Nonfiction General Essays Food and Society Letters Memoirs Queer Perspectives Multicultural Interest African American Asian American Caribbean Latin American Middle Eastern Native American South Asian By Series Black Women Writers Bluestreak Concord Writers Young Adult Music The Arts National Poetry Series Raised Voices Poetry Series Politics and Current Events Politics and Current Events Progressive Education LGBT Issues Books for K-12 Classroom Use Teaching and the Classroom Higher Education History of Education Race and Education School Reform and Policy Race Education Democracy Series Queer Perspectives Education and Youth Fiction General Memoir Religion and Sexuality Queer Ideas Queer Action Transgender Perspectives Transgender Voices Also of Interest Race and Ethnicity in America General African American History African American Literature Fiction and Poetry Nonfiction Black Women Writers Celebrating Black Women Writers King Legacy Series Race Education Democracy Series Religion How We Live Our Beliefs Pluralism Buddhism Christianity African American Theology Catholicism Early Christianity General Protestant Islam Judaism Unitarian Universalism World Religions Gender and Sexuality Inspiration Science and Medicine Public Health Medicine Science Psychology Women's Health YA and Children's Audiobooks Books by Mary Oliver Poetry and Prose Audiobooks Fall 2024 Spring 2025 Blog About About Beacon Address and Directions Awards Booksellers and Librarians Catalogs Staff Distribution Sales and Ordering Submission Guidelines Contact Customer Service Author Appearances Jobs and Internships Media Requests Rights and Permissions Resources Book Banning Resources Desk and Exam Copy Information Reading Guides Teacher Guides Guides for UUs and Book Groups Social Impact

Before Gender

Lost Stories from Trans History, 1850-1950

Author: Eli Erlick

An expansive exploration of the exciting lives of 30 trans people from 1850-1950 that radically changes everything you’ve been told about transgender history

Focusing on 30 influential individuals who are all but unknown today, activist, writer, and educator Eli Erlick highlights how trans people of the past were much more vibrant, creative, and respected than in the popular imagination. These remarkable stories range from romance to rebellion and mystery to murder, all exploring the grit, joy, and survival of trans people before the word gender entered our vocabulary. Together, each narrative provides new insights into the self-determination of transgender figures that will change the world for trans people today.

Organized in 4 parts, each section corresponds to today’s controversies over gender identity:

Kids features 7 stories of young trans people, including brothers Mark and David Ferrow, who became 2 of the first children to access transgender medical treatment following overwhelming support from their friends, family, and neighbors.
Activists follows 9 influential individuals, like Sally-Tom, a trans woman recently freed from slavery, who won the first known government approval for a legal change of sex, and Gerda von Zobeltitz, a trans countess who instigated a forgotten LGBTQ+ riot 40 years before Stonewall.
Workers tracks the lives of 7 figures like snake charmer Elise Marks and florist John Berger, who were forced to hide their trans status to find employment, love, and safety.
Athletes highlights 5 competitors, including the world’s greatest female billiards player of the 1910s, trans woman Francis Anderson.

Bold and visionary, Erlick’s debut lifts these stories from the depths of the archives to narrate trans lives in a way that has never been attempted before.