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Jean-Nickolaus Tretter
American LGBTQ archivist (1946–2022) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Jean-Nickolaus Tretter (1946 – December 9, 2022) was an American activist and LGBT archivist[1] who created the Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Studies, housed by the University of Minnesota.[2]
Tretter was also the host of KFAI radio show Night Rivers, and the co-chair of the Minnesota Gay and Lesbian Olympic Committee. He co-organised the first Twin Cities commemoration of the Stonewall Riots in 1972.
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Early life, education and military service
Tretter grew up in Little Falls, Minnesota and studied initially linguistics.[3] His family had arrived in Morrison County in 1848.[4]
After graduating, Tretter served with the U.S. Navy in the Vietnam War.[3] From 1973, he studied cultural anthropology at the University of Minnesota, although faculty prevented him from focusing his studies on lesbian and gay anthropology.[3] Tretter dropped out of university in 1976.[4]
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Career and activism
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After dropping out of university, Tretter worked at a home in Ramsey County for people with disabilities, while also undertaking private study on gay and lesbian history.[4]
He spent sixteen years as the producer and host of the gay and lesbian classical radio show Night Rivers, hosted on KFAI radio.[4]
In 1972, Tretter and his friends organised the first Twin Cities commemoration of the Stonewall Riots.[4] Around the same time, he started collecting LGBT themed items.[3]
In 1982, Tretter became the co-chair of the Minnesota Gay and Lesbian Olympic Committee.[4] The committee sent the third biggest delegation to the games and Tretter arranged for the torch run to pass though the Twin Cities.[4]
In 1983 Tretter created a gay history exhibit at St. Paul's Landmark Center.[4] Tretter helped to develop the LGBTQ+ scene in Minneapolis, including establishing Twin Cities Pride, co-founding the Minnesota Committee for Gay Rights, and serving as manager of the Noble Roman and other gay bars across the Twin Cities.[5][6][7]
Tretter's LGBT collection grew over the decades and he donated it to the Andersen Library in Minnesota in 2000.[3][4] He worked as an archivist at the collection until retirement in 2011.[4] Post-retirement he served on an advisory board and supported academics focusing on LGBT history.[4][8]
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Personal life and death
Tretter came out about his sexuality in the early 1970s,[9] after leaving the Navy.[4]
He died in Saint Paul, Minnesota, on December 9, 2022, at the age of 76.[3][10][11]
References
External links
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