This groundbreaking critical anthology gathers together a wide range of primary source material on lesbian lives in the past. The material here is drawn from a diverse range of sources, including court records, newspaper reports, literary sources, writings on lesbianism from psychologists, doctors, anthropologists, as well as personal letters and journals.
The sources are arranged into thematic chapters, covering topics such as archetypes of lesbians - cross-dressing women and romantic friends, the making of lesbianism in culture, professional discourse on lesbians, public perceptions of lesbianism and women's own experiences.
This book will be a milestone in the publishing of lesbian history, and is set to provoke the impetus for fresh research.

Introduction; Part I Archetypes of Love between Women; Chapter 1 Cross-Dressing Women; Chapter 2 Romantic Friends and Lesbian Couples; Part II Professional Commentaries; Chapter 3 Medicine; Chapter 4 Education; Chapter 5 Law; Part III Making Lesbianism in Culture; Chapter 6 The Well of Loneliness; Chapter 7 Social Perceptions; Chapter 8 Identities and Networks;

Alison Oram is Reader in Women's Studies at University College Northampton.,
Annmarie Turnbull works for a national charity.