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A faded, sepia-toned marriage record titled "Family Record" documents the union of Jacob Eshleman and Mary Breckbill, who were married on March 15th, 1791. The handwritten calligraphy-style text appears on aged paper, adorned on the right side with several pressed botanical elements including heart-shaped, fan-shaped, and butterfly-shaped dried flower petals. Decorative border trim surrounds the entire document.

A colorful 1900s Roman Catholic marriage certificate decorated with ornate floral illustrations and religious iconography. The document features oval portrait photographs of the groom, John J. Sullivan, and the bride, Anna Mary Aust. Above them is an illustration of a biblical marriage scene with the caption: “This is a great sacrament: but I speak in Christ and in the Church – Eph. 5:32.” The certificate states they were united in Holy Matrimony on February 12th, 1900, in Cattaraugus, New York. Decorative elements include roses, bells, and a gold “HOLY MATRIMONY” banner.

Over three decades, Lynne Gold-Bikin acquired hundreds of marital records, including marriage licenses, marriage certificates, wedding invitations, bridal photographs, and other personal documents.

Among the items she collected were nuptials dating back to 1728, as well as documentation of the first same-sex couple to be legally wed in Pennsylvania: Loreen M. Bloodgood and Alicia A. Terrizi. Gold-Bikin displayed these items in the halls of the law firm where she worked as a top divorce attorney.

She explained to the Philadelphia Inquirer in 2017, "I want people to believe in marriage." Her view was that a celebration of marriage need not be incompatible with guaranteed access to divorce.

The Gold-Bikin Historic Marriage Documents Collection is now available on JSTOR. Read more about it and see select materials for free via JSTOR Daily.

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This is a round, white button with the word "gay" surrounded by stars in purple.

Happy National Coming Out Day! Here’s a transparent “gay” button for your blog 🏳️‍🌈

Image credit: Button - “Gay” with Stars. K.C Potter Center, Vanderbilt University. Publicly available as part of the LGBTQ Collections on JSTOR.

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ALT

A hand-colored photograph of a person assigned male at birth in a formal white dress with a wide crinoline and blue accents. A black lace shawl is draped across their body and a blue ribbon adorns their hair. They pose with one arm bent and look slightly off-camera, evoking elegance and theatrical flair common in 19th-century gender performance photography.

A hand-tinted studio portrait from the 1800s showing a person assigned male at birth wearing a black dress with elaborate puffed sleeves, trimmed in white. They wear a lace headpiece, jewelry, and a long white apron, holding a small dark object in one hand. Their other hand is raised delicately to their chin, striking a genteel, contemplative pose evocative of aristocratic femininity.

Victorian drag portraits, anyone?

These photos (1, 2, 3) from the James Gardiner Collection are open access and available to view on JSTOR courtesy of the Wellcome Collection.

Dating from the 1850s to 1890s, the hand-colored portraits come from a Victorian album of 35 cartes de visite showing private and theatrical female impersonation. While many of these performances were intended as entertainment, the images also gesture toward gender nonconformity and queer expression.

See more from the album.

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Medieval illustration of a scholar or apothecary seated while stirring a red liquid in a large mortar with a long pestle. He holds a quill in one hand and a scroll in the other, with writing in Latin. He wears a blue hood and orange robe, and the scene is framed within a circular design with blue and green accents.

Have you used JSTOR for a project in a unique or interesting way? Are you a faculty member or librarian who uses JSTOR in instruction? Got any pointers or cool techniques for incorporating JSTOR into research or even archival workflows?

If so, we want to hear from you! We’re accepting submissions of drafts for blog posts, teaching resources, librarian tips, and more. Your work could be featured on the JSTOR Blog or JSTOR Daily and contribute to a wider conversation about how JSTOR supports critical thinking and deeper learning. This is a great opportunity to add a new publication to your CV/resumé and inspire peers across institutions.

We’re especially interested in examples that show how JSTOR supports engagement with primary sources, the development of research skills, or interdisciplinary discovery—whether that’s through direct student use or the behind-the-scenes work that makes those moments possible.

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Image: A Scholar/Apothecary Mixing a Concoction with a Pestle and Mortar and Writing down the Remedy; an Emblem from a Drug Jar. Watercolour. Wellcome Collection.

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A bright red mushroom with a domed cap covered in yellowish warts, standing tall on a white, textured stem. A second smaller mushroom grows beside it. The mushrooms are nestled among pine needles and forest debris.

A mushroom with a wide, slightly funnel-shaped blue-gray cap and thick cream-colored gills underneath. Its stalk is pale with a hint of pink, growing from a lush green mossy patch in a shaded forest.

A close-up view of ectomycorrhizal fungi intertwined with plant roots. The light tan fungal structures form delicate, finger-like projections surrounded by a web-like network of white mycelium. Bits of soil cling to the roots, and the background is entirely black, highlighting the intricate texture and form of the fungal network.

Our beloved mushrooms are so much more than just forest decorations, motifs in Gothic literature, or images we associate with Hozier’s debut album.

Fungi act as “carbon conduits” and enable over 90% of plants to sustain themselves. In “The Fungi in the Carbon Jigsaw” from JSTOR Daily, ecologist and photographer Timo Mendez reveals how fungi helped early plants colonize land, and how their hidden carbon-trading systems today might be the key to fighting climate change.

And he took these beautiful photos to boot! Read the article and view some more photos on JSTOR Daily.

Photos: Amanita muscaria, russula, and ectomycorrhizal fungi. All taken by Timo Mendez.

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The Gay Coloring Book (undated), another gem from Cornell University’s Images from the Rare Book and Manuscript Collections on JSTOR.

You’ll have to visit the university library to see the inside of the book, though. But fret not, with more than 11,000 additional images in the collection, there’s plenty to keep you busy—and they are all free and open for everyone!

UPDATE: @commander-kiranerys just shared a link to the full scan! https://www.houstonlgbthistory.org/Houston80s/Assorted%20Pubs/gay%20coloring%20book.pdf

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Reveal Digital’s LGBT history collection on JSTOR features 25 publications (and more than 900 items) that chronicle the birth of the Gay and Lesbian movements in the United States in the 1970s. And we gotta add that the covers are magnificent!

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Out of the Card Catalog Closet - JSTOR Daily

Librarians gathered in 1970 to challenge Library of Congress classifications and catalog subject headings that aligned homosexuality with de

JSTOR Daily

Tumblr is cutting off the preview text just before it gets good: “Librarians gathered in 1970 to challenge Library of Congress classifications and catalog subject headings that aligned homosexuality with deviance.”

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Happy Pride! JSTOR Daily has a round up of LGBTQ+ articles happening this month - check them out: https://daily.jstor.org/lgbtq-pride-month-editors-picks/

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Over three decades, Lynne Gold-Bikin acquired hundreds of marital records, including marriage licenses, marriage certificates, wedding invitations, bridal photographs, and other personal documents.

She explained to the Philadelphia Inquirer in 2017, “I want people to believe in marriage.” Her view was that a celebration of marriage need not be incompatible with guaranteed access to divorce.

The Gold-Bikin Historic Marriage Documents Collection is now available on JSTOR. Read more about it and see select materials for free via JSTOR Daily.

jstor jstor daily archives digital archives marriage marriage records