“Unspeakable Vice: Valley of the Queens” LGBTQIA+ Walking Tour

Tenderloin Museum is thrilled to partner with Unspeakable Vice, “a volunteer history initiative making queer belonging accessible to everyone,” to offer a new walking tour focused on the LGBTQIA+ history in the Tenderloin and Polk Street neighborhoods. Created by downtown San Francisco resident and professor at California College of the Arts Shawn Sprockett, Unspeakable Vice began as a close look at the queer origins of San Francisco, traversing the city’s North Beach and Barbary Coast areas to trace the history through from 1770-1960. This new tour extends Sprockett’s richly detailed and craftily delivered approach to the TL and Polk Street to offer a deep dive into the emergence of LGBTQIA+ icons and movements that shaped the area from the 1960s to the 1990s. 

The “Valley of the Queens” tour highlights key events such as the Compton’s Cafeteria Riot, a landmark action of trans resistance that predates the Stonewall Riots, and the site of San Francisco’s first Pride parade. The tour also uncovers lesser-known yet significant histories, including a drag ball raided by the San Francisco Police Department that was defended by local Christian ministers—showing how a diverse coalition of activists, sex workers, and religious leaders helped shape the foundations of queer San Francisco.

“The Tenderloin and Polk Street areas are filled with stories of courage and defiance,” says tour creator Shawn Sprockett. “These are stories not just of struggle but of triumph, community, and the formation of an identity that has influenced the broader queer movement nationwide.”

“Valley of the Queens” occurs monthly starting on October 26th. Learn more about the tour–and the Unspeakable Vice North Beach tour–at unspeakablevice.tours. For the upcoming monthly “Valley of the Queens” tour, book your ticket through the Tenderloin Museum to support the organization and keep queer community history thriving in the TL.

ADMISSION TO TENDERLOIN MUSEUM INCLUDED IN PRICE OF TOUR