The Pagoda was a lesbian residential community and cultural center on the beach near St. Augustine, Florida, from 1977 to 1999. Rose Norman interviewed founders, residents, and guests for the story of how it came to be and how it lasted so long.

Barbara Esrig. Photo by Elizabeth Daneman and Tammy Bernard.

Barbara Esrig, a founding member of Southern Lesbian Feminist Activist Herstory Project, describes her work as a midwife, and her recovery from a near-fatal car accident.

Ellen from Memorial

After finding feminism and feminist spirituality while living in Florida, Ellen Spangler founded a teaching and healing center in rural South Carolina.

Falcon River being nuzzled by her horse, Flame, in 2005

There’s nothing about me that’s masculine. Every aspect of me, at the cellular level, is female. I was born female; I live female. Butch women like me embody the full spectrum of womanhood.