Jean-Nickolaus Tretter

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]

Jean-Nickolaus Tretter
Tretter in 1992
Born1946
Died(2022-12-09)December 9, 2022
St. Paul, Minnesota
NationalityAmerican
EducationUniversity of Minnesota (incomplete)
Occupation(s)Archivist, LGBT activist
Notable workJean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection at the University of Minnesota

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.

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]

Career and activism
Staff organising the Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection

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]

Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection Logo

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]

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
  1. Greenblatt, Ellen (2014-01-10). Serving LGBTIQ Library and Archives Users: Essays on Outreach, Service, Collections and Access. McFarland. p. 147. ISBN 978-0-7864-6184-4. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  2. Marcotte, Mike (2020-10-08). "Serve Our Society: Tretter Collection | Lavender Magazine". Lavender Magazine. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  3. Jackson, Zoë. "Jean Tretter, local LGBTQ archivist and advocate, dies". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2022-12-10.
  4. "About Jean Tretter | University of Minnesota Libraries". www.lib.umn.edu. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  5. Grumdahl, Dara Moskowitz (2020-06-21). "An Oral History of LGBTQ Life in the Twin Cities". Mpls.St.Paul Magazine. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  6. Matt, Lianna (2018-05-11). "A Historical Collection at Twin Cities Pride". Minnesota Monthly. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  7. "A brief overview of queer and trans history in Minnesota". MinnPost. 2021-06-01. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
  8. "Remembering Jean-Nickolaus Tretter: Visionary collector established a unique and globe-spanning archive at the U of M Libraries". University of Minnesota Libraries. 10 December 2022. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  9. "Remembering LGBTQ archivist Jean Tretter". MPR News. Retrieved 2022-12-17.
  10. "St. Paul's Jean-Nickolaus Tretter, LGBTQ archivist, activist and historian, dies at 76". Twin Cities. 2022-12-11. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
  11. "Jean-Nickolaus Tretter, renowned LGBTQ archivist, dies". MPR News. Retrieved 2023-03-30.
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