Survival House 1977

Survival House 1977 documents with photographs and interviews the unique place Survival House was and some of the people who lived there. The book looks at a segment of the gay population usually ignored, those on the margins without jobs and places to live. As a historical document, it provides a rare look at San Franciscoʼs homeless LGBT culture at the height of the gay influx to the city in the late 1970s.

Survival House was home to a mix of people diverse in ethnicity, age, and background. War veterans, transsexuals, hustlers, runaways, and others all lived together in close quarters in this Victorian house. Social services such as job placement, drug counseling, medical assistance, and housing placement were provided to the residents to help them reenter the community.

The stories told here and the social issues evoked are as relevant today as they were in 1977. Homelessness among LGBT people is still a pressing issue. Survival House was one solution to the problem then and offers insights on it today.