A Behind-the-Scenes Walking Tour
Sunday, June 29, 2025, 2 p.m., Starting at the Torpedo Factory
The Alexandria Historical Society invites the public to Out and About in Old Town, an in depth walking tour exploring Alexandria’s LGBTQ+ history from the 1970s through the 1990s. The event will take place on Sunday, June 29 at 2 p.m., beginning at the Torpedo Factory Art Center.
Led by graduate students from George Mason University — recipients of the Society’s 2024 AHS Golden Grant—this tour brings to life powerful stories of activism, community and change, told at the very locations where they happened.
Highlights include:
• The French Quarter Café (now Don Taco), one of Northern Virginia’s earliest known gay bars. Its owners played a pivotal role in the 1991 court case that overturned a 1956 Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control regulation barring service to “homosexuals.”
• Alexandria City Hall, where in 1988 the City Council passed a historic amendment to the local human rights ordinance protecting residents from discrimination based on sexual orientation — the first such action in the Commonwealth.
• The Torpedo Factory, where artists marked the 1993 Day Without Art by draping the space in black bunting to mourn lives lost to AIDS.
The walking route is approximately one mile on Alexandria’s historic brick sidewalks. Detailed meeting instructions will be emailed to registrants the day prior to the event.
This tour is part of a broader Alexandria Historical Society initiative funded by the AHS Golden Grant. The project also includes a digital Story Map, a public lecture, and a historical marker application to help bring wider recognition to Alexandria’s LGBTQ+ legacy.
Tickets are $20 for members of the Alexandria Historical Society; $25 for non-members.
• AHS Members: alexandriahistoricalsociety.org/membertour
• Non-Members: alexandriahistoricalsociety.org/nontour
• More Information: alexandriahistoricalsociety.org/outabouttour
Contact: alexandriahistoricalsociety@gmail.com
Presented by: The Alexandria Historical Society
Walk through a powerful chapter of Alexandria’s past — and help ensure these stories are never forgotten.