Read, Watch or Listen

Alice Austen, born in 1866 into Staten Island society, transformed a gift of a box camera into an adventurous career documenting Gilded Age leisure and New York street life, including her 1896 Street Types portfolio. She forged a decades-long partnership with Gertrude Tate, navigating restrictive norms while she and friends carved out safe spaces. The 1929 crash shattered Austen’s finances; foreclosure and eviction followed. A Life magazine rediscovery in 1951 brought renewed attention before her death in 1952. Today the Alice Austen House, a nationally designated LGBTQ history site, centers their love and restores Tate’s place in the story.

Prepared by Emily Rhodes and reviewed by editorial team.