by Jess Wilton
Threads of gender dysphoria unite the yellowing pages of adolescent diaries with the smudged print of typewritten letters within the Erica Rutherford fonds on the Prince Edward Island Public Archives. A trans artist who settled on Prince Edward Island (PEI), Rutherford handed away in 2008. She left behind quite a few artworks which were on show on the Venice Biennale in addition to an autobiography and lots of data situated at Archives PEI. Her archival report on this put up can be primarily explored by way of her adolescent diary and some letters. This illuminates experiences of gender dysphoria earlier than and after her transition. It additionally sheds gentle on an necessary determine in PEI trans historical past.
Born on February 1st 1923, Rutherford was assigned male at start in Scotland. In 1975, she legally modified her title to Erica and, within the following 12 months, obtained gender affirming surgical procedure. For a lot of her life, Rutherford was a transient artist residing in England, South Africa, Switzerland, Spain, the US, and Canada. In 1985, she completely settled in jap PEI having already lived many lives as she particulars in her autobiography 9 Lives: The Autobiography of Erica Rutherford. At totally different occasions she was a painter, actor, screenwriter, kids’s e book illustrator,clothes retailer proprietor, and officer within the British Occupation Military of the Rhine. In 2009, her data had been added to the Public Archives and Data Workplace of Prince Edward Island after her demise. They characterize the archive’s solely accessible data with specific themes of gender id and dysphoria.
With 3.24 m of data, the Rutherford fonds encapsulate quite a lot of paperwork corresponding to postcards, letters, a diary from her teenage years, a number of daybooks between 1976 and 2002, and even theatre setlists from her time as a set-designer and actor. Observe that the biography of Rutherford written by Archives PEI and several other of the referenced sources replicate the older language of “transsexual” reasonably than transgender to consult with Rutherford and her surgical procedure. Rutherford makes use of the time period herself in some correspondence. This time period has a lengthy historical past in medical and psychological communities reasonably than trans communities, so it’s typically not the most popular time period. This text makes use of “trans” to replicate the change in terminology whereas nonetheless referencing the totally different time period utilized by Rutherford.
The diary is an especially compelling archival report. The archive has labeled it as “diary 1938 to 1941,” however it’s potential that this diary was used after 1941 since there are some inscriptions dated between 1941 and 1944.1 The diary is medium-sized with a midnight blue cowl. Its backbone is tattered and partially uncovered whereas the duvet reveals indicators of water injury and put on on the corners. The internal pages seem untouched by water, with no apparent staining or smudging. The diary is generally stuffed with sure lined paper, however some pages have separated from the binding and there are some folded up paperwork pressed between pages together with a typewritten, un-addressed letter with handwritten edits. The content material throughout the pages range, however it mentions Rutherford’s buddies on the time, particularly a lady named Isabel and their time appearing collectively. It seems that this diary was created to report Rutherford’s teenage years and her time in class spent in England, but in addition as an outlet about gender. Later Rutherford writes that ideas about gender did “creep in” throughout her adolescence, emphasizing the significance of data from her adolescent years to a historical past of gender dysphoria and her life as a trans girl (9 Lives, 12).
By itself, this diary grants historians a glimpse into the lifetime of a younger grownup throughout the late Nineteen Thirties and early Nineteen Forties in England. Contemplating the overlap with World Struggle Two, it may particularly present perception into the lives of younger adults throughout the battle. Moreover, it’s stuffed with the ideas and struggles of a teen and younger grownup whereas accompanied by adolescent humour. For instance, on the internal web page of the duvet, Rutherford wrote a number of inscriptions through the years. The primary, dated 1941, is a protracted paragraph starting with, “Reality is my motto. Reality is my objective,” whereas the second from 1942 states, “there isn’t any such factor as reality, a lie is as true as the reality.” In 1943 and 1944, the tone adjustments dramatically from philosophical to crude with “Balls!” and “Cock” as the one inscriptions, respectively. The primary two phrases are maybe an try at creating some form of mental relationship to reality or pointing to an internal battle with the idea. The second phrases and their phallic phrase decisions categorical typical humour of a teenager, significantly one socialized as a boy for a few years. Additional evaluation of this mental thought and humorous language, as they alter over time, may help reveal the event of Rutherford’s mental character and probably even her sense of self.
Rutherford additionally mentions sensuality on a number of events all through the diary. Alongside different mentions of sensuality and sexual ideas, this data may point out Rutherford’s later overt struggles with sexuality and gender id. In a letter from roughly 1975 to a “George” she writes that “I’m a traditional case of transsexualism … since I used to be twenty years previous I used to be conscious of the entire thing.”2[1] The diary contains the years simply earlier than this revelation. It gives contextual proof in a historic dialogue of gender dysphoria throughout the Nineteen Forties—particularly the social and psychological therapy of this psychological state—or popping out as a transgender girl in 1975. Since it’s probably this understanding of gender and dysphoria was a course of over time, this diary helps inform a queer historical past of Rutherford as a younger pre-transition trans individual.
Whereas Rutherford lived in lots of nations all through her life, she made PEI her dwelling for over 20 years along with her ex-wife Gale. In her autobiography, she writes that after visiting PEI, “I felt like dwelling there for the primary time since I had come to North America (9 Lives, 194). Throughout her time on PEI, she broadly participated in island affairs together with connecting with well-known Island authors corresponding to Deirdre Kessler and forming the PEI Printmakers Council. With additional research, her later data from after her everlasting transfer to the island may reveal an introspective have a look at life as a trans girl residing in rural PEI.
This deep dive into Rutherford’s diary is simply scraping the highest of a historical past of gender dysphoria throughout borders and solely begins to shed gentle onto this trans artist’s outstanding life. The in depth fonds on the PEI archives deserve considerably extra consideration from historians as they relate to Rutherford’s transnational community for artists and as a vital episode of trans historical past on the Island. Trans+ historical past and people aren’t new. They “have all the time existed” and that features Prince Edward Island. Immediately the province additionally has a vibrant trans group. Each the PEI Transgender Community and PEERS Alliance have some wonderful initiatives for present trans+ people on the island, together with a trans artist exhibit in downtown Charlottetown and an out of doors group for trans and gender various kids. In occasions of rising violence towards trans and genderqueer people around the globe and anti-trans sentiment within the Maritimes particularly, it’s much more essential to discover these historic roots and spotlight the histories of our communities.
Although I grew up fairly close by in rural PEI, I by no means had the chance to fulfill Erica earlier than she handed away. But, in her data I noticed glimpses of so many individuals I knew. I discovered letters between her and Jean Weber who was my first boss on the Macphail Homestead, introducing me to archiving and Island historical past. Rutherford had additionally corresponded with my Mother’s favorite elementary college instructor, Dierdre Kessler, who she all the time stated had the very best ghost tales. Whereas these data do make clear transnational histories of artwork and gender, in addition they converse to communities and kinship ties formed by the Island.
Jess Wilton is a doctoral candidate in historical past at York College. Her work focuses on the queer historical past of Nova Scotia from the Nineteen Sixties to the Nineteen Nineties by way of materials historical past and archival practices.
Additional Studying:
The 9 Lives of Erica Rutherford
Obtainable to borrow at PEI Libraries, name quantity: 921 RUT 1993, in addition to on the Toronto Public Library and varied increased schooling libraries throughout Canada
American Historic Associations – “What’s trans Historical past”
College of Victoria’s Transgender Archives
Erica Rutherford: Her Lives and Works Half One and Half Two
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