MILWAUKEE — Kim Schultz is proud to talk about her uncle Jim Dorn.
Dorn left a lasting legacy after opening Your Place, the first gay-owned bar in Milwaukee's Walker's Point neighborhood in the 1960s.
"Jim was always very friendly, very outgoing, very generous. He loved people," Schultz told TMJ4 News.
Dorn and his boyfriend Jerry Stinson ran the bar on South 1st Street by National Avenue. The gay bar grew in popularity in the 1970s and 1980s. It was the first of its kind in Walker's Point. The name was chosen so that gay men could organize social events without drawing too much attention.
"We think of it (Walker's Point) as the heart and soul of the Pride Parade and any other community events, but in 1965 it wasn't. It was a blue-collar working-class neighborhood. Jim started something because by 1969 when the Stonewall riots happened Milwaukee had over three dozen known gay bars. More and more of them were owned by gay people with customers giving money back to their community instead of to straight owners, who were exploiting people who had nowhere else to go," the president of the Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project, Michail Takach, explained.
"I remember going with my grandparents down to the bar, never during open hours, but off hours, and spending time upstairs with them, making sandwiches for New Year's Eve," Schultz recalled.
The Wisconsin LGBTQ History Project is committed to preserving stories of LGBTQ+ people.
"The idea that a gay couple would not only get a tavern license but open a bar that welcomed other gay men was astonishing," Takach stated. "The contributions of people like Jim and Jerry, and even Jim ‘s parents who made the space possible, that’s important because I don’t know where Walker’s Point would be today without that revolution that he (Jim) started."
Watch: Jim Dorn built a welcoming place for LGBTQ+ people in Milwaukee
Dorn served in the U.S. Navy before Schultz says he was forced out for being gay.
Back at home, Schultz says Dorn's parents treated him and his friends warmly. She recalled several men who often joined the family for holidays.
Your Place featured a popular patio, stage shows, art and high-end cocktails. However, Shultz and Takach say it shined because of how the space made people feel.
"Your Place wasn't just a tavern. It was a place where people were welcomed. It was a place where people could come, and if they needed something they could let Jim know about their needs, and he might be able to help them out," Schultz described. "I'm proud of the legacy that he created and the work that he did to make it more comfortable, make it easier for men during his era to have a friendly, welcoming place to go."
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