Jump to content

Jack Baker and Michael McConnell

Edit links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jack Baker
McConnell and Baker in 2016
Born
Richard John Baker

(1942-03-10) March 10, 1942 (age 84)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Other namePat Lyn McConnell[1][2]
EducationUniversity of Minnesota Law School (1972)[3]
Oklahoma City University (1968)[4]
University of Oklahoma (1965)[5]
Maryville Academy (1959)[6]
Known forFirst same-sex couple to receive a valid marriage license and marriage certificate.[7][8]
Spouse
Michael McConnell
​
(m. 1971)​

Richard John Baker[9] and James Michael McConnell[10] are American LGBTQ rights activists, known for being the first legally married same-sex couple in recorded history.[11][12][13] Married in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on September 3, 1971, they had legally obtained a marriage license and a marriage certificate[7] yet their marriage was unrecognized and unrecorded by both state and federal entities until Sept 2018, when a state court upheld their license and certificate as valid.[14]

Synopsis

[edit]

The couple met in 1966. On March 10, 1967 – Baker's 25th birthday – McConnell agreed to be "his lover"[15] but only if it meant "a commitment ... for the long haul", living openly as a married couple.[16] Jack agreed to find a way to make it happen by abandoning his engineering career and attending any law school that would accept his application.

Baker began pursuing his promise to obtain a legal right to marry[15][17][16] before he enrolled as a law student in late 1969. He and McConnell, a librarian, became gay rights activists in Minnesota from 1969 to 1980.

Michael McConnell
McConnell in 2016
Born
James Michael McConnell

(1942-05-19) May 19, 1942 (age 84)
Norman, Oklahoma, U.S.
EducationUniversity of Oklahoma (1968)[18]
Norman High School (1960)[19]
Spouse
Jack Baker
​
(m. 1971)​

On May 22, 1970, when Baker and McConnell applied for a marriage license,[20] the Clerk of District Court in Hennepin County refused to issue it to them, based on the recommendation of the County Attorney, who opined that allowing the marriage could "result in an undermining and destruction of the entire legal concept of our family structure in all areas of law".[21][22] After being refused[23] they filed a "motion for the issuance of a writ of mandamus to require ... the Clerk ... to issue a marriage license ..."[24] Denial in the lower court[25] was affirmed by the Minnesota Supreme Court[26] on October 15, 1971, in Baker v. Nelson, noting that even though the parties were not "prohibited"[27] by the marriage law to claim the benefits of "contract", a "sensible reading" of the statute "does not authorize" marriage between persons of the same sex. However, before the final opinion was published, McConnell re-applied[28] in a different county.

After being refused in their first attempt to obtain a marriage license in Hennepin County, Michael McConnell adopted Baker on August 3, 1971.[1] Baker changed his legal name to Pat Lyn McConnell, although he continued to use "Jack Baker" as his political persona. Now with a gender-neutral name, McConnell applied for a marriage license in Blue Earth County on August 9, 1971, which was issued in Mankato[28] on August 16, 1971 while the couple was visiting friends. Rev. Roger Lynn,[29] a United Methodist minister from the Hennepin Avenue United Methodist Church, validated[30] the marriage contract on September 3, 1971, at a private home in Minneapolis.[31] The Hennepin County Attorney convened a grand jury to investigate if Rev. Lynn had committed a crime but soon realized that some jurors found the legality of this marriage not worth pursuing. "Thus the marriage remained in effect."[32]

Initial reactions[33] were not favorable. An appeal[a] to the U.S. Supreme Court,[17] sponsored by the Minnesota Civil Liberties Union,[34] was dismissed[b] "for want of a substantial federal question".[35][36] on October 10, 1972, after the justices learned[37] that the couple had previously obtained a marriage license in a different county on August 16, 1971 – long before the appeal was filed in October 1971.[38] The clerk who gave them that license had not realized that both members of the couple were men, since Baker had changed his legal given name to "Pat Lyn", a name that is not obviously male. Upon discovering the error, the clerk did not officially record the issuing of the license, and that marriage remained unrecorded and unrecognized by both state and federal entities until its validity was affirmed on September 18, 2018, by a judge in Blue Earth County, who declared "The [1971] marriage ... to be in all respects valid"[39] and ordered the Clerk of Court to record it.[7] Since the marriage had never been declared nullified, it was ruled to have been valid for its entire duration.

The Family Law Reporter argued that the Minnesota Supreme Court in Baker v. Nelson could not annul a marriage contract that was validated "a full six weeks"[40] before its decision was filed. Baker and McConnell (and others)[41] assumed correctly that a dismissal of the Hennepin County case by either the state supreme court or the U.S. Supreme Court in October 1971 did not affect the validity of their marriage license issued by Blue Earth County. Professor Thomas Kraemer insisted that FREE[42] had hosted "the first same-sex couple in history to be legally married".[43]

After the wedding ceremony was completed on September 3, 1971, they were often invited to appear and speak at colleges, schools, businesses and churches in the U.S. and Canada. Their joint tax return for 1973 was rejected by the Internal Revenue Service.[44] Even though filing separately would have actually saved them US$309 (equivalent to $2,241 in 2025), they refused to claim the refund.[44] Similarly, the Veterans Administration rejected McConnell's request for spousal benefits.[45] After that, McConnell changed his tactic and listed Baker as an adopted[1] "dependent" on his tax returns, for which he received a deduction as head of household from 1974 through 2004. That benefit ended when Congress limited the deduction to the "age of 19"[46] for an individual who is not a "full-time student".[47][48][better source needed]

In 2003, Baker and McConnell amended their individual tax returns for the year 2000, filing jointly as a couple, offering proof of a valid marriage license from Blue Earth County. The IRS challenged the validity of the marriage and argued that, even if the license were valid, the Defense of Marriage Act prohibited the IRS from recognizing it. When McConnell brought suit, the U.S. District Court for Minnesota upheld[49] the IRS ruling and the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed, saying that McConnell could not re-litigate a question decided previously.

Their marriage was not recorded or recognized[50] as legal by the local government, various courts, the IRS, the Veterans Administration or the Social Security Administration[51] until a state district court in Blue Earth County affirmed its legality on September 18, 2018,[39] after concluding that the Minnesota Supreme Court had not "dissolved or annulled"[39] the license[7] obtained successfully from Blue Earth County.

Even before they succeeded in obtaining legal recognition, their marriage was characterized in 2013 as having been lawful[41] and included by Time in a listicle of "The 25 Most Influential Marriages of All Time"[52] in 2015. The legality of gay marriage has since become accepted, following a 2015 U.S. Supreme Court decision allowing it.

Early years

[edit]
Source: The Voice of Maryville (1957). At age 15 (left, rear), he was known as Richard "Dick" Baker.[2]

Baker was born in Chicago on March 10, 1942. While in kindergarten, his teacher described him as "very bright".[53] His sick mother died when he was four years old,[54] and his father, a devout Catholic and an Assistant Sales Manager within the Engineering Department of the Chicago Elevated Railway,[55] also died following "complications from surgery"[53] shortly before his sixth birthday.[56] The State of Illinois, Department of Public Welfare, Child Welfare Services, took custody of him and the three other children (out of ten total) who were now living separately with siblings on September 4, 1948, and delivered him to Maryville Academy[15] (then known as "St. Mary's Training School") in Des Plaines, Illinois,[16] where he was accepted as a boarder to receive Catholic schooling. He remained in its care and custody for almost 11 years, completing grades 2–12 [High School].[53]

While on active duty (four years) in the U.S. Air Force, Baker was accepted in the Airmen Education Commissioning Program and stationed at University of Oklahoma, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering.[57][58] Upon graduation, he completed the remainder of his military service commitment in Florida, at which time the U.S. Air Force provided the ticket needed to return to his home base in Norman, Oklahoma, where he met McConnell.[59] An invitation to hang out together led McConnell to agree, reluctantly,[16] to form a serious relationship.[15] A year and a half later, in May 1968, Baker received a master's degree in Business Administration from Oklahoma City University.

James Michael McConnell, born in Norman, Oklahoma, on May 19, 1942, was raised in a loving Methodist and Baptist family[60] of small business owners, farmers and ranchers. He attended Lincoln elementary school (grades 1-6), Norman Junior High School (7-9) and Norman High School (1960) before studying for a degree in Pharmacy at the University of Oklahoma (OU) and the University of Kansas (KU). After a year of study at KU, he worked as a clerk in the West Bloomfield Township Public Library in suburban Detroit and returned to the University of Oklahoma (1965), where he completed his Bachelor of Arts in Library Science with a minor in Pharmacy (1967) and a Master of Library Science degree from the OU Graduate School of Library Science (1968).[16]

Employment discrimination at the University of Minnesota

[edit]

In 1970, the University Librarian invited Michael McConnell to head the Cataloging Division on the university's St. Paul campus.[61] The board of regents refused to approve[62] the offer after McConnell applied for a marriage license, and regent Daniel Gainey asserted that "homosexuality is about the worst thing there is."[63]

McConnell sued and prevailed in federal District Court.[64] The board appealed to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals,[65] which agreed with the university that it had not restricted free speech. Instead, it ruled that McConnell was to blame for wanting to implement his "controversial ideas" and foist tacit approval of his "socially repugnant concept" on his employer.[66] More than 80%[67] of University of Minnesota students disagreed with the regents' behavior.

Hennepin County Library hired McConnell. After 37 years of service, McConnell retired as a Coordinating Librarian.[68]

In 2012, University of Minnesota president Eric Kaler offered McConnell a personal apology for the "reprehensible"[69] treatment endured from the board of regents in 1970. McConnell accepted his assurances[70] and agreed to join the Heritage Society[71] of the President's Club.

Same-sex marriage activism

[edit]

The marriage equality movement that emerged from the University of Minnesota attracted extensive media attention,[72] including appearances on the Phil Donahue Show;[73] and the David Susskind Show.[74] The movement was widely criticized,[75][76][77] while admiration among peers spread locally.[78]

Baker, McConnell (2016)

Though the appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court was dismissed in 1972,[35] other challenges followed as they pursued affirmation of their union while living openly as a married couple.[17] In 1972, Baker led the Gay Rights Caucus at the state convention of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party. The caucus persuaded delegates to endorse "legislation defining marriage as a civil contract between any two adults".[79] That vote became the "first known case" of support by a major United States political party for same-sex marriage.

In 2015, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples had a constitutional right to marry under the 14th Amendment of the Constitution in Obergefell v. Hodges, overturning Baker v. Nelson. The Attorney General of Minnesota submitted an amicus brief agreeing that the Minnesota Supreme Court's prior "procreation rationale"[80] did not support its prohibition of same-sex marriage.[81]

FREE activists

[edit]

In 1969, weeks before the Stonewall riots in New York City,[82][83] Koreen Phelps recruited local friends to join her outreach program sponsored by Minnesota Free University.[84] Robert Halfhill, a graduate student who attended her lecture, wanted more than "just a social organization". He left, determined to organize a team of gay activists[85] on the Minneapolis campus of the University of Minnesota.

Jack Baker,[2] then a law student and "benevolent dictator",[86] was elected to serve as president.[87] Moving aggressively and openly, FREE played a significant role in making Minneapolis a prominent center for the LGBTQ+ community[88] with members soon endorsing McConnell's dream of same-sex marriage[31] and assisting activists "to gain visibility and legitimacy"[89] at the University of Kansas, Lawrence.

When a faculty committee qualified the members of FREE to receive all privileges enjoyed by other student groups,[90] it became "the first student gay organization to gain recognition in the upper mid-west."[91] Its "leaders [believed] it to be the first such organization on a Big Ten campus", and the second such organization in the United States, following the Student Homophile League[92] recognized by Columbia University in 1967.[93]

One member asked five major companies with local offices to explain their attitudes toward gay men and women. Three responded quickly, insisting that they did not discriminate against gay people in their hiring policies. Honeywell objected to hiring "a known homosexual".[94] Later in the decade, when faced with a denial of access to students, Honeywell reversed its hiring policy.[95]

Photos by Jim Chalgren[96] (June 1973) led to an expanding collection of "Gay Pride"[97] events beyond Minneapolis.

In 1971, Baker campaigned[98][99] to become president[100] of the Minnesota Student Association at the University of Minnesota. Once elected,[101] he hired Gail Karwoski as his communications director and, one year later, won re-election.[102] The regents consented to his campaign promise and invited one student to sit with each committee as a non-voting member. That practice proved to be popular and became policy.[103] That same year, Baker became chair of the Target City Coalition, parent corporation for The Gay Pride Committee, which sponsored the Festival of Pride each June.[104] These celebrations were some of the earliest[97] queer pride events in the United States.

Members of FREE from Gay House invited friends to meet in Loring Park, picnic and join the parade into Downtown Minneapolis. These events, which encouraged queer pride, began in mid-June as a prelude to local celebrations[86] of Independence Day. Thom Higgins, Prime Archon of the Church of the Chosen People, crafted Gay Pride[105] for the banner[97] that would lead the crowd as it encouraged allies, supporters and bystanders to embarrass[106] Leo Christopher Byrne, the Catholic archbishop of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, for his public opposition to homosexuality.

In 1973, FREE continued working with University of Minnesota faculty to protect gay students from discrimination.[107] Central Administration approved the final draft of a new policy in 1972 and the Campus Committee on Placement Services began accepting complaints[108] of unequal treatment by employers recruiting on campus. A member of FREE[109] received class credit for documenting his youth and why he supported America's first gay marriage.[110]

Same-sex marriage as a civil right

[edit]
Baker and McConnell (r) at their Minneapolis home, 1970

Speaking to members of the Ramsey County Bar Association in 1971, Baker argued that same-sex unions are "not only authorized by the U.S. Constitution" but are mandatory.[111] Later, Baker spoke[112] at the University of Winnipeg, which activist Richard North credited as the start of a "fight [by same-sex couples in Canada] to be married"[113] legally.

In 2012, after Ben Jealous, then president of the NAACP, called same-sex marriage the "civil rights issue of our times",[114] Baker stated that "the conclusion was intuitively obvious to a first-year law student."[115]

Interviews

[edit]
  • Crann, Tom (July 16, 2015). "For Mpls. couple, gay marriage ruling is a victory 43 years in the making". MPR News. Minnesota Public Radio.
  • Raphael, T. J. (June 25, 2015). "'You are as good as anybody else.' Same-sex couple who married in 1970 on Supreme Court move". The Takeaway. Public Radio International.

Short documentary

[edit]

Further reading

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ↑ The U.S. Supreme Court was required to accept an appeal of a state court's opinion as a matter of right, a practice that the Supreme Court Case Selections Act ended in 1988 (Public Law 100-352, 100th Congress).
  2. ↑ 409 U.S. 810, 93 S.Ct. 37, 34 L.Ed.2d 65 (1972)

References

[edit]
  1. 1 2 3 Source: File No. AD-19962, "Findings and Decree" by Judge Lindsay G. Arthur, Juvenile Division; Fourth Judicial District, in Minneapolis; Hennepin County, Minnesota (3 August 1971).
    • Court's Order: A request to change Baker's legal name to Pat Lyn McConnell is approved because "regardless of popular conception, adoption is not limited to children."
    • News: Anon., Minneapolis Tribune, "U student head adopted by homosexual friend", 1A (25 August 1971) and Associated Press, "Male's adoption by roommate OKd" (26 August 1971); reprinted in Rocky Mountain News, Denver
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries, preserving the Michael McConnell Collection, "America's First Gay Marriage" within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies. (Binder #3, file #2)
  2. 1 2 3 Source: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies. (volumes 6a–b) As a student body president, elected 1971 and re-elected 1972, he was known by different names.
    • March 10, 1942: Richard John Baker, Certificate of Birth, but known by friends as "Dick Baker".
    • September 1, 1969: Jack Baker, the name he used as a general nickname ("Jack" being a common hypocorism for "John") to separate his new identity as a gay activist versus his private affairs.
    • August 3, 1971: Pat Lyn McConnell, name established by Decree of Adoption.
  3. ↑ Diploma: "Juris Doctor", The Regents of The University of Minnesota (December 13, 1972)
    • Certificate: "Richard J. Baker ... was ... duly admitted and qualified as an Attorney and Counsellor of the Supreme Court of the United States ..." Clerk of the Supreme Court of the United States (May 14, 1990)
  4. ↑ Diploma: "Master of Business Administration", Higher Learning Commission (May 18, 1968)
  5. ↑ Diploma: "Bachelor of Science in Industrial Engineering", Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education (June 6, 1965)
  6. ↑ Diploma: "High School", Catholic School Board (June 7, 1959)
  7. 1 2 3 4 Source: Blue Earth County
    • Applicants: James Michael McConnell and Pat Lyn McConnell
    • Date of Marriage: September 3, 1971
  8. ↑ Black's Law Dictionary, Revised Fourth Edition, West Publishing Co. (1968).
    • (page 1123) Marriage: Marriage, as distinguished from the agreement to marry and from the act of becoming married, is the civil status, condition, or relation of [two parties] united in law for life, for the discharge to each other and the community of the duties legally incumbent on those whose association is founded on the distinction of sex. 1 Bish.Mar. & Div. § 3; Collins v Hoag & Rollins, 121 Neb. 716, 238 N.W. 351, 355; Allen v. Allen, 73 Conn. 54, 46 A. 242, 49 L.R.A. 142.
    • (page 1124) Marriage certificate: An instrument which certifies a marriage, and is executed by the person officiating at the marriage; it is not intended to be signed by the parties. Spencer v. Spencer, 84 Misc.Rep. 264, 147 N.Y.S. 111, 113.
  9. ↑ Padnani, Amisha; Fang, Celina (June 26, 2015). "Same-Sex Marriage: Landmark Decisions and Precedents". The New York Times.
  10. ↑ Baume, Matt (March 1, 2019). "Meet the Gay Men Whose 1971 Marriage Was Finally Recognized". The Advocate.
  11. ↑ StoryCorps Archive (September 12, 2017). "Michael McConnell, Jack Baker, and Lisa Vecoli".
    • Michael McConnell (75) and husband Jack Baker (75) talk with friend Lisa Vecoli (55) about having the first same-sex marriage legally recognized by a U.S. civil government in 1971, why they chose to get married, and what the response to their marriage was like.
    • JB describes the decades-long (46-year) process from the denial of their marriage license in 1971 until a second request that same year in Blue Earth County, Minnesota, was "declared to be in all respects valid" by Order of Gregory J. Anderson, Judge of District Court.
  12. ↑ "After decades-long legal battle, gay couple's 1971 marriage officially recognized". NBC News. March 7, 2019. Retrieved October 28, 2025.
  13. ↑ Casey, John (September 4, 2024). "53 years ago, Jack Baker and Michael McConnell became the first same-sex couple to wed". The Advocate. Retrieved October 28, 2025.
  14. ↑ "After decades-long legal battle, gay couple's 1971 marriage officially recognized". NBC News. March 7, 2019. Retrieved September 20, 2026.
  15. 1 2 3 4 Source: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies. (volumes 5a–e and 8c)
    • September 4, 1948: To ensure that the remaining four of ten children who were living separately with siblings – two boys and two girls – remained together, Baker was allowed to enter the second grade at age 6 and graduate from high school at age 17, a stay of almost 11 years.
    • March 10, 1967: On Baker's 25th Birthday, McConnell insisted that he would accept Baker's invitation to commit as lovers if, and only if, he could find a way for the relationship to be recognized as a "legal" marriage.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 McConnel, Michael (November 2013). "Marriage – my childhood dream comes true" (PDF). Retrieved October 27, 2023. Jack asked me to be his lover. I was now ready to state what I wanted in a commitment: live openly and not repeat the mistakes of my previous relationships. I was in it for the long haul, whatever that took. I wanted marriage – not with 'secret' rings recognized by a circle of mostly closeted friends. Jack agreed to make it happen.
  17. 1 2 3 Eckholm, Eric (May 16, 2015). "The Same-Sex Couple Who Got a Marriage License in 1971". The New York Times. Retrieved May 17, 2015.
  18. ↑ Diplomas: "Bachelor of Arts in Library Science" (June 4, 1967) and "Master of Library Science" (June 2, 1968), Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education
  19. ↑ Diploma: "High School", Board of Education (June 2, 1960)
  20. ↑ Baker, Jack; Barrett, Helen (August 7, 2015). "'We had America's first gay marriage – in 1971'". Financial Times..
  21. ↑ Source: Letter addressed to Gerald R. Nelson, Clerk of District Court, from George M. Scot, County Attorney, page 6. (May 22, 1970) "The consequences of an interpretation of our marriage statutes which would permit males to enter into the marriage contract could be to result in an undermining and destruction of the entire legal concept of our family structure in all areas of law."
  22. ↑ Source: Letter addressed to Gerald R. Nelson, Clerk of District Court, from George M. Scot, County Attorney, pages 6-7. (May 22, 1970) It "is the opinion of this office that you should not issue the license for marriage to the applicants Richard John Baker and James Michael McConnell on the grounds that under the law of the State of Minnesota, as the same presently exists, two male persons may not enter into the contract of marriage."
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies: volume 2ab
    • Copies: Minnesota Judicial Branch, Hennepin County District Court, Fourth Judicial District, File No. 671379.
  23. ↑ Raphael, T. J. (June 25, 2015). "'You are as good as anybody else.' Same-sex couple who married in 1970 on Supreme Court move". The Takeaway, Public Radio International.
  24. ↑ Source: R. Michael Wetherbee, Attorney for Plaintiffs "Plaintiff's Memorandum in Support of Motion", Baker and McConnell -vs- [Clerk of District Court] Gerald R. Nelson.
    • News: Anon., Associated Press, "Marriage Is Out", Kansas City Star, 30A. (May 24, 1970)
    • Copies: Minnesota Judicial Branch, Hennepin County District Court, Fourth Judicial District, File No. 671379.
  25. ↑ Source: Judge Stanley Kane, "Order" (December 2, 1970). "It is hereby ordered that said motion be and the same hereby is denied."
    • News: Anon., "Gay Marriage Plea Is Denied", St. Paul Pioneer Press, 27. (November 19, 1970)
  26. ↑ Source: Justice C. Donald Peterson, Baker v. Nelson, 291 Minn. 310, 191 N.W.2d 185, 186. (October 15, 1971) "The institution of marriage as a union of man and woman, uniquely involving the procreation or rearing of children within a family, is as old as the book of Genesis".
  27. ↑ Source: "Minnesota Statutes Annotated", West Publishing Co. (1970)
    • Chapter 517.01: Marriage a civil contract. "Marriage, so far as its validity in law is concerned, is a civil contract, to which the consent of the parties, capable in law of contracting, is essential."
    • Chapter 517.03: Marriages prohibited. [The list of prohibited marriages did not include parties of the same gender.]
  28. 1 2 Source: Anon., "Daily Record", Mankato Free Press. (16 August 1971) Listing of applications filed and approved by the Clerk of District Court, Fifth Judicial District, which includes Blue Earth County.
  29. ↑ Source: Logan Chelmo, "Honoring Rev. Roger Lynn", YouTube. (6 June 2021) "In 1971, the first ever same sex marriage took place. One man, made that possible. Reverend Roger Lynn is a minister who officiated the first gay wedding. This is a video to honor him and his significance in gay rights and equality."
  30. ↑ Source: Claire Bowes, "Jack Baker and Michael McConnell: Gay Americans who married in 1971", BBC News Magazine. (3 July 2013)
    • Photo caption: "Pastor Roger Lynn holds up Baker and McConnell's marriage certificate" from the ceremony he conducted in Minneapolis
  31. 1 2 Source: Jason Rantala, "52 Years Since Same-sex Marriage Milestone", CBS News Minnesota. (3 September 2023).
  32. ↑ Source: Anon., "Homosexual Wins Fight to Take Bar Examination in Minnesota", The New York Times, 55. (7 January 1973)
  33. ↑ Sources: Pat Kessler, "A Rare Glimpse At Minn.'s 1st Gay Wedding In 1971", WCCO-TV / CBS, Minneapolis, MN (July 31, 2013): "What is believed to be the first same-sex marriage in the United States was performed in Minnesota"; also
    • Naomi Pescovitz, "Pastor Reflects Back on Minn. Gay Marriage", KSTP-TV on YouTube, Minneapolis, MN (May 16, 2013); and
    • Associated Press, "They're Mr. and Mr.", San Francisco Chronicle, 3. (September 8, 1971)
  34. ↑ Source: Jason Smith, "Gay Pride Block Party Case", Friends of the Bill of Rights Foundation, page 52. (January 2012) In a letter from Norman Dorsen, General Counsel for ACLU (1970), the American Civil Liberties Union refused a request for legal support after its board showed "little or no enthusiasm" for gay marriage.
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
    • Context: According to Professor Thomas Kraemer [Oregon State University], Tom's OSU, early gay activists [in New York City] "were mostly interested in sexual freedom and gay liberation". (July 7, 2012)
  35. 1 2 Greenhouse, Linda (March 20, 2013). "Wedding Bells". The New York Times. Retrieved March 21, 2013.
  36. ↑ Source: Jess Bravin, "Supreme Court Clerk Remembers First Same-Sex Marriage Case", The Wall Street Journal. (1 May 2015) According to his clerk, Justice Harry Blackmun said, "I just [didn't] think the court was ready at the time to take on the issue."
  37. ↑ Source: On page 7 of "Appellee's Motion to Dismiss Appeal and Brief" by George M. Scott, County Attorney: a chapter entitled "Questions Raised by This Appeal Are Moot". (October Term 1972)
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies. (binder #3)
  38. ↑ "Baker v. Nelson, Case # 71-1027". National Archives and Records Administration. October 10, 1972. Retrieved June 16, 2016.
  39. 1 2 3 Source: Anderson, Gregory J. (September 18, 2018). "Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law and Order for Partial Summary Judgment (file number 07-CV-16-4559)" (PDF). Minnesota Judicial Branch. p. 4. The September 3, 1971 marriage of James Michael McConnell and Pat Lyn McConnell, a/k/a Richard John Baker, has never been dissolved or annulled by judicial decree and no grounds currently exist on which to invalidate the marriage. The marriage is declared to be in all respects valid.
    • Title: Assistant Chief Judge, Fifth Judicial District, from Blue Earth County District Court in re James Michael McConnell et al. v. Blue Earth County et al.
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies. (binder #4)
  40. ↑ Source: Bureau of National Affairs, "Gay married couple frustrated in adoption bid", The Family Law Reporter, page 2103. (10 December 1974) The "federal constitution prohibition against ex post facto laws . . . forbids the imposition of punishment for past conduct lawful at the time it was engaged".
  41. 1 2 Source: Newsletter, "Hidden Treasures from the Stacks: pushing for equality", 'The National Archives at Kansas City, page 6. (September 2013)
  42. ↑ Source: Press release, "Minnesota Hosts First Legally Sanctioned Same-Sex Marriage", Minnesota Student Association. (7 September 1971)
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries, preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
  43. ↑ Source: Professor Thomas Kraemer [Oregon State University], "Gay marriage discussion in 1953 vs. 1963 and today" (December 16, 2013). Blog from Tom's OSU no longer available online.
  44. 1 2 "Homosexual Couple Contest I.R.S. Ban On a Joint Return". The New York Times. January 5, 1975. p. 55.
  45. ↑ Source: McConnell v. Nooner, District Court, No. 4-75-Civ. 566 (D. Minn. 20 April 1976); and
    • United States Court of Appeals, 547 F.2d 54 (8th Cir. 1976). "Minnesota law prohibits same sex marriages . . ."
  46. ↑ Source: On page 1170 of PUBLIC LAW 108–311—OCT. 4, 2004, in Title II, the "Uniform Definition of Child" amends Sec. 152(c)(2)(A)(i) to define a dependent as one who "has not attained the age of 19 as of the close of the calendar year in which the taxable year of the taxpayer begins, . . ."
  47. ↑ Source: IRS rules for dependents.
  48. ↑ "2005 Form 1040 Instructions" (PDF). Internal Revenue Service. p. 19. Retrieved August 6, 2026.
    • The 2004 tax reform was not implemented until 2005.
    • McConnell's tax returns are routinely shredded after three years.
  49. ↑ "McConnell v. United States, January 3, 2005" (PDF). US District Court for Minnesota. Retrieved March 21, 2013.
  50. ↑ Source: University of Minnesota Libraries, preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies. (volumes 2c and 2d)
  51. ↑ Source: Letter, "Retirement, Survivors and Disability Insurance", Social Security Administration. (16 February 2019) "We are writing to let you know that you are entitled to monthly husband benefits on the record of James Michael McConnell beginning June 2015."
  52. ↑ Source: Anon., "The 25 Most Influential Marriages of All Time". Time. May 12, 2015.: "Jack proposed to Michael in 1969, and Michael accepted with the proviso that they make the union legal. Their attempt to do just that eventually led them to the Supreme Court, which in 1972 dismissed the case. But the substance of their initial argument—that limiting marriage to opposite-sex couples was irrational and discriminatory—paved the way for legal victories in state after state—including, two years ago, in their home state of Minnesota."
  53. 1 2 3 Source: Film-File: 9239-40, "permanent microphotographic records" for Richard J. Baker, Maryville Academy.
    • Recommendation: "very bright", according to kindergarten teacher
    • Accepted: 4 September 1948
    • Mother's Cause of Death: hypertension
    • Father's Cause of Death: complication from surgery
    • Grades completed: 2 - 12
    • Graduation: 21 June 1959 [High School]
  54. ↑ Source: Certificate of Death, "Margaret Anna Baker" (mother), State of Illinois, Department of Public Health.
    • Registered No. 22129
    • Date of Death: July 30, 1946
  55. ↑ Source: Anon., "We Have With Us . . ., [company publication], page 13. (circa 1945)
  56. ↑ Source: Certificate of Death, "Bently [J.] Baker" (father), State of Illinois, Department of Public Health.
    • Registered No. 5933
    • Date of Death: February 22, 1948
  57. ↑ Eskridge, William N. Jr.; Riano, Christopher R. (2020). "1. Coming Out of the Constitutional Closet". Marriage Equality From Outlaws to In-Laws. Yale University Press. pp. 5–33. doi:10.12987/9780300255744-003. ISBN 978-0-300-25574-4.
  58. ↑ Bloomquist, Madison (December 18, 2015). "A pioneering couple". Southwest Journal. Archived from the original on September 20, 2020.
  59. ↑ Source: According to Ken Bronson, "A Quest for Full Equality," page 2, (2004) the meeting occurred on October 31, 1966, at a party, in a barn, on farmland, near Norman.
  60. ↑ Sources: Michael McConnell, with Jack Baker, as told to Gail Langer Karwoski, "The Wedding Heard 'Round the World: America's First Gay Marriage", University of Minnesota Press (2016). Reprint, "With A New Epilogue" (2020). Archived publisher summary at the Wayback Machine (archived August 26, 2015).
  61. ↑ Source: Letter from Ralph H. Hopp, University Librarian, University of Minnesota; mailed to Michael McConnell (27 April 1970); included in
    • Michael McConnell Collection, "Full Equality, a diary", volumes 5a-e.
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
  62. ↑ Source: Letter from James F. Hogg, Secretary, Board of Regents, University of Minnesota; delivered to Michael McConnell (July 10, 1970); included in
    • Michael McConnell Collection, "Full Equality, a diary", volumes 5a-e:
    • "The following recommendation of its Executive Committee is approved: 'That the appointment of Mr. J. M. McConnell to the position of the Head of the Cataloging Division of the St. Paul Campus Library at the rank of Instructor not be approved on the grounds that his personal conduct, as represented in the public and University news media, is not consistent with the best interest of the University.' . . ."
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
  63. ↑ Source: Randy Tigue, "Regent: FREE member case 'matter of public relations', Minnesota Daily (July 16, 1970), 1.
  64. ↑ Source: "McConnell v. Anderson, 316 F.Supp. 809 (D. Minn. 1970)". Justia Law. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
    • News: Bob Lundegaard, "University Ordered to Hire Homosexual", Minneapolis Tribune (September 10, 1970), 23.
  65. ↑ Source: "McConnell v. Anderson, 41F.2d193 (October 18, 1971)". OpenJurist. F2d (451): 193. October 18, 1971. Retrieved May 12, 2020.
  66. ↑ Source: Michelle Andrea Wolf and Alfred P. Kielwasser, eds., "Gay People, Sex, and the Media", Haworth Press (1991), 237; accessed February 7, 2012.
    • McConnell wanted "to pursue an activist role in implementing his controversial ideas concerning the social status to be accorded homosexuals and thereby to foist tacit approval of the socially repugnant concept upon his employer."
  67. ↑ Source: Office of Student Affairs, "Research Bulletin", University of Minnesota (Winter 1972):
    • "Do you think the University was justified in firing McConnell because of his open declaration of homosexuality?"
    • yes = 10%, no = 81%, no opinion = 8%, other = 1%
  68. ↑ Source: Agenda item 7A, "Commendation of Michael McConnell" (November 30, 2010). Hennepin County Board of Commissioners.
  69. ↑ Source: "News", University News Service (June 22, 2012). "University of Minnesota President Eric Kaler has called McConnell's treatment reprehensible, regrets that it occurred and says that the university's actions at that time were not consistent with the practices enforced today at the university."
    • <upres@umn.edu>: Email from Eric W Kaler – Office of the President to Logan Chelmo [Shakopee High School, class of 2018] (June 25, 2018). "The dictionary defines 'reprehensible' as 'deserving of rebuke or censure'. And the action taken by our Board in 1970 to rescind Michael McConnell's job offer simply because of who he loved – and not because of his qualifications as a librarian – is today worthy of deep criticism . . . of rebuke and censure."
  70. ↑ Source: Letter from Michael McConnell addressed to University president Eric Kaler (25 July 2012); included in the Michael McConnell Collection.
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
  71. ↑ Letter from Robert Burgett, Senior Vice President, University of Minnesota Foundation, addressed to Michael McConnell (February 17, 2020); included in the Michael McConnell Collection.
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
  72. ↑ Sources: Jack Star, "The Homosexual Couple," Look, 69–71 (January 26, 1971); also
    • Michael Durham, "Homosexuals in revolt", Life, 68 (December 31, 1971).
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
  73. ↑ Condon, Patrick (December 10, 2012). "Minn. gay couple in '71 marriage case still joined". Minnesota Public Radio. Retrieved March 20, 2013.
  74. ↑ Source: Sasha Aslanian, "Gay rights pioneers Jack Baker and Michael McConnell predicted marriage victory in '70s", MPRnews (May 16, 2013).
    • Baker insisted, "We're gonna win eventually, not this time but maybe the next time around."
  75. ↑ Source: David von Drehle, "Gay Marriage Already Won", Time, 22 (April 8, 2013).
  76. ↑ Source: StoryCorps, "How Jack Baker and Michael McConnell became husbands in 1971"; story aired on National Public Radio, "Morning Edition" (October 14, 2022).
    • Baker: "We got quite a bit of criticism, and very few people were actually supporting us. But I figured, well, history would speak for itself."
  77. ↑ Campbell, Tim (June 24, 2004). "Tim Campbell speaks out: Lavender Mag. June 11, 2004 Quest Column on D Carpenter". Tim Campbell speaks out. Retrieved November 3, 2024.
  78. ↑ Sources: Joseph Kase and Jeremiah Smith, "Baker v. Nelson: The Original Case for Gay Marriage". (February 2014)
  79. ↑ Sources: Ken Bronson, "A Quest for Full Equality", page 32. (2002).
    • Resolution 71.d, "The 1972 DFL Platform", Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor State Central Committee at Rochester, MN (June 9–11, 1972).
    • Press release: "Gay Machine Startles DFL Regulars", DFL Gay Rights Caucus (June 9, 1972).
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
  80. ↑ Source: Lori Swanson, Attorney General, "Brief of the State of Minnesota as AMICUS CURIAE in support of petitioners", page 18.
    • Case under consideration: Obergefell v. Hodges, In The Supreme Court of the United States (March 2015).
  81. ↑ Parloff, Roger (January 18, 2015). "12 key moments that led to the Supreme Court's same-sex marriage case". Fortune.
  82. ↑ Salam, Maya (June 4, 2019). "50 Years Later, What We Forgot About Stonewall". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  83. ↑ "Stonewall National Monument". U.S. National Park Service. Retrieved June 5, 2019.
  84. ↑ Source: Minnesota Free University: 529 Cedar Avenue, in the Cedar Riverside Neighborhood of Minneapolis, separate from but near the University of Minnesota's expanding campus on the West Bank of the Mississippi.
    • New course: K. A. Phelps ["Koreen" Phelps], "The Homosexual Revolution", Bulletin No. 5 (May 18, 1969).
    • Group title: "Fight Repression of Erotic Expression"
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
  85. ↑ Source: Bruce Johasen, "Out of Silence", Minnesota History, page 189. (Spring 2019)
    • "[Robert] Halfhill steered the group through the administrative channels needed to establish FREE as a student group".
  86. 1 2 Source: "Interview with Koreen Phelps (1993-11-05)". By Scott Paulsen, "Twin Cities Gay and Lesbian Community Oral History Project", Minnesota Historical Society (page 14).
    • "[I was] really upset with Jack. ... the right to get married was just a publicity stunt. I was really angry about that and felt that Jack was an opportunist and really in it for himself ... with Jack being this sort of benevolent dictator."
  87. ↑ Source: Neal R. Peirce, ,"The Great Plains States of America: People, Politics, and Power in the Nine Great Plains States", 145 (1973). Published simultaneously in Canada by George J. McLeod ; accessed February 7, 2014
  88. ↑ Source: Lily Hansen, "F.R.E.E. At Last", GAY, 13 (May 11, 1970).
    • See also, the Introduction by Ken Bronson,"A Quest for Full Equality" (2004).
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
  89. ↑ Source: Katherine Rose-Mockry, "Liberating Lawrence", University Press of Kansas, 158-159 (2024)
  90. ↑ Source: Wayne R. Dynes, "Homosexuality and Government, Politics, and Prisons", 248 (1992); accessed February 7, 2012.
  91. ↑ Source: Press release, Fight Repression of Erotic Expression (November 1, 1969).
  92. ↑ Merged later with the Columbia Queer Alliance.
  93. ↑ Schumach, Murray (May 3, 1967). "Columbia Charters Homosexual Group" (PDF). The New York Times. Retrieved July 23, 2013.
  94. ↑ Sources: Letter to FREE from Vice President Gerry E. Morse, Honeywell Inc. (June 29, 1970). "We would not employ a known homosexual."
    • Anon., "Three big companies say they hire Gays", The Advocate. (September 30, 1970)
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
  95. ↑ Source: Lars Bjornson, "A quiet win: Honeywell yields", The Advocate (magazine)|The Advocate, 13. (April 10, 1974)
  96. ↑ Courtesy: Jean-Nickolaus Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies, University of Minnesota Libraries, Minneapolis.
  97. 1 2 3 Source: Egil Jonsson, comments and posting of his copy of Jim Chalgren's 'Gay Pride' photo on his Facebook page (February 29, 2012; re-post on June 24, 2019).
    • "The banner was made by a friend, Thom Higgins, . . . Thom and I dated, [became] friends in 1980."
    • "I am in the orange range, 16 years old. This was the first gay rights march in the country that had a headline banner 'Gay Pride'. The following year all the marches adopted this and everyone called it Gay Pride."
  98. ↑ Source: Bill Huntzicker, "Dinkytown: Four Blocks of History", History Press, page 161. (2016)
    • A campaign poster featuring Mama D: "Jack Baker Comes Out – for Things That Count!" with caption "Mama D joined a collection of patriotic icons in this campaign poster for Jack Baker, the first openly gay student body president at the University of Minnesota."
  99. ↑ Sources: Profile of "Jack Baker", Minnesota Daily, page 2. (March 9, 1971) Student dignity is "a state of mind that forces students to realize their own self-worth and to search out a new self respect."
    • Endorsement: "Baker for MSA president", Minnesota Daily, page 4. (5 April 1971)
    • News: Kay Tobin and Randy Wicker, "The Gay Crusaders: A New Level Of Self-Respect", Paperback Library, New York, 136. (1972)
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
  100. ↑ Source: Steve Brandt, "Baker wins in record vote," Minnesota Daily, 1. (8 April 1971) "A total of 6,024 ballots cast topped the previous record of 5,049 in the 1958 election."
  101. ↑ Source: Gary Dawson, "Homosexual Credits U Election Victory to a New Sophistication", St. Paul Dispatch, 35. (8 April 1971) "He has spoken truth to power because he knows the power of truth."
  102. ↑ Sources: Vic Stoner, "Baker, Schwartz win MSA election", Minnesota Daily, 1. (7 April 1972) It was "the first time in the 121-year history of the U of M that a student body president has been re-elected."
    • News: Anon., "Law senior elected U. student president", Associated Press. (7 April 1972) Re-printed in Austin Daily Herald, page ?
  103. ↑ Source: Chapter 137, Section 137.023, "University Student on Board of Regents". Minnesota Statutes. (1976) "In electing members of the Board of Regents pursuant to article 13, section 3, of the Constitution of the state of Minnesota, and Territorial Laws 1851, chapter 3, section 5, one member of the Board of Regents of the university shall be a person who at the time of election to the board is a student who is enrolled in a degree program at the university. This person shall represent the state at large. Upon expiration of the term or in the event of a vacancy in the office, one position shall be filled by a person having the same qualifications."
  104. ↑ Source: Ken Bronson, "A Quest for Full Equality", p. 38. (2004)
  105. ↑ Sources: Michael McConnell Collection, "America's First Gay Marriage" Binders #7, #7a (Gift #13),
    • Jack Baker, "MEMORANDUM for the record" (19 May 2021). Some credit New York City, as "the cradle of the modern LGBT rights movement". However, the Stonewall riots there were a response to police harassment and were neither 'Gay Pride' celebrations nor demands for 'gay marriage', both of which began in Minneapolis and spread from there.
    • Video from the Library of Congress. "Gay Pride" appears on fliers waved by a few individuals in a march entitled "Gay and Proud", which was promoted by its sponsors as "the first Christopher Street Liberation Day Parade, held in New York City, New York, on June 28, 1970, to commemorate the first anniversary of the Stonewall Riots."
    • Stonewall leadership changed its commemoration of the riots to a celebration of "Gay Pride" after Thom Higgins, formerly a monk before joining FREE, coined the term for that purpose.
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
  106. ↑ Source: Anon., "Opinion", Star Tribune, A1. (June 1, 2018) "The wrenching bankruptcy that forced a reckoning on the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis for decades of clergy sexual abuse has culminated in a $210 million settlement for roughly 450 victims, the largest of its kind nationwide."
  107. ↑ Source: Letter from Malcolm Moos, President, University of Minnesota, mailed to Jack Baker and others. (February 11, 1971) "I appreciate your willingness to serve on the Campus Committee on Placement Services."
  108. ↑ Source: Gary Urban, "Complaint charges Honeywell discrimination", Minnesota Daily, 8. (March 12, 1973)
  109. ↑ Source: Ken Kurtenbach (Graduate of Gotebo High School), "Student Video Project", Human Relations course, University of Minnesota Media Resources (September 3, 1973);
  110. ↑ Source: Dave 'Moore On Sunday', "Tackles Gay Rights", WCCO - CBS Minnesota. (September 30, 1973)
    • Context: "WCCO's Dave Moore takes a look at the evolving gay liberation movement of the early '70s, including a look at the marriage of Jack Baker and Mike McConnell."
  111. ↑ Source: Bob Protzman, "Gay Marriage OK Predicted", St. Paul Pioneer Press, p ? (October 22, 1971)
    • "I am convinced", Baker said, "that same-sex marriages will be legalized in the United States."
  112. ↑ Sources: Jack Baker, "The right to be human and gay", Manitoban. (March 13, 1972)
    • As reprinted by Ken Bronson, in "A Quest for Full Equality", page 69. (2004)
    • Courtesy: University of Minnesota Libraries preserving the Michael McConnell Collection within its Tretter Collection in GLBT Studies.
  113. ↑ Sources: Letter of gratitude from Rich North to Jack Baker (September 20, 2004);
    • "We now have equal marriage in Manitoba, and our efforts here were a direct result of your leadership in Minnesota."
    • Context: In 2003, a court of appeals in Canada legalized same-sex marriage in the province Ontario.
    • News: Interview by Canadian Museum for Human Rights posted online by CBC, Canada. (2004). "Chris Vogel and Rich North of Winnipeg were the first gay couple to legally marry in Canada."
    • Also: Mia Rabson, "Couple helped make history", Winnipeg Free Press, A4 (September 17, 2004)
  114. ↑ Source: Lavers, Michael K., "NAACP president: Marriage is civil rights issue of our times", Washington Blade. (May 21, 2012)
  115. ↑ Source: Patrick Condon, "Gay couple in 1971 marriage ruling reflect on new court challenges", Associated Press. (December 11, 2012)
    • Reprinted in the St. Paul Pioneer Press, 3A+
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jack_Baker_and_Michael_McConnell&oldid=1378815144"