From Chains to Crowns: The Legacy of William Dorsey Swann
By Charles Zackary King
America in Black and White | Changing Trends and Times
In the tapestry of Black history and LGBTQ+ resistance, few threads shine as defiantly as that of William Dorsey Swann. Born into slavery in March 1860 in Hancock, Maryland, Swann would become the first known American to self-identify as a “queen of drag”—and the first to lead a documented queer resistance group in the United States Wikipedia Smithsonian Magazine.
Childhood in Chains
Swann was the fifth of thirteen children in a Protestant family enslaved by Ann Murray. His mother, Mary Jane Younker, was a housekeeper, and his father, Andrew Jackson Swann, farmed wheat. After emancipation, the Swann family purchased land and began farming, but poverty and racial barriers loomed large. William, like many formerly enslaved children, was denied formal education and began working young Boundary Stones.
Early Adulthood & Convictions
In his twenties, Swann moved to Washington, D.C., working as a hotel waiter and janitor. He was arrested in 1882 for petty larceny—stealing books and household items—but his employers and even the sentencing judge vouched for his character, describing him as “industrious, refined, gentle, and courteous.” This moment revealed Swann’s hunger for knowledge and dignity, even in the face of criminalization Rediscovering Black History.
The Queen of Drag
By the late 1880s, Swann was hosting secret drag balls in D.C.—lavish, defiant celebrations of identity and joy. These gatherings, attended by formerly enslaved Black men, featured silk gowns, corsets, and the iconic cakewalk dance, a precursor to modern voguing. Swann called himself the “queen of drag,” and his events became sanctuaries of self-expression and resistance Wikipedia Smithsonian Magazine.
On April 12, 1888, during his 30th birthday celebration, police raided the party. Swann, dressed in cream-colored satin, resisted arrest and famously declared to an officer, “You is no gentleman.” This act of defiance is now recognized as one of the earliest documented instances of queer resistance in U.S. history Wikipedia.
Legal Resistance & Legacy
In 1896, Swann was convicted of “keeping a disorderly house”—a euphemism for running a brothel, though he was simply hosting another drag ball. He petitioned President Grover Cleveland for a pardon, making him the first American to take legal action to defend the LGBTQ+ community’s right to gather. Though denied, his courage laid the groundwork for future civil rights battles Rediscovering Black History.
Swann’s later years were quieter, but his legacy endured. His brother Daniel continued making drag costumes for decades. Swann died around December 23, 1925, at age 65. After his death, local officials burned his home—a final act of erasure that history is now reversing Wikipedia.
Influence on Today’s LGBTQ+ Culture
Swann’s drag balls were the blueprint for the ballroom culture that flourished in Harlem and beyond. His use of the cakewalk, his unapologetic identity, and his insistence on joy and community in the face of oppression echo in today’s voguing, drag pageantry, and queer activism.
In an era where drag is both celebrated and politicized, Swann’s story reminds us that Black queer resistance is not new—it is foundational.
Changing Trends and Times 