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Willie Walker -- archivist for Bay Area gay community
SOURCE: Chronicle Staff Writer BYLINE: Wyatt Buchanan Willie Walker, a founder of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Historical Society in San Francisco, died Sept. 29 from liver cancer, said his sister Barbara Estinson. He was 55 years old and died while visiting Estinson in Spokane, Wash. Mr. Walker was a central figure in the development of the historical society, which was founded in 1985 and is described as the "queer Smithsonian" for the Bay Area. Having a documented history helps members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community have a better sense of who they are as individuals, what experiences pull them together and which push them apart, said Terence Kissack, executive director of the historical society. "Without Walker, the organization never would have been founded," he said. Located at 657 Mission St., the society contains 3,000 titles from Bay Area gay publications, including near full runs of periodicals such as the Bay Area Reporter, Coming Up, Bay Times and Ladder. The society's collection has been cited in over 50 published books and used as research material in documentary films and academic papers published by major universities nationwide. "We're like the queer Smithsonian for the greater Bay Area, and you can't replace that," Kissack said. The society was formed by members of the San Francisco History Project, a working group of individuals interested in gay and lesbian studies. Original founders included Mr. Walker, Ruth Mahaney, Eric Garber, Greg Pennington and Paula Lichtenberg. Mr. Walker volunteered his time as an archivist and kept the society's archives in his apartment on 17th Street in the Castro for the first five years of the organization's existence. He is thanked in the acknowledgments of many texts for his contributions to researchers' work. Since its creation, the society has grown to 500 members. It has a yearly budget of $170,000 and employs two part-time staff members. Members hope to one day open a large museum in the city. Mr. Walker, who was born in Fort Worth, Texas, came to San Francisco at age 18, but moved to his sister's home in Montana a month later. He eventually earned a nursing degree from Montana State University in Bozeman and lived in Butte for several years, founding a historical archive for that city, his sister said. He was a self-described hippy, Estinson said. After becoming addicted to drugs, she said, her brother decided to move to San Francisco to seek treatment. After recovering, he took a nursing job at San Francisco General Hospital in the AIDS ward, where he met Mother Teresa one night when she came by to meet patients. Mr. Walker also became involved in the history group and in 1988 earned a master's degree in library science from the University of California at Berkeley. He retired as the society's archivist in 2000 as his health declined due to a hepatitis C infection. It was an excruciating decision for him, Estinson said, but he always put the archives ahead of himself. "He always said, 'If queer people don't preserve their history, most of it will disappear,' " Kissack said. Mr. Walker is survived by his mother, Barbara Walker of Fort Worth; his brother, David Walker, also of Fort Worth; his sister Barbara Estinson, and four nephews and two nieces. A memorial service will be held from 4:30-6:30 p.m. Saturday at the historical society's offices. At Mr. Walker's request, memorial donations should be made to the GLBT Historical Society, 657 Mission St., Suite 300, San Francisco, CA 94105 or to Hospice by the Bay, 1540 Market St., San Francisco, CA 94102. King Daevid MacKenzie, La Crosse, Wisconsin, USA
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