Dorr-Raith Family Photograph Collection, ca. 1856-2021
Held by The Filson Historical Society
Creator: Samuel Dorr Family and Charles Raith Family
Title: Dorr-Raith Family Photograph Collection, ca. 1856-2021
Rights: For information regarding literary and copyright interest for these photographs, contact the Collections Department.
Size of Collection: 4 records center boxes (4 cubic feet), 2 volumes, and 1,391 digital files (1.73 GB)
Location Number: 021PC40
Scope and Content Note
The Dorr-Raith Family Photograph Collection documents the personal lives of Louisville married couple Samuel Fox Dorr (1943-2021) and Charles Stephen Raith (b. 1952). Photographs and albums represent their lives from childhood to adulthood, their involvement in the local gay
community and the Episcopal Church, their home in Old Louisville, and their travel in the United States and abroad. This collection also documents their friends and family, including their daughter, parents, and siblings. Materials include printed and born-digital photographs.
Series 1: Sam Dorr’s photographs and album, spans from about the 1856-1880s and 1912-2021 and documents Meriwether and Dorr family members, Sam’s childhood through adulthood, romantic relationships, travel in the United States, work life, faith activities, and gay activism.
Series 2: Charles Raith’s photographs, ca. 1895 to 2021 and documents Thuenen, Raith, Lueschen, and Diekmann family members, and Charles’s life from childhood to middle age.
Series 3: Sam Dorr and Charles Raith document their lives as a couple from 1981-2021.
Series 4: Photograph albums, 1948 to 2009, documenting holidays, family homes, family dogs, trips to historic sites and cemeteries, Dignity/Integrity meetings, the Louisville March for Equality, and Christ Church Cathedral events.
A processing archivist dismantled and foldered the contents of 12 of the photograph albums for preservation. The archivist captured the original order and context by digitizing the albums before dismantling them. Printed copies of the albums with notes by Charles Raith are in folders. Albums numbers 2, 3, and 15 remain intact.
Biographical Note
Samuel “Sam” Fox Dorr was born on December 6, 1943, at Norton Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky to June Mitchell Dorr (1907-1989) and William Meriwether Dorr (1896-1978). He grew up in the Crescent Hill neighborhood. Sam’s family frequently moved between different houses and apartments at N. Peterson Avenue, 215 S. Birchwood, Stilz Avenue, 152 Crescent Avenue, 28 Eastern Court, and Field Avenue during his childhood. The Dorr family struggled financially, and his parents turned to alcohol as a coping mechanism. As an adult, Sam described his childhood homelife as unsettled, particularly as his parents’ alcoholism increased in severity in his junior high and senior high school years. In the late 1950s, he spent summer vacations with his older, half-brother William “Bill” Dorr II (1928-1999) and sister-in-law Carolyn Buffaloe Dorr in Memphis, Tennessee. He was raised in his parents’ church, St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, where his mother worked. Sam was active St. Mark’s Sunday School, choir, Boy Scouts, and youth group. He was also active in the Thespian Society at Atherton High School. Sam asked out Jane F. Orr to his senior prom, which began their intermittent relationship. Sam graduated from Atherton High School in 1961. In August-September 1961, his parents’ alcoholism led to the hospitalization of both of his parents. They were admitted to Methodist Hospital for a week and then Western State Hospital in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, for six weeks. Sam moved in with his maternal grandfather, William Wilson Mitchell (1881-1963), at 1299 Willow Avenue, Louisville. His parents also lived with Mitchell after their discharge from Western State. Sam was interested in pursuing an interior design career and attending the University of Cincinnati, but ultimately decided to stay closer to home. In Fall 1961, Dorr began his first semester at the University of Kentucky while also managing his parents’ financial affairs on the weekends.
Sam decided not to return to college after his first semester. He got a job with First National Lincoln Bank in Louisville in January 1962 as a runner. He subsequently had positions sorting checks, wrapping coins, and counting deposits. His next promotion was as general teller at the Preston Street branch and working the drive-thru. After having an off and on relationship since high school, Dorr proposed to Jane Orr in 1964 in hopes of getting married in time to avoid the Vietnam War draft. In November 1964, Dorr entered United States Army basic combat training with Company A, 11th Battalion, 3rd Training Brigade at Fort Knox, Kentucky. After basic training, Dorr completed clerical and chaplain assistant training at Fort Dix, New Jersey. While based in New Jersey, he traveled to New York City and Philadelphia to attend Sunday mass and performing arts events. Dorr married Jane F. Orr on June 12, 1965, at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Louisville. He served six years in the Army Reserves alongside his work at First National Bank of Louisville, the successor of First National Lincoln. He entered the bank’s management training program and moved around to different branches. Dorr was promoted to manager of the Eastern Parkway Branch in 1967 and assistant cashier in 1969.
Sam and Jane had a child, Christine “Chris” Elizabeth Dorr, in 1966. In the fall of 1967, Sam started going to gay businesses. He came out to his wife and moved out of their home in December 1967. The couple divorced in May 1968. Their daughter stayed with Sam every other weekend until she was a teenager. Dorr began dating John R. Rausch (1932-1984) in early 1968 and together they bought a house at 1215 (now 1227) Ormsby Lane that winter. John volunteered with the Guild Theatre, a Catholic theater group, and the couple made many of their friends through the Louisville theater community.
Sam attended Grace Episcopal Church as an adult and served on the vestry from 1971 to 1974. First National Bank promoted Sam to senior banking officer and manager of the Bardstown Road Branch near Douglas Loop in 1975. Sam oversaw the completion of the new colonial style branch bank building. Bank marketing campaigns in the late 1970s made Dorr a public figure for the company.
John emotionally and mentally abused Dorr, leading Sam to temporarily leave at least once for six months in about 1976-1977. He came out to his parents around 1977 when he had to explain why he was moving back in with John. Sam served as executor of his father’s estate after his passing in 1978. Sam’s mother temporarily moved in with Sam and John after his father’s death. In 1980, Sam learned about Integrity, an Episcopalian pro-gay and lesbian organization, while visiting Chicago and was inspired to organize a chapter in Louisville. Sam ended his relationship with John in November 1980, and the breakup proved difficult as John attempted to continue to emotionally abuse him through correspondence.
Dorr met Ray (last name unknown) in December 1980, and Ray lived with him until May 1981. Dorr decided to break up with Ray because of Ray’s fear of being outted by Dorr’s involvement with Integrity. Dorr focused his attention on Integrity after the breakup and became close with an affirming priest, the Rev. Spenser Simrill, the Canon at Christ Church Cathedral in Louisville. In 1981, Dorr, Jack Kersey, and others were interested in starting a gay crisis hotline. They attended volunteer training with the Seven Counties Services, Inc. Crisis and Information Center.
First National Bank promoted Dorr to vice president in January 1981. Dorr and Raith met through mutual friends within the church in August 1981 and began dating. A few months later, the Louisville chapter of Integrity merged with the local chapter of Dignity, a gay Catholic group, and elected Dorr as the president of the new, unified organization. Dorr realized that his position as president of Dignity/Integrity would make him a public spokesperson for gay rights and he preemptively notified his bank supervisor. The bank gave him the option to stop his involvement with Dignity/Integrity and maintain a position at the bank, switch to a non-public facing role, or resign. Dorr resigned his position and stayed with Dignity/Integrity. He filed a lawsuit against the bank based on religious discrimination in employment under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. At the time, interpretations of the Title VII protections against sex discrimination excluded LGBT people. Charles maintained his position as staff architect with the City of Louisville’s Housing Rehabilitation Department, but the loss of Sam’s income led them to sell a family heirloom and home at Ormsby Lane. Jack Kersey helped the couple by offering them a low rent basement apartment at 1481 St. James Court and small jobs for Sam. In January 1982, the two flew to Washington, D.C. to seek financial support for the case from Integrity, Inc., the national organization of gay and lesbian Episcopalians and their friends and families.
In 1982, Sam helped form Gays and Lesbians United for Equality (GLUE) in Louisville, and later served as its president. GLUE served as an umbrella organization for several pro-gay groups in Louisville. GLUE and the Louisville Gay Alliance co-sponsored the first Gay Pride Picnic in Otter Creek Park on June 27, 1982. In early September 1982, Sam and Charles attended the annual meeting of Integrity, Inc. in New Orleans immediately prior to the opening of the 1982 Episcopal General Convention. The couple worked in the Integrity booth in the exhibit hall and attended worship and legislative sessions of the convention. In October, Sam was hired for a telephone crisis counselor position in the Seven Counties Services Crisis and Information Center. Dorr used his experience with Seven Counties Services to help GLUE create the Gay and Lesbian Hotline, a crisis hotline in response to the AIDS Crisis. Sam stayed up to date with AIDS resources for queer individuals in Louisville and trained other activists to do the same.
Dorr’s religious discrimination suit went to trial before the Fifth District Court in November 1983 and Judge James Gordon ruled in favor of First National Bank. Sam appealed the decision to the Sixth Circuit Court with legal assistance from the Lambda Legal Defense Fund. The Circuit Court heard the appeal in January 1985. A three-judge panel ruled in favor of Dorr’s appeal, which the bank challenged by requesting a rehearing en banc. By 1985, Dorr served in a voluntary capacity as the Midwest Regional Director of Integrity, Inc. He was promoted to Resource Coordinator at the Crisis and Information Center in 1986. After losing the appeal and being granted its motion for an en banc hearing, First National Bank offered to settle with Dorr by 1986. Dorr and Raith used the settlement money to pay legal fees and make a down payment on the purchase of a home at 1380 South 6th Street in the Old Louisville neighborhood from their friends (the Rev.) Spenser Simrill and his wife Stuart. The Neighborhood Development Corporation had renovated the house in 1978-79 as part of the “Adopt-a-House” revitalization program with the Louisville Community Design Center providing architectural services. Dorr and Raith moved into their home as renters on December 30, 1986, and the sale was closed in February 1987. They went on their first vacation together in 1987, traveling to New England and Virginia.
From 1988 to 1989, Dorr served as chairperson for the AIDS Education Coalition. In the 1990s, he operated a small-scale catering business, Dining by Dorr, alongside his full-time work. A reorganization of Sam’s program with the Crisis and Information Center led to his termination in September 1992. In January 1993, he started a new position in administration for Managed Care Programs, Inc., a mental health company based in Tampa, Florida, that also had business in Louisville. Following a job change for Charles, the couple took their first overseas trip to England, Wales, and Scotland on a Globus Tour in August 1995.
Meanwhile, the couple volunteered with Christ Church Cathedral and Old Louisville organizations. Sam volunteered as manager of the Cathedral Bookstore, kitchen manager, member of the Cathedral Chapter, Senior Warden, and numerous church committees. He also served on the Diocesan Committee on Human Concerns, Board of Directors of the Council of Peacemaking, Kentucky Refugee Ministries, and Kentucky Council of Churches Justice Ministries Committee. In the 1990s and 2000s, Dorr and Raith opened their home as a stop on the Old Louisville Garden Tour and Holiday House Tour. Sam managed and they both cooked for the Old Louisville Holiday House Tour Victorian Tea at the Conrad-Caldwell House, and the Old Louisville Neighborhood Council’s food booth at the St. James Court Art Show.
Managed Care tasked Sam with downsizing the staff after leadership decided to close operations in Louisville. The downsizing and death of the company’s founder from AIDS led Dorr to leave that position in the summer of 1996 and seek out more work for his catering business. After volunteering for years, Christ Church Cathedral hired Sam as Director of Operations of Christ Church Cathedral in Louisville on January 1, 1998. The position involved facilities management, bookstore management, membership development, and parish communications. He retired from catering in the fall of 1998. Dorr retired from his position as Director of Operations in August 2008. Sam and Charles moved their membership to the Church of the Advent in 2009, where the Church elected Sam to the Vestry and as Senior Warden. In May 2009, the couple married in a civil ceremony in Crapo Park, Burlington, Iowa, after Iowa became the third state to legalize same-sex marriage. Sam and Charles participated in the National Equality March on October 11, 2009, in Washington, D.C. That winter, the two honeymooned in Hawaii.
During his retirement, Sam and Charles traveled internationally and nationally, engaged in Dorr family genealogy, enjoyed hosting family and friends, and continued their activism. Dorr and Raith participated in the National Equality March on October 11, 2009, in Washington, D.C. From 2009 to 2016, Sam served on the AIDS Interfaith Ministries (AIM) of Kentuckiana Board of Directors, and as chairperson from 2012 to 2015. According to the AIM bylaws as amended in 2009, the purpose of the 501(c)(3) nonprofit was “to offer services to persons affected by HIV/AIDS,” “promote awareness and to disseminate information about HIV/AIDS,” “recruit and coordinate volunteer activities in support of these services,” and promote and further the services. Sam also served on the board of the National Episcopal AIDS Coalition in the 2010s.
Around 2011, the couple moved to St. Andrew ‘s Episcopal Church, where Sam again was elected to the Vestry and later Senior Warden. Sam experienced a minor heart attack in 2011 and health issues began to curtail his activities in 2013, having undergone anterior and posterior spine surgery, two knee replacements, and removal of a kidney. He passed away on September 15, 2021, as the result of a heart attack.
Sources:
“Samuel Fox Dorr.” Legacy.com. Accessed November 17, 2022. Dorr-Raith Family Papers, Mss. A D716b, finding aid folder, Filson Historical Society.
Buffaloe, Martha. Letter to Sam Dorr. March 21, 1962. Dorr-Raith Family Papers, Mss. A D716b, fld. 70, Filson Historical Society.
Courier-Journal Storytellers Project. “Coming Out: Sam Dorr – ‘How being openly gay cost him his career.’” February 16, 2017. https://www.storytellersproject.com/talk/how-being-openly-gay-cost-him-his-career/
Dorr, June M. Unpublished journals. Dorr-Raith Family Papers, Mss. A D716b, fld. 19, Filson Historical Society.
Dorr, Sam and Charles Raith. Christmas letter. 1992. Dorr-Raith Family Papers, Mss. A D716b, fld. 201, Filson Historical Society.
Dorr, Sam. “My First Fifteen Years.” Unpublished. Dorr-Raith Family Papers, Mss. A D716b, fld. 104, Filson Historical Society.
Dorr, William M. Unpublished memoirs. Dorr-Raith Family Papers, Mss. A D716b, fld. 34 and 42, Filson Historical Society.
—. “Why does it fail – or does it.” Unpublished manuscript. May 1962. Dorr-Raith Family Papers, Mss. A D716b, fld. 26, Filson Historical Society.
Interview with Sam Dorr, September 12, 2018. OutSouth: LGBTQ+ Oral History Project. Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries. https://nunncenter.net/outsouth/items/show/54
Charles Stephen Raith was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on October 7, 1952, to Charlotte Thuenen Raith (1924-2017) and Julius “Jul” Edwin Raith, Jr. (1925-2019). He has two younger brothers named Peter Allen Raith and David Christopher Raith. The family moved multiple times for Jul’s work during Charles’s childhood. They lived in Olivette, Missouri, by the time he entered kindergarten in 1958. After working for his father and uncle in Raith Brothers, the family produce business in St. Louis, Jul took a position with the Steadman Company, wholesale grocers headquartered in Lake Charles, Louisiana, where the family moved in the summer of 1960. Jul’s job was transferred to Beaumont, Texas in 1961, but within six weeks he had accepted a position with the Fleming Company in Topeka, Kansas. The family then lived in Topeka from 1961 until June 1964, when another transfer took them to Fleming’s branch in Houston, Texas, from 1964 to 1970. Raith learned to play the violin when he was 10 years old and was later a member of the Westchester High School, all-district, and regional orchestras. After his junior year of high school, his family moved to Louisville, Kentucky, in the summer of 1970. Raith graduated from Westport High School in June 1971. Beginning in the fall of 1971, Raith studied architecture at the University of Cincinnati. He was active with the Tangeman University Center Board and served as board president. He worked temporary and co-op positions at Hartstern, Schnell, Campbell, Schadt Associates; as a student assistant architect on the 1974 Historic American Building Survey Louisville project; and Landrum & Brown Airport Consultants during college. He graduated in 1977 with a Bachelor of Architecture and a Professional Practice Certificate.
Raith returned to Louisville and worked as a staff architect on the Jefferson County Government Center revitalization and renovation of the historic Jefferson County Courthouse for the Jefferson County Archives and Records Service from 1977 to 1978. He joined Bickel-Gibson Associates in 1978 and left the firm in 1980 for an Architect I position with the City of Louisville Department of Housing Rehabilitation and became a registered architect in August 1981. Dorr and Raith met through mutual friends at Christ Church Cathedral in August 1981 and began dating. Raith became a member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) in 1982. Two years later, he left the Housing Rehabilitation Department to start an architectural firm as “Charles S. Raith, AIA, Architect” in Jack Kersey’s former real estate office. In 1986, after the settlement in Dorr v. First National Bank of Louisville, Raith and Dorr purchased a home at 1380 South 6th Street in Old Louisville. Dorr and Raith moved into their home as renters in December 1986 and closed in February 1987.
Raith dissolved his firm in 1986 and joined the Kremer Group Architects, which later became the Weyland-Kremer Group and subsequently merged with Louis & Henry, Inc. Charles’s main projects were scattered site public housing and the Haymarket. Raith worked for the Louisville Development Authority as Administrator of Urban Design from 1995 to 2002. Raith oversaw Louisville historic preservation, urban design, neighborhood planning, and public art in his role. He served as the chief staff person for the Downtown Development Review Overlay, overseeing and preparing cases for review. He prepared neighborhood plans for Old Louisville, Irish Hill, and Belknap; oversaw conversion of the Fourth St. Mall back to two-way traffic and the development and implementation of its streetscape plan; and oversaw public art for the Nia Center and the Kentucky International Convention Center. During this period, Raith chaired the design committee for the rehabilitation of Christ Church Cathedral, for which John Milner Associates (JMA) of West Chester, Pennsylvania, was the design/historic architect. JMA hired Raith as an Associate in their new branch office in Louisville in 2002. Before starting his new position, Sam surprised Charles with a trip to London for Charles’s 50th birthday. Charles’s work at JMA included Cathedral Commons, consulting on historic sites and buildings, and preparation of campus heritage plans and preservation plans. He served on a site selection committee for the York statue plaza in Louisville, which was unveiled in 2003. John Milner Associates promoted Charles to Associate Director of the Architecture and Historic Preservation Department in February 2006 and he served on the company’s board of directors. The couple visited Paris, France to celebrate their 25th anniversary in 2006. Raith served on the Downtown Development Review Overlay District Committee from 2008 to at least 2012, which he had previously worked with as Louisville Urban Design Administrator.
Some of Raith’s notable works include renovations of Christ Church Cathedral, beginning in the early 1980s and stretching into the 2000s, where he served as the design committee chairman as late as 2002. In the 2000s, Charles and Sam traveled to visit their daughter Chris Dorr where she was stationed in San Diego, California, and Jacksonville Beach, Florida. After Dorr’s retirement in 2008, Raith and Dorr became active at the Church of the Advent and increased their recreational travel.
In May 2009, Raith and Dorr married in Crapo Park, Burlington, Iowa, after Iowa became the third state to legalize same-sex marriage. Raith’s maternal family was from Iowa and a cousin helped connect the couple to a local judge. Charles and Sam participated in the National Equality March on October 11, 2009, in Washington, D.C. The couple honeymooned on Kauai in Hawaii later in 2009.
In the 2010s, Raith and Dorr traveled with friends internationally to Andalucía, Spain and southwestern France. At home, the couple enjoyed hosting family and friends, and traveling in the United States. Charles retired from John Milner Associates in 2014, closing the firm’s local office.
Sources:
“Charlotte Thuenen Raith.” Peterson Funeral Home. Accessed December 8, 2022. https://www.pearsonfuneralhome.com/obituaries/Charlotte-Raith/#!/Obituary. Dorr-Raith Family Papers, Mss. A D716b, finding aid folder, Filson Historical Society.
“Samuel Fox Dorr.” Legacy.com. Accessed November 17, 2022. Dorr-Raith Family Papers, Mss. A D716b, finding aid folder, Filson Historical Society.
Adams, Brent. “Church building keeps construction firms busy.” Louisville Business First. May 14, 2001. bizjournals.com/Louisville/stories/2001/05/14/story6.html.
Dorr, Sam and Charles Raith. Christmas letter. 1992. Dorr-Raith Family Papers, Mss. A D716b, fld. 201, Filson Historical Society.
Interview with Sam Dorr, September 12, 2018. OutSouth: LGBTQ+ Oral History Project. Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, University of Kentucky Libraries. https://nunncenter.net/outsouth/items/show/54
John Milner Associates. Announcement of hire of Charles Raith. 2002. Dorr-Raith Family Papers, Mss. A D716b, fld. 178, Filson Historical Society.
Raith, Charles. “Salary History.” Unpublished list, ca. 1979. Dorr-Raith Family Papers, Mss. A D716b, fld. 165, Filson Historical Society.
Folder List
Box 1
Folder 1: Photograph of ca. 1830s-1840s portrait of Julia Morsell and Lillie Morsell
Folder 2: Ralph Mitchell, June Mitchell, and Francis Mitchell, 1912-ca. 1929
Folder 3: Caroline wedding, ca. 1930s-1950s
Folder 4: William M. Dorr II, ca. 1930-1935
Folder 5: William M. Dorr I, June Dorr, and Sam Dorr, ca. 1938-1971, undated
Folder 6: Sam as a baby and childhood, 1943-ca. 1950s
Folder 7: Mitchell family gatherings, 1944-1962
Folder 8: Portraits of Sam (includes physical and born-digital), ca. 1946-2016
Folder 9: Negative album, ca. 1956-1958
Folder 10: Christmas trees, ca. 1950s-1970s
Folder 11: Dogs, ca. 1950s-1970s
Folder 12: Dorr family homes, ca. 1950s-1970s
Folder 13: William M. Dorr II and Carolyn Ann Buffaloe Dorr, 1956-1962
Folder 14: Samuel Fox Dorr and Jane Frederica Orr Dorr, 1964-1966
Folder 15: Easter, 1968
Folder 16: Candid photos of Sam (includes born-digital), ca. 1960s-1980, 2008-2019
Folder 17: Mitchell family graves in Kentucky, ca. 1960s-1970s, 1989
Folder 18: Christmas, 1970
Folder 19: Vacation, 1970
Folder 20: Presidential sites with John Rausch and Chris Dorr, 1970-1977
Folder 21: Washington, D.C. trip, 1972
Folder 22: Virginia and Gettysburg trips, ca. 1973
Folder 23: Christmas and Chris’s7th Birthday, 1973
Folder 24: Ill-Fated Houseboat Weekend, summer 1975
Folder 25: Cars, ca. 1970s
Folder 26: Christmas Party, ca. 1970s
Folder 27: First National Bank parties and Bardstown Road Branch, ca. 1970s
Folder 28: Friends, ca. 1970s
Folder 29: Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, ca. 1970s
Folder 30: John Rausch, ca. 1970s-1980
Folder 31: Sam and Chris Dorr, ca. 1970s
Folder 32: Cursillo group portraits, 1980, 1982
Folder 33: Portraits of Ray, ca. 1980-1981
Album 2: Trip to Florida with Ray, March 1981. Wrapped and stored separately.
Folder 34: Crisis and Information Center, ca. 1981-1985
Folder 35: “A Follies Presentation: Fallon Star Tim Kramer,” signed erotic photograph, ca. 1980s-1992
Folder 36: Dignity/Integrity, ca. 1980s
Folder 37: William M. Dorr II, Cathy Dorr, and Ceri, ca. 1980s-1999
Folder 38: Iglesia Episcopal San José, Dominican Republic trip (all born-digital), April 2010
Folder 39: Atherton High School Class of 1961 50th reunion group portrait, 2011
Series 2: Charles Raith, ca. 1895-2021
Charles Raith’s photographs document Thuenen, Raith, and Diekmann family members and Charles’s life from childhood to middle age. Printed portraits and candid photographs of Charles span from 1950s school pictures to birthdays in the 2000s. The University of Cincinnati, architecture, and co-op folders (1971-1977) document his academic, leisure, and work experiences as a college student through photographs of bowling with friends, campus scenes, office spaces, and architectural drawings. Travel photographs document Charles’s trip to Washington, D.C. with his father (1971) and Louisville tourist sites with the Raiths (1982). Born-digital portraits and candid photographs (9 files, .004 GB) span from 2002 to 2015. Additional born-digital photographs (28 files, .04 GB) are of homes, schools, and churches important to Charles’s youth that he took while on a trip to Houston, Texas, in June 2008; a Cincinnati Reds baseball game with the Raiths on July 30, 2010; and Cave Hill Cemetery after Sam’s burial in the fall of 2021.
Folder 40: Joseph Thuenen and Harold Thuenen cabinet card, ca. 1895
Folder 41: Raith family, ca. 1900s-1981
Folder 42: Charles F. Diekmann (1891-1958) portraits, ca. 1917-1950s
Folder 43: Portraits of Charles (includes born-digital), ca. 1950s-2016
Folder 44: Washington, D.C. trip, 1971
Folder 45: University of Cincinnati slides, ca. 1971-1973
Folder 46: Architecture work, 1971-1980s
Folder 47: University of Cincinnati and co-op with TJC and Muscell, spring-summer 1977
Folder 48: Raith photos of Churchill Downs, Old Louisville, and Water Tower, November 1982
Folder 49: Candid photos of Charles (includes born-digital), 1989-ca. 2000s
Folder 50: Houston, Texas trip (all-born digital), June 2008
Folder 51: Cincinnati Reds baseball game with Raiths (all born-digital), July 30, 2010
Folder 52: Cave Hill Cemetery (all-born digital), November 2021
Series 3: Sam and Charles, ca. 1981-2021
These photographs and albums document the couple’s lives together. Materials include candid and formal portraits of Sam and Charles together, photographs of and with friends, photographs of their dogs, vacations, family holidays and events, church activities, and their wedding. The series includes born-digital photographs (1,318 files, 1.64 GB), which date from 2002 to 2021. Folders are arranged chronologically by creation date, then alphabetically by title.
Folder 53: Candid photos of Sam and Charles together, ca. 1980s-2010s
Folder 54: Chris Dorr, ca. 1980s-2008
Folder 55: Dogs (includes born-digital), ca. 1980s-2021
Folder 56: Friends, ca. 1980s-2000s
Folder 57: General Convention in Louisiana, 1982
Folder 58: Portraits of couple, 1984-2016
Folder 59: Raith family, 1985-2016
Folder 60: Jefferson Davis Monument, Charles and Andrew (the family dog) in front of, ca. 1987-1998
Folder 61: Funck family portrait, ca. 1990s
Folder 62: Episcopal Church, ca. 1990s-2000s
Folder 63: New York trip, ca. 2000-2001
Folder 64: Murder in the Cathedral play in which Charles performed as a chant singer (all born-digital), 2003
Folder 65: Stockbridge, Massachusetts trip, December 2003
Folder 66: Maine trip (all born-digital), August 2004
Folder 67: San Diego, California trip with Chris Dorr, December 2004-January 2005
Folder 68: Home at 1380 South 6th Street (all born-digital), 2004-2019
Folder 69: Springfield, Illinois trip (all born-digital), May 2005
Folder 70: Vacation to New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, and Utah for Jul Raith’s 80th birthday (all born-digital), July-August 2005
Folder 71: The Rev. Keith Marsh institution as Rector of Church of the Messiah, Gwynned, Pennsylvania, Fall 2005
Folder 72: Thanksgivings at Churchill Downs (includes born-digital), ca. 2005-2018
Folder 73: New Year’s Eve (all born-digital), December 31, 2005
Folder 74: Jean and Walt Funcks’s 60th wedding anniversary (includes born-digital), July 2006
Folder 75: Atherton High School Class Reunion (all born-digital), 2006
Folder 76: Mammoth Cave trip (all born-digital), July 2006
Folder 77: Paris, France, trip (all-born digital), September 2006
Folder 78: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Washington, D.C. trip (all-born digital), September 2007
Folder 79: Christmas Day (all born-digital), December 25, 2007
Folder 80: Supper Club (includes born-digital), 2007-2016
Folder 81: Sam’s retirement from Christ Church Cathedral, August 2008
Folder 82: Jul and Charlotte Raith’s 60th wedding anniversary, August 2008
Folder 83: Egypt trip (includes born-digital), September-October 2008
Folder 84: Christmas in New York City with Chris Dorr (all born-digital), December 2008
Folder 85: Charlotte Raith’s 85th birthday (all born-digital), 2009
Folder 86: Sam and Charles Wedding (all born-digital), May 2009
Folder 87: Episcopal Church General Convention in Anaheim, California (all born-digital), July 2009
Folder 88: March on Washington and President Lincoln’s Cottage at Soldier’s Home (all born-digital), October 2009
Folder 89: Kauai, Hawaii trip for their Honeymoon (all born-digital), December 25, 2009-January 1, 2010
Folder 90: Dawn at the Downs (all born-digital), April 28, 2010
Folder 91: Great Falls of the Potomac and Harpers Ferry trip (all born-digital), June 2010
Folder 92: Chris Dorr graduation and promotion (all born-digital), June-September 2010
Folder 93: Washington, D.C. trip with Chris Dorr (all born-digital), September 2010
Folder 94: Spain trip (all born-digital), September-October 2010
Folder 95: Dumbarton Oaks Museum, Washington, D.C. (all-born digital), May 2011
Folder 96: Memorial Day in Washington, D.C. (all born-digital), May 29, 2011
Folder 97: France trip (all born-digital), September 2011
Folder 98: Chris Dorr and Will Rouse (all born-digital), 2011-2012, 2014
Folder 99: Chicago, Illinois trip (all born-digital), July 2012
Folder 100: Chris Dorr and Will Rouse wedding, 2013
Folder 101: Car damage (all born-digital), May 23, 2014
Folder 102: Charlotte Raith’s 90th birthday (all born-digital), May 27, 2014
Folder 103: Kennedy Space Center, Florida (all born-digital), June 26, 2014
Folder 104: Charlottesville, Virginia trip (all born-digital), June 2015
Folder 105: Jacksonville Beach, Florida with Chris Dorr (all born-digital), September 2015
Folder 106: West Branch, Iowa trip (all born-digital), October 19, 2015
Folder 107: Air Show at Jax Beach, Florida (all-born digital), November 3, 2016
Folder 108: Philadelphia statues (all born-digital), January 2017
Folder 109: Tampa and Sarasota, Florida trip (all born-digital), May 2017
Folder 110: Kingsley Plantation, Ft. George Island, and Jax Beach trip (all-born digital), May 2017
Folder 111: Yew Dell Botanical Gardens (all born-digital), September 28, 2017
Folder 112: Christmas décor (all born-digital), December 2017
Folder 113: Jax Beach, Florida trip (all-born digital), April 2018
Folder 114: Williamsburg, Virginia trip for Meriwether family reunion (all-born digital), June 2019
Folder 115: Trip for Chris Dorr retirement (all born-digital), September 2019
Folder 116: Christmas (all born-digital), December 2019
Folder 117: Open House (all born-digital), February 2, 2020
Folder 118: Christmas meals (all born-digital), December 2020
Folder 119: Valentine’s Day (all born-digital), February 2021
Folder 120: Graveside service for Sam Dorr (all born-digital), September 2021
Series 4: Albums, 1948-2009
The bulk of the series consists of 14 photograph albums, which are arranged in chronological order by the earliest photographs in the album. The albums contain photographs of décor and celebrations for Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving, birthdays, weddings, and anniversaries; family homes; family dogs; trips to historic sites and cemeteries, especially ones connected to United States presidents; Dignity/Integrity meetings; Louisville March for Equality; and Christ Church Cathedral events. Many of the couple’s trips to historic sites were in conjunction with travel for professional conferences, Integrity Midwest chapter visits, and visits with family in the Midwest and South.
A processing archivist dismantled and foldered the contents of 12 of the photograph albums for preservation. The archivist captured the original order and context by digitizing the albums before dismantling them. Printed copies of the albums with notes by Charles Raith are in folders. Albums numbers 2, 3, and 15 remain intact.
Box 2
Album 1, Folders 121-127: Raith Family and Charles’s life, 1948-1986.
Album 1 documents the Raith family and Charles’s life from 1948-1986. Charles’s mother, Charlotte Raith, started the album. The album begins with individual and group pictures of the Raith family from 1948 to the 1980s. Depicted individuals are Julius Raith, Charlotte Raith, Charles Raith, Peter Raith (b. 1954) and David Raith (b. 1957), Uncle Bob, Aunt Jean Louise Funck, Great Aunt Carolyn Lueschen, Great Aunt Minnie Wellpott, Great Uncle Christian (“Chris”) Wellpott, Grandma Clara (“Loll”) Lueschen Thuenen, Grandpa Joseph Thuenen, Great Aunt Louise Diekmann, Great Uncle Charlie (“Dick”) Diekmann, Great Aunt Grace Borg Lueschen, and young cousins Tom Bedell, Gretchen Lee Funck Lewis, James (“Jim”) Walter Funck, Hans Lueschen, and Jeff Lueschen. School and college portraits of Charles Raith date from 1966-1972.
The remainder of the album is in chronological order, beginning with photographs of Jul’s and Charlotte’s wedding in Davenport, Iowa, on October 16, 1948. Infant and childhood photographs of Charles and his brothers date from Christmas 1952-1971 and were taken at home in Missouri, Louisiana, Kansas, and Texas; while visiting family in Iowa and Colorado; on vacations in Colorado, Missouri, Michigan, Mississippi, Texas, Virginia, Washington, D.C., New York, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Louisiana; and other unidentified places. Most of the 1950s photographs are just of Charles, but some also depict him with other infant and adult family members. Events depicted include Christmas, Easter, birthdays, and high school graduations. Noteworthy photographs are the Raith family’s homes in Lake Charles, Louisiana; Topeka, Kansas; and Houston, Texas.
The rest of the album (1971-1986) documents Charles’s young adulthood in Cincinnati, Ohio, and Louisville. Photographs depict his parent’s home in Louisville, birthdays, a Raith family vacation to Hawaii, graduations, Christmases, Sam and Charles together, a Dignity/Integrity meeting and third anniversary party, David and Leslie Raith’s wedding, Charles’s and Sam’s home, dogs, Christ Church Cathedral chancel renovation models by Charles, and Christ Church Cathedral interior.
Album 2: Trip to Florida with Ray, Marc 1981. This is part of Series 1, box 1 (still intact, stored loose)
Album 3, Folders: Charles’s life, 1952-2005. (Still intact, stored loose)
Album 3 documents Charles’s life from 1952-2005. It is still intact. Charles’s mother, Charlotte Raith, started the album. The childhood photographs are duplicative of Album 1, but have more identification written by Charlotte Raith. Unique photographs depict Charles at the University of Cincinnati, baptism of Charles’s godchild Ethan Erich Lewis (1981), Charlotte Raith’s 80th birthday at Disney World in Orlando, Florida (June 2004), and Jul Raith’s 80th birthday in Mesa Verde, Colorado (July-August 2005). Other events documented are Raith family Christmases, birthdays, wedding anniversaries, and 1993 Mark Twain Days in Hannibal, Missouri. Family members depicted include Charlotte Raith, Julius Raith, Peter Allen Raith, Stacy Stout Raith, David Raith, Leslie Ann Nichols Raith, Sydney Katharine Raith, Jamie Veronica Raith, Alexander Julius (“A.J.”) Raith, Barclay Edwin Allen Raith, and miniature Schnauzers, Andrew Aloysius Fuzzymuzzle and Godfrey G. Fuzzymuzzle.
Box 2 continued:
Album 4, Folders 129-131: Family, travel, home, and activism, April 1986-June 1989
Album 4 spans from April 1986-June 1989. It documents the couple’s travel, Louisville March for Justice, Dorr and Raith family events, and home at 1380 South 6th Street in Louisville. Events include David and Leslie Raith’s wedding reception (April 1986), house blessing for 1380 South 6th Street, Charles receiving the Preservation Alliance Award for Christ Church Cathedral Chapel from Mayor Sloane, Christ Church Cathedral Lay Readers picnic (ca. 1987), Education for Ministry seminar and training, and gatherings for Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter. Travel photographs document the couple’s 1987-1988 trips to Pennsylvania, New York, Massachusetts, Virginia, Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill, Arizona, Bernheim Forest, Maker’s Mark Distillery, Tennessee, Georgia. Other noteworthy photographs depict the Gay Lesbian Pride Week March for Justice in Louisville in June 1987-1989. The march began at Central Park and ended with speeches at the Jefferson County Court House. Sam spoke at the 1988 March as president of Gays and Lesbians United for Equality. Family members depicted in the album are Charlotte Raith, Jul Raith, David Raith, Leslie Raith, Peter Raith, Stacy Stout Raith, June Dorr, Kristina Funck, Kathy Funck, Jim Funck, Bill Dorr, Cathy Dorr, Gretchen Funck Lewis, and dogs Scotty, Winston, Andrew Aloysius Fuzzymuzzle. Friends depicted include Delinda Stevens Buie, Don Treadwell, Cathy Nunemaker, Janet Irwin, Robert Bird, Laura Cullinane, and Glenn Raymond.
Album 5, Folders 132-136: Home, church, family, friends, and travel, 1987-2001
Album 5 spans from 1987-2001, It documents the couple’s home in Old Louisville, renovation of their home, church events, Raith family events, friends, and travel to North Carolina, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Noteworthy photographs are of an Episcopal AIDS banner that reads, “AIDS is not a punishment from God, but rather an opportunity to witness God’s love in our compassion;” Christ Church Cathedral renovation in process, 2000-2001; Shrove Tuesday at Christ Church Cathedral, ca. 2000-2001; an Education for Ministry training at Sisters of Charity Nazareth Motherhouse; and a signed 2001 photograph of Charles accepting a historic preservation award from Mayor David Armstrong. Family members depicted are Charlotte Raith, Julius Raith, Sydney Raith, Jaime Raith, A. J. Raith, Barclay Raith, Lesl Lewis, and dogs Andrew and Godfrey. Friends depicted are David Hoover, Bill Roberts, and Debbie Marsh.
Album 6, Folders 137-140a: Travels and family, July 1989-Summer 1991
Album 6 spans from July 1989-Summer 1991. It documents the couple’s travel in Kentucky, New England, Illinois, Washington state, Kansas, Arizona, New Mexico, and Tennessee; the beginning of Sam’s catering work; Dorr, Raith, and Funck family events; and their home. Events include the burial of June Dorr, Funck family Thanksgiving in Iowa, birth of Sydney Raith to David and Leslie Raith, Easter, birthdays, and Christmas. The family depicted includes Charlotte Raith, Jul Raith, Gretchen Lewis and her children, Aunt Jean Funck, Uncle Walt Funck, Sydney Raith, David Raith, Leslie Raith, Bill Dorr, Peter Raith, Stacy Raith, and dog Andrew. Friends and parishioners depicted include Dean (The Very Reverend) Geralyn “Gerry” Wolf, Adele Vinsel, Charles, Nancy Vinsel, Jane Hope, Anita Jones, Paul Vinsel, Tom Peters, Jim Johnson, and Roy Frye.
Box 2 and 3:
Album 7, Folders 141-145: Family, church, home renovations, friends, and trips, October 1991-Fall 1993
Album 7 spans from October 1991-Fall 1993. It documents Dorr, Raith, Funck, and Lewis family events in Kentucky, Missouri, and Iowa; Christ Church Cathedral events; the couple’s trips to Indiana, Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, Ohio, and Shaker Village at Pleasant Hill, Kentucky; and before and after renovation projects at 1380 South 6th Street. Friends depicted include Don Treadwell, Bill Ballard, J. J. Seibert, Robert Bird, Rick Purvis, and Dean Malone. Family members depicted include Chris Dorr, Jul Raith, Charlotte Raith, David Raith, Peter Raith, Stacy Raith, Leslie Raith, Sydney Raith, Jaime Raith, Gretchen Lewis, Kent Lewis, Bill Dorr, and Cathy Dorr.
Box 3 continued:
Album 8, Folders 146-150: United Kingdom trip, August 1995
Album 8 documents the couple’s trip to England, Wales, and Scotland with a Globus tour group in August 1995. Photograph subjects include their tour guide Mick Hailey and tour group. Sites depicted include Westminster Abbey, Tower Bridge, Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace and Gardens, Salisbury Cathedral, Stonehenge, Roman Baths in Bath England, Stratford on Avon, Grasmere England, Edinburgh, Walter Scott’s home, York, Belvoir Castle, Cambridge, and Buckingham Palace.
Album 9, Folders 151-157: Trips, family, work, and friends, 1993-1996
Album 9 spans from 1993-1996. Documents the couple’s trips to Tennessee, Virginia, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Indiana, Missouri, Michigan, Ohio, and Illinois; Raith family events in Kentucky, Kansas, Missouri, and Iowa; workspaces; and friends. Noteworthy photographs depict a Raith family trip to the Louisville Zoo for Charlotte Raith’s 70th birthday; dinner with friends at Rick Purvis’s and Dean Malone’s home on South Brook Street; and a trip to Michigan to visit a gay couple and gay-friendly Saugatuck beach. Friends and parishioners depicted include Dorothy Johnson, Donna Delph, Rick Purvis, Dean Malone, Bill Stanley, Tom Traylor, Allan Mason, Mitzi Friedlander, and Paula Fitzgerald. Family members depicted include Chris Dorr, Jul Raith, Charlotte Raith, David Raith, Peter Raith, Stacy Raith, Leslie Raith, Sydney Raith, and Jaime Raith.
Album 10, Folders 158-162: Trips, family, church, and friends, 1996-1998
Album 10 spans from 1996-1998. It documents Dorr, Raith, and Thuenen family events in Kentucky, Georgia, and Iowa; Christ Church Cathedral events; the couple’s trips to New Orleans (May 1997), Tennessee (summer 1997), Michigan (ca. 1997-1998), and San Francisco, California (May 1998); and the couple’s backyard at 1380 South 6th Street. Friends and church parishioners depicted include Donna Delph, Norma Laufer, Bob Laufer, Dorothy Johnson, Jan Scholtz, Lauren Marsh, Deb Marsh, Andre Trevathan, and George Hubbard. Family members depicted include Jul Raith, Charlotte Raith, David Raith, Peter Raith, Stacy Raith, Leslie Raith, Sydney Raith, Jaime Raith, Barclay Raith, Gretchen Lewis, Kent Lewis, Bill Dorr, and Cathy Dorr.
Box 4
Album 11, Folders 163-166: Trips, family, work, and friends, 1998-2001
Album 11 documents the couple’s visits with Chris Dorr in California, Raith family events in Colorado and Kentucky, work colleagues and spaces, friends, and trips to Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Lexington, and Chicago, from 1998-2001. Noteworthy items are ca. 1998 photographs of La Jolla, the gay section of Black’s Beach, and street scenes of the gay Hillcrest neighborhood in San Diego, California; ca. 1998-1999 Louisville Development Authority staff group photograph on Main Street; and 1999-ca. 2001 photographs of events at Christ Church Cathedral. Friends depicted include Norma Laufer, Bob Laufer, Donna Delph, Dorothy Johnson, Howard Hoctor, and Dick Shea.
Album 12, Folders 167-172: Passion Play Pilgrimage, September-October 2000
Album 12 focuses on the couple’s participation in a Passion Play Pilgrimage in Italy and Germany in September and October 2000. The tour was organized by Christ Church Cathedral. The tour began in Rome, then went to Assisi, Florence, Verona, and Venice. They then traveled to Innsbruck in Austria and Oberammergau in Germany. Finally, they returned to Italy, traveling to Milan, Stresa and then extending to return to Florence and Pisa.
Album 13, Folders 173-174: Family, friends, and trips, 2001-2003
Album 13 documents the couple’s events, work, holidays, trips, and family members from 2001 to 2003. Family members documented include Chris Dorr, Julius Raith, Charlotte Raith, David Raith, Sydney Raith, Barclay Raith, A. J. Raith. Photographs document their friends David Arnold, David McDaniel, David Hoover, and Bill Roberts. Holidays depicted include Thanksgiving, Christmas, and birthdays. Charles’s group portraits include Louisville Development Authority staff and Education for Ministry class. Christ Church Cathedral related topics in the album include an annual parish meeting, the newly renovated Cathedral, the bookshop, and Sam wearing his new nametag for Director of Operations. The album also documents the couple’s trips to San Diego to visit Chris Dorr; Michigan; Delaware; and Massachusetts for Sam’s sixtieth birthday.
Album 14, Folders 175-177: London trip, October 2002
Album 14 contains photographs from Sam and Charles’s trip to London, England, for Charles’s fiftieth birthday in October 2002. Sam planned the trip as a surprise. Photographs capture the couple and London street scenes, gardens, architecture, and historic sites. Page 3 of print out of the album shows the tour guide that led their group on an Oscar Wilde themed tour of London.
Album 15, Sam and Charles Wedding, May 2009. (still intact, stored in box 4)
Album 15 is still intact and is wrapped and stored separately. It depicts their wedding ceremony on May 26, 2009, at Crapo Park, Burlington, Iowa, and wedding dinner at The Drake. It also includes photographs of a dinner on May 25, 2009, with the Raith family and Chris Dorr at Alpha’s restaurant in Ft. Madison, Iowa. Photographs depict the couple, Julius Raith, Charlotte Raith, Chris Dorr, Peter Raith, Judge David Fahey, Sean Lewis, Kent Lewis, Gretchen Lewis, Cheril Lewis, Emily Lewis, Ethan Lewis, Walt Funck, and Jean Louise Funck. For more on their wedding, see Mss. A D716b Dorr-Raith family papers.
Subject Headings
Dorr Family
Dorr, June Mitchell, 1907-1989
Dorr, Samuel F., 1943-2021
Dorr, William Meriwether, 1896-1978
Mitchell Family
Raith, Charles S., 1952-
Raith, Charlotte Thuenen, 1924-2017
Raith, Julius E., 1925-2019
Rausch, John R., 1932-1984
Architecture, Domestic – Kentucky – Louisville
Architects – Kentucky – Louisville
Basic training (Military education)
Business enterprises – Kentucky – Louisville
Childhood – United States
Christ Church Cathedral (Louisville, Ky.)
Christmas – Kentucky – Louisville
Churchill Downs Incorporated
College students – Ohio – Cincinnati
Dignity/Integrity of Louisville, Inc. (Louisville, Ky.)
Dogs
Episcopal Church. Diocese of Kentucky
Episcopalians – Kentucky – Louisville
Erotica
Families, White – Kentucky – Louisville
First National Bank (Louisville, Ky.)
Gardens – Kentucky – Louisville
Gay families
Gay men – Kentucky – Louisville
Gay rights – Kentucky – Louisville
Holidays – Kentucky – Louisville
LGBTQ+ Christians
LGBTQ+ couples – Kentucky – Louisville
LGBTQ+ demonstrations
LGBTQ+ movement
LGBTQ+ relationships
National Equality March (2009: Washington, D.C.)
Old Louisville (Louisville, KY)
Protestants – Kentucky – Jefferson County
Seven Counties Services, Inc. (Louisville, Ky.)
Travel
United States. Army – Military life
University of Cincinnati
Weddings
