Some say it started in New York City in late 1970 or early 1971 when a journalist (not Michael Musto) for the Village Voice joked that instead of simply wearing keys to indicate whether someone was a "top" or a "bottom", it would be more efficient to subtly announce their particular sexual focus by wearing different colored hankies.
COWBOYS GAY BAR NYC CODE
It is thought that the wearing of bandanas by men originated in San Francisco after the Gold Rush, when, because of a shortage of women, men dancing with each other in square dances developed a code wherein the man wearing the blue bandana took the male part in the square dance, and the man wearing the red bandana took the female part.Ĭlaims to when the more modern hanky code started vary. Color-coded, this system has been historically used by gay men to indicate preferred sexual fetishes, what kind of sex they are seeking, and whether they are a top or bottom. The handkerchief code (also known as the hanky code, the bandana code and flagging) is the wearing of various colored bandanas around the neck was common in the mid- and late-nineteenth century among cowboys, steam railroad engineers and miners in the Western United States. Here, we take a look at the tools gay men have historically used to determine who is into what.
![cowboys gay bar nyc cowboys gay bar nyc](https://kpbs.media.clients.ellingtoncms.com/img/croppedphotos/2018/06/12/SDGBH_PEACOCKALLEY_3022.jpg)
But questions like “into” and “looking for” have been around a lot longer than the dating apps we use today to ask them.
![cowboys gay bar nyc cowboys gay bar nyc](https://s.hdnux.com/photos/01/03/63/71/17776229/3/1200x0.jpg)
Some may think that the gay community’s obsession with finding out the sexual proclivities of a potential partner is a trend of today.