The collection contains the records of Gateway M.C., Inc. dating from 1973 to 2009. The records are divided into three series: Administrative, Events, and Newsletters. The bulk of the records date from 1990 to 2001.

The Administrative Series is arranged alphabetically by topic/type of document. It contains records relating to the founding of the club, bylaws, meeting minutes, and other items such as correspondence and membership rosters. The series dates from 1973 to 2006. Meeting minutes comprise the largest portion of this series, dating from 1974, 1984, and 1990 to 2006, with no meeting materials from 2003. A few agenda and committee reports are scattered among the minutes.

Membership lists provide names and addresses of Gateway MC members including the names of the six charter members of the club. The mailing lists also provide names and addresses of other clubs and members from other clubs whom Gateway wished to keep apprised of their events. The minutes revealed that it was not uncommon to grant membership to members of out-of-state clubs provided the individuals routinely participated in Gateway MC activities.

The minutes often reveal financial details for the club, given the lack of treasurer reports in the records, and the details involved in planning events. They also provide insight into relationships among the club’s members. For example, in 1996, member John Blair died and the December 15th minutes record his request that Gateway MC spread his ashes in the Atlantic Ocean with members in attendance (B1/f.15). The club held a memorial for which the Castaways MC of Milwaukee contributed money (B2/f.9). The minutes of 12 January 1997 record plans for club members to combine a trip to Ft. Lauderdale for a club run with the spreading of Blair’s ashes in March (B1/f.16).

Much of the correspondence is comprised of thank you letters for donations from local charities including St. Louis Effort for AIDS, Doorways, Blacks Assisting Blacks Against AIDS, and Food Outreach. There is also correspondence with the owners of Magnolia’s Restaurant & Bar, the location of the Gateway Saloon until the relationship ended in 2001. A few letters are from other MC clubs concerning events.

The History folder contains a general December 1973 announcement about the formation of the Gateway MC and a contact address which was likely sent to other clubs and to prospective members. There is an early broadside for the club announcing its meeting place as Martin’s Bar and sheet music entitled “Gateway M.C.” A more recent yet undated two-page document, “The Brotherhood of Gateway Motorcycle Club,” answers several questions that might be posed by potential members such as “How did Gateway M.C. begin?” and “What does Gateway M.C. believe?” (B1/f.6).

The Events Series is arranged alphabetically by event name and is comprised primarily of applications, flyers, and booklets for the annual anniversary run sponsored by Gateway MC, Show Me 1 through Show Me 36. There are no materials for the runs held in 1978 (5) and 2005 through 2008 (32-35). Posters and flyers for other events sponsored by the club, such as Mr. Missouri Drummer, are also in this series. There are also a few items for events sponsored by other clubs.

Most of the anniversary Show Me materials include flyers, event registration forms, and programs. The program booklets include the run rules, the weekend schedule, Gateway MC members and officers lists, and local sponsors’ advertisements. A few administrative items such as budgets and work assignments are also scattered throughout the files. A small number of unidentified snapshots, obviously from a scrapbook, are also scattered among the files from 1973 to 1981. Gateway MC produced shows for the event and there are scripts for portions of these shows in the Show Me 17 and Show Me 18 files (B1/f.19-B2/f.1).

Given Gateway MC’s long-time relationship with the Mr. Missouri Leather Contest, there is little about the event in the records. There are scattered posters/flyers, auction lists, schedules, and event registration forms dating from 1987 to 2006, with some gaps. The year 2006 marked the 25th anniversary of the contest and there is a program with historical notes on Gateway MC, the International Mr. Leather Contest, and the leather flag.

The Newsletter Series is arranged chronologically and dates from 1976 to 2004, with gaps from 1977 to 1979, 1996 to 1997, and 2003. The first issue of the club’s first newsletter, "Spokes and Sprockets," is dated April/May 1976 (B3/f.11). The newsletter’s title changed and the first issue of "Gateway Gear" in the records is dated January 1980. However, it is the only issue from that year. "Gateway Gear" appears more consistently beginning in January 1981 through 2004. However, please see the folder list for gaps that exist following 1981.

The newsletters convey varying amounts of information depending upon the time period. However, throughout the years much of the space is devoted to reviews of events, both Gateway MC events and events sponsored by other clubs. Issues dated from approximately 1991 to 1999 contain articles written by the club historian that highlight past events or longtime members. Also appearing in the newsletters are articles on motorcycles, recipes, puzzles, cartoons, and advice on the leather lifestyle (e.g. 1984 series on safe bondage, B3/f.15).