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In reality, swinging dates back at least as far as the days of early
Rome and the well-known Roman orgies. Over the years it has taken
many forms and names. In the 60's it was wife-swapping, and
seemed to be more controlled by men who opted to trade wives with other
men. In the modern day it has taken the name of swinging,
harkening back to another term from the 60's, referring to those days
of open-sexuality and freedom of enjoyment. In the current day,
swinging seems to be a much more equal opportunity activity where both
the males and females are pro-active in finding playmates, each equally
enjoying their chosen activities.
It
is reported that wife-swapping was initiated by military husbands going
off to WW1. Friends would arrange parties to wish each other well
and the men left behind would promise that if anything happened to a
soldier that they would take care of his wife's needs (including
sexually). Later, key parties were created where couples would
arrive together and the husband would deposit his keys in a bowl.
At the end of the night a woman would choose a set of keys and go home
with the keys owner.... again, harkening to the term wife-swapping.
Swing
clubs began as house parties. Groups of swinging couples would
meet at each other's homes. Some bars and lounges began catering
to swingers, and most swinging early on was in the larger metropolitan
areas of California, Chicago and New York. By 1972 there were at
least 18 on-premise house parties in Southern California.
In
1973, The Lifestyles Organization held their first convention in
Riverside California. Over the last 30 years the lifestyle has
become more and more "out", as it has continued to spread across the
country and into even the most secluded areas. The advent of the
swinger mag in the 70's and 80's helped swingers in finding other
like-minded people. Prior to that you would mainly find other
swingers through people that you knew. During this time more and
more clubs were opening as well (both on-premise and now off-premise
socials).
In the 80's, the advent of the internet helped the
lifestyle grow through anonymity. BBS's were popular and people
met on these boards to discuss any sort of topic. This allowed
swingers a new venue for meeting others. As the internet grew,
knowledge of the lifestyle become almost common. People who had
been practicing swinging for years finally found that there was a name
for it and more and more people came "out of the closet" so to speak
and found new friends. Younger couples were discovering this
previously unknown territory and opening their minds to it. A
lifestyle that was one primarily peopled by couples in their 40's and
50's was becoming an activity shared by younger couples as well. |
