Founder_and_presidents_Chicago_Woman's_Club

The Chicago Woman's Club was formed in 1876 by women in Chicago who were interested in "self and social improvement." The club was notable for creating educational opportunities in the Chicago region and helped create the first

juvenile court A juvenile court, also known as young offender's court or children's court, is a tribunal having special authority to pass judgements for crimes that are committed by children who have not attained the age of majority. In most modern legal s ...

in the United States. The group was primarily made up of wealthy and middle-class white women, with physicians,

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

s and university professors playing "prominent roles." The club often worked towards social and educational reform in Chicago. It also hosted talks by prominent women, including artists and

suffragists Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

. The Chicago Woman's Club was responsible for creating the first Protective Agency in the United States that dealt with assault and rape of women. The group was active in reform of the Cook County Insane Hospital and of other health reforms. They helped establish the first kindergartens and nursery schools in Chicago. Later, the club became involved with both the

woman's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

movement and also with promoting

birth control Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent unwanted pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth contr ...

. The club met until 1999, when the group dissolved. Assets of the club went to support scholarships and other philanthropic endeavors.

History

The Chicago Woman's Club was first formed in 1876, on May 17. In 1885, the club incorporated, and changed the name officially to the Chicago Woman's Club. The founder of the group was Caroline Brown, who suggested to friends that they form a group in order to socialize and associate. By 1877, the club was written up in the ''

Woman's Journal ''Woman's Journal'' was an American women's rights periodical published from 1870 to 1931. It was founded in 1870 in Boston, Massachusetts, by Lucy Stone and her husband Henry Browne Blackwell as a weekly newspaper. In 1917 it was purchased by ...

'' and had approximately thirty members, many of which were active in social reform and in

literary Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to ...

and philanthropic circles. The kind of self-improvement study that the club was involved with was "often as demanding as a first year college curriculum." The education provided by the club was, at the time, one of the only ways most women could pursue a "post graduate education." The Chicago Woman's Club organized itself into six main committees: Reform, Philanthropy, Home, Education, Art and literature and Philosophy and science. Each member of the club was required to serve on at least one committee. The club's officers were not all members of the Chicago Woman's Club. Instead, half of the officers were members and the other half came out of other Chicago club organizations. Membership was exclusive and new members had to be sponsored by current members, "and their acceptance into the club was often dependent on the importance of their sponsor." The members of the club initially met at Brown's house. In 1877, they rented rooms in the

Chicago Literary Club The Chicago Literary Club is a society founded in 1874 at which members orally deliver essays they have written, and listen to the essays of other members. All members must be skilled in English, though most are not professional writers. The Chicago ...

on Monroe Street. Later, they started to meet at the

Palmer House The Palmer House – A Hilton Hotel is a historic hotel in Chicago's Loop area. It is a member of the Historic Hotels of America program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The Palmer House was the city's first hotel with elevators, ...

, and Grand Pacific. In 1894, the club had moved into the Potter Building, and to mark the occasion, they held a reception, where for the first time men were also invited to attend. Later, in 1916, the club would vote against allowing an "Associate Membership" for men. The club had a new location on Michigan Avenue in 1929, and also during that year again considered creating an "Associate Membership" for men. The building on Michigan Ave. was six stories high and designed by Holabird & Roche along with engineer Frank E. Brown. This building is now part of Columbia College. The group increased from 30 to 60 members in 1881. By 1894, there were 600 members. In 1896, the club had increased to 730 members. In 1901, there were 900 members, increasing to 1,000 by 1906, and to 1,200 members in 1921. Annually, the Chicago Woman's Club produced a large yearbook which described the activities of the club over the past year. The club's motto was "'' Humani nihil a me alienum puto."'' On May 25, 1892, they adopted the official colors for the club of ivory white and gold. In 1876, the club admitted the first Jewish women, Henriette and Hannah Solomon. The first African American member of the club was Fannie Barrier Williams. She went through a difficult approval process which caused dissension in the club. In 1895, the club voted not to exclude anyone based on race. She was finally made a member in 1896. In 1894, a club for African American women which was based on the Chicago Woman's Club was organized. In 1901, the club faced a difficult time when an anonymous letter was sent which accused member, Mrs. Robert Farson, of "financial dishonesty." Farson, and others accused, demanded an investigation. Handwriting analysis indicated that the person sending the letter was "No.75," a designation that would have been obvious to club members. Other possible members may have been those designated as "70 and 76." The discovery committee later decided that the letter writer was

Alice Bradford Wiles Alice Bradford Miles (February 16, 1853 – February 20, 1929) was an American clubwoman based in Chicago, Illinois. She was active at the national level with the Daughters of the American Revolution and at the state level as president of the Illin ...

, who both disputed the accusation and threatened to sue the club for "slander and damages."

Reform

The Chicago Woman's Club started engaging with various social reforms around the mid 80s. Club members were moved by families who endured difficult working conditions and by children who were forced to work for their families. Starting in January 1896, some club members held monthly meetings to study laws that affected or were about women and children. The Chicago Woman's Club became involved in the Cook County Insane Hospital, where they supported Delia Howe become the assistant physician. The Chicago Women's Club also made the case that further appointments should be women after Howe left and asked them to appoint and maintain Harriet C. B. Alexander to the open position. The club continued to work towards improvements for female inmates at the hospital, conducted visits and monitored the status of the hospital, reporting on violations. They even submitted in 1886, a proposed amendment to the laws for the care of the insane and common criminals. Most of these duties were carried out by the club's Reform Committee. In 1893, the Reform Committee was still involved with helping to improve the hospital. It had secured enough food and clothing for those inside the Insane Hospital by 1904. The Chicago Women's Club was also involved with asking for a general hospital to treat those with "infectious diseases." The club worked towards the establishment of such a hospital for many years. The Reform Committee also worked to create a Children's Hospital Society of Chicago. In 1909, the club suggested a way to improve medical staffing at the county jail. The Chicago Woman's Club was active in other health-related issues. The club promoted advertisements against

spitting Spitting is the act of forcibly ejecting saliva or other substances from the mouth. The act is often done to get rid of unwanted or foul-tasting substances in the mouth, or to get rid of a large buildup of mucus. Spitting of small saliva drop ...

in the city of Chicago, and were also in support of anti-cigarette legislation. The club pledged $11,343 to support the cancer seal campaign in 1930. The club was an early promoter of cancer education. They were involved with helping to appoint a night matron at the jail in 1884. The night matron would look after women and children who were prisoners in the jail. Chicago Women's Club members, Ellen Henrotin and Sara Hackett Stevenson, were instrumental in creating a Protective Agency for Women and Children in 1886. This Protective Agency was the first in the country to protect wives who were victims of

assault An assault is the act of committing physical harm or unwanted physical contact upon a person or, in some specific legal definitions, a threat or attempt to commit such an action. It is both a crime and a tort and, therefore, may result in crim ...

and rape. The club provided legal aid for women facing various issues, provided lawyers to those who could not afford them, and often "appeared in court on behalf of rape victims." In 1897, the Protective Agency merged with the Bureau of Justice, but "the women asked for and received sole jurisdiction over the cases affecting women and children." The Protective Agency again moved into a different merger with the Legal Aid Society of Chicago in 1905. Also in 1905, the club petitioned Illinois state about a proposed amendment to protect children under the crimes act. The work of committee members such as

Julia Lathrop Julia Clifford Lathrop (June 29, 1858 – April 15, 1932) was an American social reformer in the area of education, social policy, and children's welfare. As director of the United States Children's Bureau from 1912 to 1922, she was the first wom ...

, Jane Addams and Lucy Flower influenced the creation of the Illinois Juvenile Court Law of 1899, creating the first

in the country. The club helped pay the salaries of the probation officers who would later work in the court. Prior to creating a juvenile justice system, "bad kids" in Chicago were arrested on spurious charges and left in jails with adults with no legal recourse. In 1929, the Chicago Woman's Club, along with other organizations funded a study of "behavior problems of delinquent boys." In 1915, Rachelle Yarros convinced the Chicago Woman's Club to create a birth control committee. By 1916, the club was addressing issues of

. The discussion of

contraceptives Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent unwanted pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth contr ...

was controversial, and also could have resulted in the arrest of those promoting it, since laws were still on the books preventing the dissemination of information about birth control. The club also held a birth control conference, where

James A. Field James Alfred Field (May 26, 1880 – July 16, 1927Frank Moore Colby, Allen Leon Churchill, Herbert Treadwell Wade (1928) ''The New international year book.'' p. 286) was an American economist and Professor of Political Economy at the University ...

presented information on the subject. Yarros was appointed by the Chicago Woman's Club as the chair of the Chicago Citizen's Committee which created the Illinois Birth Control League. The league opened various clinics in Chicago in the 1920s, despite laws against allowing information about birth control in the city. The Chicago Woman's Club was also involved in the

movement. In 1894, the group created the

Chicago Political Equality League (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

. The Political Equality League was considered a "conservative" group and it worked to "dispel the bogy of the anti-suffragists, to show the world that one can be a believer in votes for women and still be essentially feminine, be charming perhaps, and agreeable." The group also hosted talks about suffrage, and had suffragists, such as Susan B. Anthony, speak at the club. Environmental concerns were also important to the club. Members spoke out against the killing of wild birds for the feathers used in fashionable women's clothing. In 1905, they supported a measure to preserve natural areas in Illinois.

Education

The Chicago Woman's Club was involved in many educational efforts. Some of these, like advocating for children's schooling in prisons, were tied into their other reform efforts. Early on, the club petitioned Mayor Roche to appoint women to vacancies in the Board of Education in Chicago in 1887. Later, the club nominated five women to the school board in 1890.

Ada Celeste Sweet Ada Celeste Sweet (23 February 1853 – 17 September 1928) was an American reformer and humanitarian originally from the U.S. state of Wisconsin, but subsequently from the U.S. state of Illinois. POTUS, President Ulysses S. Grant appointed her Uni ...

was appointed to the Board of Education in 1892, and the club urged the confirmation of her appointment. As an example to the Chicago Board of Education, in 1898 the club cleaned one of the schools from "attic to basement" as an example of what cleanliness and sanitation in a school building should look like. In 1916, the club urged the school board to choose teachers based on educational merit alone. Club member, Lucy Flower, lobbied successfully for Illinois to have a compulsory education law. The Chicago Woman's Club also helped, along with

Rose Haas Alschuler Rose Haas Alschuler (December 17, 1887 – July 4, 1979) was an American educator. She worked with the Chicago Woman's Club to create and direct the first nursery school in Chicago. That school, organized in the Franklin Public School system was al ...

and her cousin Charlotte Kuh, to set up the first public nursery school in the United States, which was affiliated with the Chicago Board of Education. The club was also the first to provide funds for a kindergarten in the public schools. In 1905, the club created a fellowship for the John H. Hamline school which would provide funds for parents' and children's clubs. The Chicago Woman's Club also supported education for the blind beyond public schooling. In 1906, members of the club taught the visually impaired in their homes, teaching Braille, shorthand, typewriting and weaving. The work had grown so much, that additional funds were needed and a proposed bill was introduced to provide it to the teachers. In 1889, the club "adopted" Norwood Park School, donating funds and soliciting more for the school. The school was both an orphanage for over 300 homeless boys and a training school. The club also helped the School Children's Aid Society by donating time and "suitable new clothing" for poor students so they could attend school. The club also created a school for boys who were inmates at the Chicago common jail. The Chicago Women's Club ensured that boys in the county jail had a Thanksgiving dinner in 1898. In 1885, the club began a training school for

domestic servants A domestic worker or domestic servant is a person who works within the scope of a residence. The term "domestic service" applies to the equivalent occupational category. In traditional English contexts, such a person was said to be "in service ...

. The club continued this work, creating a school, developing scholarships, providing housing for students and creating an employment agency. In 1900, the club also advocated for boys to learn how to cook in public schools. The idea also included teaching boys other domestic sciences, so that when they grew up, they would "make good husbands, able to help their wives in domestic economy." Vocational classes for interested students, which included scholarships, were started by the Chicago Woman's Club. In 1892, the club helped finance women's dormitories at the University of Chicago. The dormitories cost $280,000. In 1897, the Chicago Woman's Club helped raise money to add to the

Egyptian Egyptian describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of years of ...

collection at the Chicago University. In 1898, the club created an information center for students, providing resources and information for 50 cents an inquiry. The club also kept records about what kinds of questions were asked, and encouraged and took only serious inquiries into a given topic.

Labor issues

In addition to working on reform and education, the club supported worker's rights. During the World's Colombian Exposition, the Chicago Woman's Club urged those planning the event to stay open on Sundays in order to allow the working class to have the opportunity to visit. The Chicago Woman's Club also supported conferences like "Women in Modern Industrialism" which reported on the status of women in different professions. Catherine Waugh McCulloch spoke affirmatively on the topic of whether married women should be involved in business at the Women in Modern Industrialism conference. In 1894, the club helped secure 200 jobs for women and girls. Later the club started the Women's Emergency Association, which helped find employment for about 1,500 individuals. The organization was credited by ''

The Daily Republican ''The Daily Republican'' is an American daily newspaper published Mondays through Fridays in Marion, Illinois Marion is a city in Williamson and Johnson Counties, Illinois, United States, and is the county seat of Williamson County. The pop ...

'' for "influencing all the laws for the improvement of the conditions surrounding the working women and children of Illinois." The Chicago Woman's Club also developed an Employment Bureau. The club also worked with the Women's Trade Union and helped boycott factories where conditions for workers were poor. The club voted to send representatives to speak on behalf of clerks who were overworked in various stores, and to advocate for half-holidays for them. In 1912, the club created a committee to investigate women's working conditions in the industrial sector and had as its stated goal to create a

minimum wage A minimum wage is the lowest remuneration that employers can legally pay their employees—the price floor below which employees may not sell their labor. Most countries had introduced minimum wage legislation by the end of the 20th century. Bec ...

for working women.

Notable members

Many notable women were members of the club. Physician, Sara Hackett Stevenson was president from 1892 to 1894.

was elected president in 1894. Novelist and preacher,

Celia Parker Woolley Celia Parker Woolley (June 14, 1848 – March 9, 1918) was an American novelist, Unitarian minister and social reformer. She also served as a president of the Chicago Woman's Club and the founder of the Frederick Douglass Woman's Club. Biograph ...

, reformer Lucy Flower,

Lydia Avery Coonley Lydia Arms Avery Coonley-Ward (January 31, 1845 – February 26, 1924) was a social leader, clubwoman and writer. Coonley served as a president of the Chicago Women's Club and was known for her poetry. She also helped her second husband, Henr ...

, and

Julia Holmes Smith Julia Holmes Smith (December 23, 1839 – November 10, 1930) was an American physician, publisher, and suffragist from Georgia. Born to a wealthy family, she received private tutoring then attended a women's school in New York City. Widowed at an ...

, also served as presidents. Many of the presidents of the Chicago Woman's Club had also been members of the

Fortnightly Club The Fortnightly Club is the name of several women's clubs in the United States, and may refer to: * Fortnightly of Chicago * Haddon Fortnightly Club House * Vincennes Fortnightly Club See also

* List of women's clubs {{dab ...

. * Jane Addams *

Anna Blount Anna Blount (January 18, 1872 – February 12, 1953) was an American physician from Chicago, and Oak Park, Illinois, Oak Park. She was awarded Doctor of Medicine June 17, 1897 by Northwestern University. She volunteered her medical services at Hu ...

Louise DeKoven Bowen Louise DeKoven Bowen (also Louise deKoven Bowen; February 26, 1859 – November 9, 1953) was an American philanthropist, civic leader, social reformer, and suffragist. She was born to a wealthy family and raised with a strong sense of ''noble ...

Myra Bradwell Myra Colby Bradwell (February 12, 1831 – February 14, 1894) was an American publisher and political activist. She attempted in 1869 to become the first woman to be admitted to the Illinois bar to practice law, but was denied admission by the ...

* Lucy Flower *

Ellen Martin Henrotin Ellen Martin Henrotin (July 6, 1847 – June 29, 1922) was a wealthy American society matron, labor reform activist, club leader and social reformer affiliated with social welfare and Women's suffrage in the United States, suffrage movements. Bio ...

Mary Emma Holmes Mary Emma Holmes (, Smith; August 3, 1839 – May 18, 1937) was an American reformer, suffragist, and educator. She was the president of the Equal Suffrage Association of Illinois, and she represented the National American Suffrage Associati ...

Mary Lewis Langworthy Mary L. Langworthy (, Lewis; March 31, 1872 – January 15, 1949) was an American dramatic coach, writer, lecturer, clubwoman, and civic leader. She lived in Chicago, Illinois, where she wrote and directed patriotic and educational pageants. She a ...

Emma Gilson Wallace Emma Gilson Wallace (September 2, 1841 – June 7, 1911) was an American philanthropist. Early life Emma R. Gilson was born in La Moille, Illinois, on September 2, 1841, and died in Chicago, Illinois, on June 7, 1911. She received a careful ed ...

Catharine Waugh McCulloch Catharine Gouger Waugh McCulloch (June 4, 1862 – April 20, 1945) was an American lawyer, suffragist, and reformer. She actively lobbied for women's suffrage at the local, state, and national levels as a leader in the Illinois Equal Suffrage As ...

Mary McDowell Mary Eliza McDowell (November 30, 1854 – October 14, 1936) was an American social reformer and prominent figure in the Chicago Settlement movement. Early life Mary Eliza McDowell was born on November 30, 1854 to Malcolm and Jane Welch Gord ...

Anna E. Nicholes Anna E. Nicholes (May 2, 1865 – July 20, 1917) was an American social reformer, civil servant, and clubwoman associated with Women's suffrage in the United States, women's suffrage and the settlement movement in Chicago. She devoted her life to c ...

* Bertha Palmer * Elia Peattie *

* Hanna G. Solomon * Sara Hackett Stevenson *

* Frances Willard * Fannie Barrier Williams *

* Rachelle Yarros

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