The New Century Club of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was founded in 1877. It was one of the first women's clubs in the United States, and included professional women as well as women active in women's rights and the abolition movement.

History

Purpose

In 1876 the

Centennial Exposition The Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official World's Fair to be held in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the ...

was held in Philadelphia and had a Women's Pavilion, which was the springboard for the creation of the New Century Club in January 1877. In 1879 it was incorporated, one of the nine incorporators was

Emily Sartain Emily Sartain (March 17, 1841 – June 17, 1927) was an American painter and engraver. She was the first woman in Europe and the United States to practice the art of mezzotint engraving, and the only woman to win a gold medal at the 1876 World F ...

. One of the first women's clubs in the United States, its purpose was to provide a meeting place for its members and to promote "science, literature and art." The club, described as a "centre of thought and action among women" in its constitution, initially offered programs to help educate and aid working women and to address municipal concerns, and later into social reform. It focused on issues affected women and children – like child labor laws, education, and legal defense – and other civic and cultural issues. Committees in 1894 included Club Organization, Education, Study, Library, Reception, Entertainment, Working Woman's Guild, Public Interests, Legal Protection of Working Women, and the Browning Society. Although the club avoided public controversy by downplaying involvement in "radical" causes such as the suffrage movement, its members were active in a wide range of reforms. The New Century Club was declared in ''Philadelphia's Cultural Landscape: The Sartain Family Legacy'' (2000) to be "an influential early manifestation of the

woman's club movement The woman's club movement was a social movement that took place throughout the United States that established the idea that women had a moral duty and responsibility to transform public policy. While women's organizations had always been a part ...

that swept through the country at the turn of the century. This movement brought thousands into associations where they met other ambitious, energetic women, developed organizational and leadership skills, and articulated a belief in social welfare and urban improvement that anticipated much Progressive Era social reform." It served as a support for professional women until individual, profession based organizations for women, such as

The Plastic Club The Plastic Club is an arts organization located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1897 for women only, the Plastic Club is one of the oldest art clubs in the United States. It is located on the 200 block of Camac Street, the "Little Street ...

for artists and the Women's Homeopathic Medical Club, were founded starting in the 1890s.

Membership

The club founders included professional women and women who had been active in women's rights and the abolition movement. One of the founders was Sarah Catherine Fraley Hallowell, a journalist with the ''Philadelphia Ledger'', was the club's first president. Other founding members were Elizabeth Croasdale and

, who were pass and contemporary school principals at the

Philadelphia School of Design for Women Philadelphia School of Design for Women (1848–1932) was an art school for women in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Housed in the former Edwin Forrest House at 1346 North Broad Street, under the directorship of Emily Sartain (1886–1920), ...

; writer

Eliza Sproat Turner Eliza L. Sproat Turner (1826 – June 20, 1903) was an American writer, women's club founder and leader, abolitionist, and suffragette. Turner began her adulthood as a teacher and writer, and soon after became involved in a number of social c ...

; veteran campaigner

Mary Grew Mary Grew (September 1, 1813 – October 10, 1896) was an American abolitionist and suffragist whose career spanned nearly the entire 19th century. She was a leader of the Philadelphia Female Anti-Slavery Society and the Pennsylvania Anti-Slavery ...

Mary Grew in "Woman of the Century", Willard and Livermore, page 371, 1893 and physician and later dean of

Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania The Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania (WMCP) was founded in 1850, and was the second medical institution in the world established to train women in medicine to earn the M.D. degree. The New England Female Medical College had been established ...

Clara Marshall Clara Marshall (May 8, 1847 – March 13, 1931) was an American physician, educator, and author. She was dean of the Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania from 1888 to 1917. Early life and education Clara Marshall was born in West Chester, Pe ...

. Turner became the club's third president. Initially there were 40 members and by 1879 there were 120 members and the club was located on Girard Street in Philadelphia.

New Century Guild

In 1882,

and other members formed a committee for working women named the

New Century Guild The New Century Guild, now the New Century Trust, is a historic women's support organization headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1882, it is one of the oldest and largest organizations devoted to meeting the needs of women in ...

. Its purpose was to provide education and opportunities for working women to learn a vocation. Soon after the Guild became a separate organization and it needed its own building by 1892 to support programs and classes. The New Century Trust was formed in 1893 to facilitate funding for its first building.

Locations

The club moved to a larger place at 1520 Chestnut Street in the Baker Building for the 400 member organization and began plans for an even larger place at 124 Twelfth Street. Architect

Minerva Parker Nichols Minerva Parker Nichols (May 14, 1863 – 1949) was an architect from the United States who in 1889 became the first woman to operate an independent architectural practice in the United States. She designed at least eighty known buildings, which ...

designed a club house of

Italian Renaissance architecture Renaissance architecture is the European architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 16th centuries in different regions, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of Ancient Greece, ancient Greek and ...

, of Indiana limestone and Pompeiian brick at and estimated cost of $80,000. The building had parlors, committee rooms, a library, and a six hundred person capacity drawing room.

Gabrielle D. Clements Gabrielle de Veaux Clements (September 11, 1858 – March 26, 1948) was an American painter, print maker, and muralist. She studied art at the Philadelphia School of Design for Women, Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and in Paris at Acadé ...

created murals symbolizing Charity, Labor, Science and Art. The effort was led by the club's president, Mrs. Henry C. Townsend.

History

Purpose

Membership

New Century Guild

Locations

References

Further reading