The New England Women’s Club, formed in Boston in 1868, fostered social interaction through various activities designed for self-improvement. Although the pioneering club had its heyday in the late-19th and early-20th centuries, it lasted until the dawn of the 21st.
The roots of the New England Women’s Club can be traced to earlier religious, charitable and literary groups started by women. The founders of the New England Women’s Club likely knew that leadership roles for women had emerged in religious study groups from the Puritan era to the Second Great Awakening (1790 to the 1830s). They also probably knew that those leadership roles led to the formation of charitable groups to help the needy. Those charities included the Female Charitable Society in Wiscasset, Maine, in 1805; the Concord (Massachusetts) Female Charitable Society in 1814; and the Bridgeport Ladies’ Soldiers Aid Society in 1861 to help Civil War Union soldiers. All of these groups spawned numerous others.
Margaret Fuller, by Thomas Hicks
In addition, women-led religious groups influenced the creation of female-only literary societies. Those included the Hannah Mather Crocker Reading Society in 1778 in Boston, the Society of Young Ladies of Black women in Lynn (Massachusetts) in 1827 and Margaret Fuller’s seminars in a Boston bookstore in 1840. In turn, these societies prepared their members for leadership in charitable and missionary work.
The New England Women’s Club
Importantly, these religious, charitable and literary societies infused the social reform activities of the principal founders of the New England Women’s Club. Notably, Julia Ward Howe, author of the Battle Hymn of the Republic, prominently advocated voting rights for women and the abolition of slavery. So did Caroline Severance and Harriet Hanson Robinson.
Harriet Hanson Robinson, Caroline Severance and Julia Ward Howe
Although these women had been involved in these causes as early as the 1840s, they wanted to form an organization with a different focus. On March 10, 1868, the New England Women’s Club was created (incorporated in 1887). Members could experience social enjoyment and intellectual improvement. They also had an opportunity to pursue philanthropic, charitable and social reform activities. Its voluntary members were primarily upper- and middle-class white women who were married to well-to-do men. Thus, they did not spend most of their time managing households.
Officers and Activities
The first chosen officers were: Caroline Severance, president (succeeded by Julia Ward Howe in 1880); Lucia Peabody, secretary; and Sara Lane, treasurer. Membership required a yearly payment of $5. The first regular meeting was held at its hired rooms at 3 Tremont Place in Boston on Nov. 6, 1868. The club’s board welcomed 118 members and 17 associate members. By February 1870, the club had established a Horticultural School for Women in Newton (Massachusetts), but it closed in 1878 for financial reasons. Around 1870 the club also started helping to support and fund the New England Hospital for Women and Children.
3 Tremont St., known as the Tremont Hotel
In 1873, the New England Women’s Club succeeded in getting four of its members—Abby May, Lucia Peabody, Lucretia Crocker and Ann Adeline Badger—elected to the Boston School Committee. They did it despite the fact that only men could vote. A year later, six women were elected. With support from the club, the Massachusetts Legislature in 1879 allowed women the right to vote and hold office in statewide school committee elections.
From the outset, the club offered several opportunities for its members to improve their intellectual growth through activities from its four committees. For example, both women and men—who could join the club as associate members—spoke on a variety of topics. These included art, literature, history and music. They also addressed various social issues such as suffrage, help for needy women and children, sanitation, school improvement and homes for poor people. Ralph Waldo Emerson, William Lloyd Garrison and Oliver Wendell Holmes were some of the notable speakers. In addition, over time, classes were offered in botany, political economy, elocution, English literature and various languages.
These 19th-cetury intellectuals spoke at the New England Women’s Club.
A Model for Others
The New England Women’s Club served as a model for other local clubs throughout New England and the United States. In 1891 it joined the General Federation of Women’s Clubs, which attempted to unite 63 clubs to help achieve social betterment.
In the mid-1890s, Josephine Ruffin became the first Black member of the club. However, relatively comfortable Black women were inclined to form their own organizations.
Josjephine Ruffin published The Women’s Era, the first newspaper published by and for African American women.
From 1900 onward activities of the New England Women’s Club included holding its traditional “Monday Teas” for its members. The club also offered lectures and debates. It advocated for social reform and supported relief efforts during both world wars. During the wars, members helped the Red Cross and promoted food conservation. In the 1950s, the club expanded membership into suburban areas.
Decline of the New England Women’s Club
Nevertheless, membership in the New England Women’s Club—and in women’s clubs across the United States—began trending downward in the 1960s. By 2000, about 60 percent of working-age women had entered the labor force and had less leisure time. Many women, who did have free time, opted to join more activist groups such as the National Organization for Women (NOW). They also got involved in the women’s health movement and women’s liberation groups.
Betty Friedan, NOW president, demonstrating in New York City in 1979
Meanwhile, many activities that the New England Women’s Club had advocated for (e.g., aid for the needy, public libraries and public sanitation) were now functions of state and local agencies.
By 2002 the New England Women’s Club had officially closed. Its name lives on in the New England Women’s Club Fund lecture series, managed by the Boston Foundation since 2001.
Edward T. Howe, Ph.D. is Professor of Economics, Emeritus, at Siena University near Albany, N.Y.
***
Fully Updated & Expanded: This third edition includes new itineraries, a hundred new landmarks and even more stories to enrich your adventure.
Click here to order a paperback or ebook.
Images: Lucretia Crocker By Historian107 – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0. Gotfryd, Bernard, photographer. Betty Friedan, demonstrating, NYC. New York State United States New York, 1979. April. Photograph. https://www.loc.gov/item/2020730770/. Josephine Ruffin Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1188894. Featured illustration created by ChatGPT.
