YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago Records, Bulk, 1941-1960

The YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago was founded in 1876, following the establishment of women’s Christian associations in New York and Boston. At the time, Chicago was rebuilding from the Great Fire of 1871 and growing numbers of young single women were coming to the city looking for work. The YWCA provided services to these women including safe housing, religious and vocational instruction, and efforts to improve labor conditions.

The YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago started providing living quarters for single women in 1877. By the 1890s the YWCA featured a library, auditorium, gymnasium, and 180 rooms for female residency. An employment bureau offered courses in typing and sales, two occupations then considered exclusive to men. By the 1920s, the YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago provided rooms in four residences to house up to 10,000 women. The Harriet Hammond McCormick YWCA opened in the late 1920s and featured a swimming pool and beauty parlor. The YWCA also owned and operated a summer camp on the eastern shore of Lake Michigan.

As the YWCA’s infrastructure adapted to the needs of young women, so did its policies regarding faith and race. At first only white Christian women who were members of Evangelical congregations were allowed to join, and up to 1934 the organization required a pledge to Christianity. In 1912, the YWCA began to assist African American girls, but only then by referring them to African American women. Still, the YWCA would in time prove to be ahead of the nation in promoting racial equality and integration. Its services and board of directors were racially integrated in the 1940s.

In the 1960s and 1970s, the YWCA’s services shifted further from a focus on moral welfare to broader goals of social justice. New programs included early childhood services and counseling for survivors of rape and domestic violence. In 1969, Doris Vivian Wilson became the first African American Executive Director for Chicago and steered the organization toward promotion and advocacy of the Women’s Movement. The 1970s also saw a decline in resources. Residences were closed and sold, ending the YWCA’s direct involvement in providing room and board for women. In 1989 the YWCA sold its Forest Beach summer camp on Lake Michigan.

Today, the YWCA focuses on women’s economic empowerment, support for survivors of sexual violence, and early childhood service. Racial justice remains an essential component of the organization’s work.

The YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago records (1876-2000) document the birth and growth over more than a century of the organization in the Chicago area. Researchers interested in the YWCA, women’s organizations in general, and 20th-century social justice efforts may find this collection valuable.

The collection is arranged into four series: “Administrative Office Files,” “Reports,” “Publications,” and “Scrapbooks, Clippings, and Photographs.”

The material is generally arranged in chronological order within each subseries. In cases where subseries do not exist, the material is arranged in chronological order within the series.

Detailed Series Guide

Series I: Administrative Office Files, 1939-1960

Series I, subseries A: Board of Directors and Board of Trustees, 1941-1960

Series I, subseries B: Camps, Centers, Departments, and Residences, 1939-1960

Series I, subseries C: Programm Planning, 1942-1946

Series I, subseries D: Public Affairs, 1942-1960

Series I, subseries E: Public Relations, 1941-1960

Series I, subseries F: Staff, 1941-1960

Series I, subseries G: General Administration, 1941-1960

Series I, subseries H: Membership, 1941-1960

Series I, subseries I: National Board, 1942-1960

Series I, subseries J: Organizations, 1941-1960

Series I, subseries K: War Services, 1942-1947

Series II: Reports, 1876-2000

Series II, subseries A: Minutes and Reports, 1876-1959

Series II, subseries B: Internal Reports, 1929-1962

Series II, subseries C: Annual Reports, 1876-2000

Series II, subseries D: National Conventions, 1922-1958

Series III: Publications, 1890-2001

Series IV: Scrapbooks, Clippings, and Photographs, 1876-2000

Processed by the Black Metropolis Research Consortium's "Color Curtain Processing Project," July 3, 2012. The project was funded by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR). The processors were Olle Larson and Kristin Moo.

YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago Records, Special Collections and University Archives, University of Illinois at Chicago

None.

Some items in this collection include audio cassettes, video cassettes, DVD, and material in other formats for which Special Collections may not have the equipment necessary to read them. Interested patrons are advised to call ahead to see whether or how they might be able to view these items.

• NamesYWCA of Metropolitan Chicago.
• Subject
  • Feminism.
  • Labor.
  • Religious education.
  • Women--Societies and clubs.
  • Women.
  • World War (1939-1945).
• Geographic CoverageIllinois--Chicago.