From the Archives: 1915 – Founding of The Chicago Community Trust

The Chicago Community Trust was established in 1915 and is the third-founded community foundation still in existence in the United States. Founded by American banker Norman Wait Harris and his eldest son Albert W. Harris, the father-son duo embraced a bold vision which championed philanthropy and social change. Norman had deep roots in the Chicago community as the founder of Chicago-based N.W. Harris & Co, the predecessor of Harris Bank (now BMO Bank) and its affiliates, Forbes & Co. and the Harris Trust and Saving Banks. He first became aware of the idea of a community foundation in 1914 when The Cleveland Foundation, the first community foundation in the nation, was established. The Cleveland Foundation was founded by lawyer and banker Frederick Harris Goff, who sought to revolutionize organized philanthropy by freeing charitable dollars from outdated, irrevocable wills. Norman quickly embraced the idea of the newly formed Cleveland Foundation to realize a vision of philanthropic dollars staying within and uplifting the community they came from.

As Norman saw it, there were two unique benefits to community foundations as administrators and dispensers of charitable funds. First, a community foundation consolidates the gifts of local donors for local use. Second, and more importantly, it has the ability to evolve how charitable funds and donor gifts are used to meet changing conditions and needs of the community. He immediately imagined the potential of a community foundation in his own city.  

In 1914, Norman encouraged Albert to bring a copy of The Cleveland Foundation’s Resolution and Declaration of Trust to a meeting at Harris Trust and Savings Bank. The bank’s board of directors were convinced by Norman and Albert’s case for creating a community foundation in Chicago. On May 12, 1915, they adopted the Resolution and Declaration of Trust that created The Chicago Community Trust. The Harris Trust and Savings Bank was appointed to serve as Trustee. 

A five-member executive committee was appointed and held its first meeting on January 18, 1916. It was decided at that meeting that the Reverend Arthur J. Francis, a Congregational minister, would be hired as an executive director for a one-year term. On December 16, 1916, the Trust was introduced to 350 civic leaders at a luncheon at the Union League Club. 

The Trust’s first grant of $5,000 was made in 1916 to United Charities of Chicago, one of the city’s most influential charities at the time and a direct descendant of Chicago’s first citywide charitable organization. United Charities worked to reform economic and social conditions, provide services to the needy, and engage in public policy study and advocacy.

For the first few years, the Trust’s funds came solely from donations made by members of the Harris family. The Harris family provided $200,000 to establish the Trust and made a second gift of $400,000 in 1917 to establish a memorial to Norman Wait Harris, who died on July 15, 1916.

The first two years of the Trust’s existence demonstrated the immense opportunity of a modern community foundation. The Trust was at the forefront of a revolution in philanthropy, as evidenced by a boom in community foundations in the 1920s. More than 100 years later, Chicagoans have entrusted us with their support as we fund, lead, convene and collaborate to address the ever-evolving needs facing the Chicago region. From partnering with donors to strengthen Chicago’s arts and culture institutions that enhance our city’s vitality and world-class status to raising $22 million for unemployment relief during the Great Depression to spearheading an effort to keep people in their homes during the Great Recession to raising over $35 million to support nonprofits during the COVID-19 pandemic, our history is a testament to our immeasurable impact on communities across the region.