From the Archives: 1920 — YWCA of Chicago  

The Trust has been committed to addressing pressing issues facing women and children in Chicago since early in our history. An example of this work can be found in our support of the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA) in 1920, just five years after our founding.  

The YWCA in Chicago was established in 1876 and remains one of the oldest organizations in the city providing services to women and children. The 13 women who founded the organization did so partially in response to the shifting priorities of the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA) whose bylaws limited women’s use of their facilities and for a time, barred women from using their services entirely.  

In turn, the YWCA focused on social service needs among women in the areas of employment, health, and housing—issues that increasingly became prevalent after the 1871 Great Chicago Fire when the city saw an influx of women coming to Chicago to find jobs. Early services of the YWCA in Chicago included addressing needs like vocational training, health, and housing.

One of the first grants the Trust made was to the YWCA in 1920. In addition to financially supporting the YWCA, the Trust played a central role in advancing the organization’s efforts to spread awareness of the needs of working single women, particularly housing. The YWCA provided housing for up to 10,000 women, but hundreds of others still struggled to find spaces in rooming or lodging houses, residence clubs, or private homes.  

Businessmen, philanthropists, and social workers across the city shared the YWCA founders’ interest in the housing needs of single women arriving in Chicago to work. In response to this growing interest, on the YWCA’s request, the Trust commissioned and published a survey on the housing needs for these women in Chicago in 1921. The study concluded with recommendations for building and overseeing affordable, safe housing for single women.  

The work that started with the YWCA continues today through The Trust’s Addressing Critical Needs strategy area and our Building Pathways to Stability and Promoting Wellbeing funding streams. Two recent grants recipients in this area include Margaret’s Village, a transitional shelter for homeless women and their children, and Women Employed, a non-profit advocacy organization addressing challenges faced by women in the workplace.