Boston's Settlement Housing: Social Reform in an Industrial City Meg Streiff Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, [email protected]
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Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Doctoral Dissertations Graduate School 2005 Boston's settlement housing: social reform in an industrial city Meg Streiff Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations Part of the Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Streiff, Meg, "Boston's settlement housing: social reform in an industrial city" (2005). LSU Doctoral Dissertations. 218. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations/218 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized graduate school editor of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please [email protected]. BOSTON’S SETTLEMENT HOUSING: SOCIAL REFORM IN AN INDUSTRIAL CITY A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in The Department of Geography and Anthropology by Meg Streiff B.A., City College of New York (CUNY), 1992 M.A., San Diego State University, 1994 August 2005 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Certainly, there are many individuals who helped me complete this project, far too many to include here. First and foremost, I’d like to thank the reference librarians (in particular, Sarah Hutcheon) at the Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute, Harvard University for their eagerness to help me locate archival materials on Denison House. Likewise, I’d like to thank the archivists (especially, David Klaassen and Linnea Anderson) at the Social Welfare History Archives, University of Minnesota, for assisting me with the voluminous South End House data as well as offering useful local information on where to dine, what museums to visit, and which buses carried passengers fastest through the city of Minneapolis. My entire committee has been very helpful, supportive of, and interested in this research project. My advisor, Dr. Craig Colten, was exceptionally accomodating and patient. He edited and returned chapters to me at a quick pace, all the more impressive considering he had several other students finishing up this semester, was juggling various departmental duties, and was actively participating in Geography and Environmental History conferences all over the country. Two members of my committee came aboard in the final semester, and I would like to express my appreciation to Dr. Kent Mathewson and Dr. Mark Schaefer for their willingness to join a committee with so little notice. Next, I must acknowledge my husband, best friend, and best geography consultant, Greg Bohr. He was there, steadfast, throughout the entire process. My parents, Carol and Eric Streiff, provided continuous encouragement and an extremely comfortable place to stay while doing the bulk of my data collection in Boston. I’d also like to thank Rick Kurylo for his enduring friendship, his enduring urbanity, and his ever-so-polite queries as to the status of the dissertation. The Hemmerling family, Scott, Nicole, and especially Phoebe, helped get me on ii track with the writing process as well as provided me with many hours of dissertation relief in the form of fantasy football and cult TV shows. Finally, I’d like to acknowledge the fact that this dissertation began under the direction of Dr. Carville Earle, former Carl O. Sauer Professor of Geography in the Department of Geography and Anthropology at LSU. Prior to meeting Dr. Earle, my research interests were confined to the present; he encouraged me to look to the past to better understand today’s urban geography. Dr. Earle was terminally ill and often in great pain during the first stages of this project, but still offered gentle encouragement and a wealth of information and resources to me – including his personal book supply, which was immense. Dr. Earle, a dedicated and highly esteemed historical geographer, always put geographical scholarship before his own welfare. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .............................................................................................................. ii LIST OF TABLES......................................................................................................................... vi LIST OF FIGURES ...................................................................................................................... vii ABSTRACT................................................................................................................................. viii CHAPTER I THE PRICE OF URBAN EXPANSION ...........................................................................1 Introduction....................................................................................................................1 Reforming the Poor........................................................................................................4 Settlements: English Beginnings ...................................................................................5 American Settlements ....................................................................................................8 Boston: Port City to Industrial Region .......................................................................12 Boston’s Settlement Patterns and Changing Urban Form ...........................................16 Research Objectives and Justification of Project.........................................................21 Methods........................................................................................................................24 II LITERATURE REVIEW.................................................................................................27 Nineteenth Century Humanitarianism and Social Reform ..........................................27 Changing Notions of Poverty and Social Welfare Responses.....................................35 Settlements, Organic Cities, and Notions of Community............................................39 Traditional and Leftist Interpretations of Progressive-era Settlement Houses ............41 III BRING IN THE NOBLESSE OBLIGE...........................................................................61 The Descent into Whitechapel: Origins of British Settlement Houses........................62 The Movement Crosses the Atlantic: Neighborhood Guild, New York City..............77 Settlements and Immigration .......................................................................................90 Settlements and the Nineteenth-Century Neighborhood .............................................96 IV SOUTH END HOUSE: A MODEL OF POSSIBILISM AND PERMEATION.............99 Starting a Settlement: “The Recovery of the Parish”.................................................101 Andover House: “The Gentleman’s Burden and the Gentleman’s Comfort”............105 Assimilation and Patriotism.......................................................................................109 Municipal Responsibility and Reform.......................................................................127 Conclusion .................................................................................................................133 V DENISON HOUSE: THE PEOPLE’S UNIVERSITY..................................................136 Vida Scudder: The Gentle Radical ............................................................................137 Starting a Settlement..................................................................................................142 Beyond Education: Neighborhood Reform ...............................................................161 Conclusion .................................................................................................................166 iv VI CONCLUSIONS............................................................................................................169 LITERATURE CITED ................................................................................................................187 VITA……....................................................................................................................................202 v LIST OF TABLES 1.1 Population of Boston, 1790-1910 .........................................................................................18 3.1 Decennial Immigration to the United States, 1820-1919......................................................91 4.1 Program of Clubs and Classes, South End House, 1897 ....................................................121 4.2 Program of Clubs and Classes, South End House, 1907 ....................................................122 5.1 Program of Clubs and Classes, Denison House, 1893........................................................152 5.2 Program of Clubs and Classes, Denison House, 1896........................................................152 5.3 Program of Clubs and Classes, Denison House, 1903........................................................153 vi LIST OF FIGURES 1.1 Shoreline of Boston in 1776, with Modern Shoreline Superimposed……………….......17 3.1 Map of U.S. Settlement Houses, 1886-1905…………………………………………….75 4.1 South End Neighborhood in 1908, with South End House…………………….………106 4.2 South End House Headquarters, 1916………………………………………….………107 4.3 Assembly Room in South End House………………………………….……….………113 5.1 South Cove