Boys & Girls Clubs of America history

In the meantime, the Union for Christian Work in Providence, Rhode Island, founded its own volunteer organization in 1868, offering boys an activity room, reading room, classroom, and meeting room.

Salem, Massachusetts followed suit a year later. It was reorganized in 1880 as the Good Will Boys' Club.

But for the want of a little excitement and something to do, the boy wouldn't have thrown it." Harriman enlisted the help of influential friends to start a boys' club, which proved so popular that in 1887 the group moved into a five-story building.

In 1895 he became the first African-American to earn a Ph.D. from Harvard.

The earliest all African-American club was one of the original 53 – the Wissahickon Boys’ Club of Philadelphia, founded in 1903.

In 1904 he began to suffer from heart disease, which because of his heavy workload and travel schedule began to take its toll.

1906: A national organization is established as Federated Boys' Clubs.

He retired as president of the Federated Boys' Clubs in 1909 and died five years later.

The death of both Jacob Riis in 1914 and the generous benefactor, Frank Day, emphasized the need for help.

In 1915 Federated Boys' Clubs changed its name to Boys' Clubs Federation.

In 1922, the Harlem Boys’ House, in New York City, joined the Boys’ Club Federation to better serve their youth.

The Great Depression: The events of the 1929 Wall Street crash were startling.

By 1931, the membership had grown to 1,275 and the plant value to $60,000.

In the United States in 1932 there were some 275 Boys' Clubs serving a quarter-million boys.

In 1936 Hall was able to convince his old friend, Herbert Hoover, to become chairman of the organization's national board of directors.

Some of the efforts included the start of the Social Security system, the Emergency Banking Act to reopen the banks, the Minimum Wage Act of 1938, and the passing of the 21st Amendment to end Prohibition.

After the war, the Boys' Clubs continued to spread across the country, so that by the time Hall retired in 1954 the number of clubs had grown to 375 and the budget increased to $8 million.

In 1956, Boys Clubs of America celebrated its 50th anniversary and received a United States Congressional Charter.

In 1960 the organization celebrated the 100th anniversary since the founding of the first Dashaway Club, and opened a new national headquarters building in New York, located across from the United Nations Building.

In recognition of being one of the 53 founding organizations of the Boys & Girls Club Movement, the Club was named a "Diamond Jubilee Charter.” In 1966, Troy Boys Club allowed girls to attend specialized programming for the first time.

The organization established a target of 1,000 clubs serving one million children, a goal that was met in 1972.

In 1975 the national organization underwent a reorganization in order to improve services to local clubs.

The number of girls involved in the clubs had become substantial, so that by 1985 the organization served one million boys and 321,000 girls.

Garth, who was named national director in 1988, not only supported the increased participation of girls but also made an effort to bring clubs to where children most needed them.

The name “Boys & Girls Clubs of America” was officially adopted on September 12, 1990, and girls were officially recognized.

In 1991, Troy Boys & Girls Club (TBGC) was officially re-incorporated and recognized girls as "official” members.

In 1996 Roxanne Spillett was named BGCA's new president, becoming the first woman to lead the organization.

In 2003, for instance, BGCA passed through a total of $104.2 million in money, technology, and holiday toys to the local affiliates, which in turn paid just $5 million in dues.

2004: BGCA launches its One Campaign plan to raise funds for local clubs as well as to raise public awareness.

In 2014, TBGC licensed the Club as a catering site which now provides over 250,000 meals to at-risk youth throughout the Capital Area each year.

In 2019, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Albany and Troy Boys & Girls Club merged to become the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Capital Area.