USA > Michigan > Genesee County > History of Genesee County, Michigan, Her People, Industries and Institutions, Volume I > Part 74
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Catholic Benevolent Association is now composed of two branches, St. Michael's Branch No. 624, with a membership of fifty-seven, which meets the first and third Wednesdays of the month in K. of C. hall, and St. Mathew's Branch, which has a membership of seventy-four and meets the first and third Tuesdays of the month in St. Mathew's social hall. The officers of St. Michael's branch are, president, Mrs. Katharine Dunn; first vice-president, Mrs. Ellen Campbell; secretary, Mrs. Sam Wey, and treasurer, Miss Minnie Wisler. The officers of St. Mathew's branch are, president, Mrs. Frances Lyon; first vice-president, Mrs. John C. Hughes; second vice- president, Mrs. John LaMear; financial secretary, Miss Adelaide Horrigan; recorder, Mrs. P. H. Callahan; treasurer, Miss Catherine Stafford.
KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS.
Flint Council No. 695, Knights of Columbus, a Catholic order, founded upon unity and charity, began its corporate existence in Flint on September 14, 1902. The first meetings were held in Loyal Guard hall, and later meet- ings were held in Father Murphy's hall. In October, 1911, the order leased for a term of years the entire second floor of a fine building on Detroit street, which is completely equipped for lodge and club purposes, including the lodge hall, reading and billiard rooms, library and dining rooms. In the fourteen years of its existence the local order has increased from ninety-two, its original membership, to its present roll of over six hundred. The meet- ings are held the first and third Thursdays of each month. The officers are, Edward Glynn, grand knight; Thomas Stockton, deputy grand knight; Charles Miller, financial secretary; Fred Hazel, chancellor; John Burley, treasurer.
FRATERNAL ORDER OF EAGLES.
Flint Aerie No. 629, Fraternal Order of Eagles, was established on February 16, 1904. The meetings, which are held on the first and third Wednesdays of the month, are now being held in the Awanaga block, pend- ing the erection of a permanent home by the order. In August, 1915, the property on North Saginaw street owned by John W. Newall was pur- chased and within the next year will be occupied by a building to be devoted to the use of the order, which now has a membership of six hundred and ninety. The officers for 1916 are: President, George E. Mckinley; secre- tary, T. J. Broderick ; treasurer, George L. Lukes.
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MODERN WOODMEN OF AMERICA.
Flint Camp No. 4948, Modern Woodmen of America, a beneficiary order, was organized August 20, 1897, with fifteen charter members, in Friendship hall. The meetings are now held on the first and third Fridays of each month, in the hall at No. 409 South Saginaw street. The present membership is three hundred and sixty; Nathum W. Long, clerk. Vehicle City Camp No. 7885 meets the second and fourth Mondays of each month in the hall in the McDermott block. The membership of this camp is over two hundred. Kryn Schippers is clerk.
ANCIENT ORDER OF HIBERNIANS.
Division No. I, Ladies Auxiliary, Ancient Order of Hibernians, was organized in 1895, with thirty-five charter members. It met at first in the St. Michael's school building, later in the annex of Loyal Guard building No. I, and now holds its meetings in Knights of Columbus hall. The present membership is fifty. The county president is Miss Mary Barkey and the local president is Miss Mayme Folen.
Division No. I of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, holds its meetings in K. of C. hall. E. A. Murphy is the county president for 1916.
THE BROTHERHOOD OF AMERICAN YEOMEN.
Homestead No. 1536, Brotherhood of American Yeomen, was estab- lished in Flint in 1910. The meetings are held the first and third Tuesdays of each month in Woodmen hall. The order has a membership at present of about two hundred and twenty-five. The officers are John Miller, past foreman; August Strasburg, foreman; R. C. Smith, master of ceremony; J. E. Heath, corresponding secretary ; G. Humphrey, master of accounts.
ROYAL NEIGHBORS OF AMERICA.
Flint River Camp No. 1122, Royal Neighbors of America, was organ- ized on December 14, 1900. The meetings are held the first and third Wednesdays of the month in U. C. T. hall. The present membership is two hundred. The officers for 1916 are: Mrs. Hannah Anderson, oracle; Mrs. Flora Moriarty, vice-oracle; Marie Haight, recorder; Mrs. Fern Park, receiver.
Josephine Camp No. 7425 was organized on November 7, 1912. The
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meetings are held the first and third Thursdays of each month in G. A. R. hall. The present membership is one hundred and seventy-six. The offi- cers for 1916 are : Mrs. Flora E. Powelson, oracle; Mrs. Minnie Richeson, vice-oracle; Mrs. May B. Sartwell, recorder.
Vehicle City Camp No. 6167 was organized on November 1, 1908. The meetings are held the second and fourth Thursdays of each month in Wood- men hall. The present membership is one hundred and twenty. The officers for 1916 are: Mrs. Eastman, oracle; Mrs. Carrie Newby, vice- oracle; Minnie Brown, recorder; Louise Spring, receiver.
Myron B. Enright Camp No. 7554 was organized on January 21, 1914. The meetings are held the first and third Wednesday afternoons in U. C. T. hall. The present membership is seventy-five. The officers for 1916 are : Louise Haskins, oracle; Daisy Fraidenburg, vice-oracle; recorder, Mabel McDiarmid; receiver, Myrtle Marble.
NATIONAL UNION.
Flint Council No. 174, of the National Union, a fraternal beneficiary society, was organized in Flint in the early seventies, the charter members then including a number of the best known business men of the city. The council is still holding meetings on the second and fourth Mondays of the month in the Flint P. Smith building. The present officers are, James G. Mallery, Arthur Bishop and John W. Newall.
LOYAL ORDER OF MOOSE.
The Loyal Order of Moose, No. 159, a fraternal benefit society, includ- ing funeral benefit features, was chartered on December 30, 1909. The order is in a very flourishing condition and meetings are held every Tues- day night in Moose temple hall. The club rooms adjoining include a gymnasium and reading rooms, the present membership numbering seven hundred and fifty-five. The officers for 1916 are: Dictator, William M. Denmark; vice-dictator, Clyde A. Pierce ;. secretary, Fred J. Maginn; treasurer, John E. Storer.
THE VEHICLE CLUB.
The Vehicle Club, a mutual benefit association, with commodious club rooms, located at the corner of East Kearsley and Harrison streets, has a membership of seventeen thousand, fifteen thousand of that number being
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enrolled in the insurance department. The club is the outgrowth of the Fellowcraft Club of Flint, and was organized seventeen years ago, with one hundred and fifty members. The first meeting in regard to organiza- tion was in the form of a mass meeting and was held in the building adjacent to the Majestic theater, J. Dallas Dort being one of the most enthusiastic promoters of the association. The meeting at which the organization was perfected was held in the Inglis block, which was the headquarters of the club until six years ago, when they entered the present building. The Manu- facturers Association of Flint equipped the club rooms when they were first organized and also equipped the new building. The running expenses are paid by the members.
The club rooms are arranged with bowling alleys, cafe, reading rooms, and a gymnasium for athletic events of all kinds. The Vehicle Club has been a prominent factor in the industrial life of Flint. Its presiding offi- cers in 1916 are: President, O. G. Snyder ; treasurer, Fred Proper; secre- tary, F. W. Boswell.
YOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION.
In the office of the mayor of Flint, on May 9, 1913, there was held a meeting of a few men to consider the advisability of raising a fund in Flint for the erection and equipping of a Young Men's Christian Association building. This meeting was called at the suggestion of L. E. Buell, state secretary of the Young Men's Christian Association of Michigan. Present besides Mr. Buell were D. D. Aitken, C. S. Mott, C. M. Greenway, L. H. Bridgman, C. H. Bonbright and J. A.' Van Dis, the latter being at that time boys' work secretary of the associations of Michigan. A further suggestion by Mr. Buell was that the men mentioned herewith should act as an execu- tive committee to take up preliminary work of organizing a campaign and to present to the people of Flint for their approval the matter of raising a fund for the purpose already stated. C. S. Mott was elected chairman, C. H. Bonbright, secretary, and D. D. Aitken, treasurer of the committee.
The committee spent much time in preliminary study and it was decided to formulate an organization for the campaign and to arrange for a banquet to be attended by men of the city and to present the proposition of inaugu- rating a campaign of the business men's committee, Floyd A. Allen, chair- man of the factory men's committee, F. A. Aldrich, D. T. Stone and F. G. of the factory men's committee, F. A. Aldrich, D. T. Stone and F. G. Evatt, Evatt, members of committee on banquet. A. E. Raab, J. H. Bamberg and
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Nelson Webster were appointed a committee to have charge of the presenta- tion of the subject in the churches, and John L. Pierce was made chairman of the committee on headquarters.
The banquet was held in the Masonic temple on June 17, 1913, and was attended by about three hundred business men who agreed to adopt the sug- gestion of the executive committee that one hundred thousand dollars be raised. These men, for the most part, were divided into teams under the general committee already mentioned and in the seven-day campaign about one hundred and eleven thousand dollars was subscribed.
On July 19, 1913, a meeting of the executive committee was held and, at the suggestion of the state organization of the Young Men's Christian Association, a resolution was adopted that application should be made to the secretary of state for an organization to be known as the Young Men's Christian Association of Flint, and that the executive committee act as direc- tors for the first year. It was also adopted that the purpose of the new association would be to develop character and usefulness of its members and to improve spiritual, moral, mental and physical conditions of young men.
After the funds had been raised for the building, plans were secured for the structure and a site at Nos. 218-20 East Kearsley street was selected for the building. On the recommendation of the state committee, Shattuck & Hussey, of Chicago, were employed as architects for the building.
When the campaign was inaugurated the plan was to erect a building three stories in height, but the committee, after very careful consideration, foreseeing the great growth of the city and the demand for homes for young men, decided to build an additional story and thus provide thirty-five more rooms than originally planned. This was done at an additional expense of fourteen thousand dollars, but it has proved an excellent investment which aids substantially in paying the operating cost of the association. The building, as already mentioned, has four stories in addition to a very fine basement and is one of the most attractive structures of the city. It has all of the appointments of a modern association building.
On account of the usual shrinkage in the pledges and the expense of the additional story of the building, a second campaign was held in June, 1915, when a fund of more than ten thousand dollars was subscribed. The entire indebtedness on all the property, valued at one hundred and twenty thousand dollars, is now about seven thousand dollars.
The building was opened on December 16, 1914, with a series of recep- tions covering four days and during this opening week about eleven thousand persons visited the building.
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It is of interest to quote from the report of Hon. C. S. Mott, presi- dent of the association, given at a meeting of the membership on May 25, 1916, which report covered the period of time from the opening of the build- ing up to April 30, 1916, a period of one year and four and one-half months. O. R. Largent, the first general secretary of the association, presented to the finance committee and the board of directors, prior to the opening of the building a suggested budget for operating expenses during the first year and one-half. This budget was adopted and shows that the operating cost of the association was kept within the budget allowance and that all expenses for the budget period had been promptly paid; also that, on May 1, 1916, the association started on its second fiscal year with no open accounts and with a surplus of $1,098.54, representing a cash balance of $600.42 and prepaid insurance of $498.12. It is believed that in this first year of the work of the association a substantial start was made in the various departments. The regular work was divided up into different departments, headed by com- mittees responsible for the activities of their respective departments. These committees are the executive, financial, religious work, educational, physi- cal, social, boys, house, membership and industrial. Mention may be made very briefly of the work of these committees as given in the president's report.
In addition to conducting a number of excellent meetings for men and Bible classes for both boys and men, the religious work committee has striven at all times to promote a wholesome atmosphere about the building and throughout all the activities of the association, the underlying purpose being so to conduct the work of the association that it will have a character- building influence in the lives of boys and men. The educational committee for the first year purposely did not plan any extensive work for this depart- ment further than organizing clubs and arranging for educational talks.
In the physical department there were held fourteen gymnasium classes weekly, with a total attendance of 12,976. The attendance at all indoor privileges, not including baths and individual use of the gymnasium and swim- ming pool, was 20,970. Thirty-six men and one hundred and one boys learned to swim in the swimming pool of the association building. In addition to athletic contests and match games, the physical department is used often in extension work, which includes swimming classes for younger boys, factory gymnasium meets on Saturday afternoons, church league games, high school games, and Vehicle Worker's Club basket-ball.
Some of the most interesting social events of the city, especially for
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young people of Flint, have been held in the Y. M. C. A. building and in some of these the Young Women's Christian Association has co-operated.
The boys' division is divided into three groups, known as younger stu- dents, older students and employed boys. Various activities along lines especially planned for boys have been conducted for those various groups, with leaders composed of leading men of the city. Space does not permit going into detail about this work with boys, but it includes competitions in games, swimming, Bible study, etc .; High School Club, Employed Boys' Study Club, Newsboys' Club activities, which means that on Saturday for three hours newsboys have use of the gymnasium and swimming pool; camp- ing and older boys' state and county conferences, father and son banquet, courses in boy-life, nature study, vacation trips and "hikes," and social gatherings.
One of the most interesting features of work under the direction of the house committee is that which pertains to the dormitory. There are seventy rooms with accommodations for ninety men. The plan of the member- ship committee is to establish in a substantial way a minimum membership of one thousand embers.
The work of the association is in charge of eighteen directors and the . title to the property is vested in the board of six trustees. The present board of directors are, C. S. Mott, president; F. A. Aldrich, vice-president ; Grant J. Brown, treasurer ; Gyles E. Merrill, Dr. William R. Davis, Charles M. Greenway, Charles H. Bonbright, E. D. Black, N. C. Webster, William Beacraft, A. N. Cody, Dr. B. E. Burnell, Dr. C. E. Williams, W. C. Jones, Floyd A. Allen, Arthur Raab, L. C. Hamilton, W. T. Walker. The board of trustees consists of J. D. Dort, chairman; D. D. Aitken, treasurer; C. W. Nash, J. E. Burroughs, L. H. Bridgman, F. A. Beard.
THE YOUNG WOMEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION.
The Young Women's Christian Association of Flint was incorporated in February, 1908. Its organization was the direct result of many prelimi- nary meetings and conferences held by the women of the city, when the needs of Flint in this direction were discussed and the conclusion was reached that such an institution was imperatively required for the betterment of the community. The movement had its inception among the young business women, and one of them, Miss Nina Mills, especially, was untiring in her efforts to attain the end of the organization, subsequently achieved.
Mrs. Bruce J. Macdonald, who was particularly well qualified for the work, having been a member of the Oregon state committee of the Young
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Women's Christian Association, was made chairman and with the assistance of a committee of workers, was chiefly instrumental in securing the pledge of one thousand members. A board of twenty-one directors was chosen by the pledged members and Mrs. Macdonald was elected the first president of the association. Mrs. Fritz Miller, at that time Miss Louise Fenton, was chosen first vice-president and made the head of the religious department ; Mrs. B. F. Cotharin was made second vice-president and placed in charge of the department of economics; Mrs. I. M. Eldridge was chosen third vice- president and headed the department of education and physical culture, and Mrs. John J. Carton was elected fourth vice-president and managed the social work. Mrs. E. A. DeWaters was made secretary of the board and Mrs. F. W. Swan, treasurer.
The foremost need was an association home and dormitory adequate to meet the needs of the young women members who required such accom- modations. A gymnasium was also one of the features aimed at and secured through the efforts of the original board. The association obtained a lease on the property known as the Oren Stone homestead, at the corner of First and Harrison streets and, with the lease, took an option to purchase. This option was later closed and the property came into the possession of the association. Dining rooms were fitted up and a cafateria established. It has been successfully conducted and its receipts, under the careful manage- ment of the committees in charge, have paid off a large portion of the debt that had incurred when the property was purchased. The old home has been remodeled by transforming it into a gymnasium and offices. D. D. Aitken, Fred A. Aldrich, H. H. Fitzgerald, Mrs. George C. Willson, Mrs. F. W. Swan and Mrs. J. D. Hotchkiss were the trustees chosen to hold the legal title to the property.
A summer camp, called the Betty Swan camp, was later established, and the young women of the association were provided with a place for summer outings. It was first located on the river about five miles north of Flint, but it was afterward removed to Long lake. Here the young women are offered the advantages of a brief vacation at a nominal cost and the camp is one of the most important additions to the activities of the association.
The present membership list is about one thousand. The officers for 1916 are: President, Mrs. Cooper Baldwin; vice-president, Mrs. F. W. Swan; recording secretary, Miss Dorothy Dort; corresponding secretary, Mrs. F. J. Ottaway; treasurer, Mrs. B. E. Burnell; general secretary, Miss Maude Morse; membership and employment secretary, Miss Lelia Coleman; house secretary, Miss Lenna Clark; physical director, Miss Florence Tenny ;
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extension and girls' work secretary, Miss Hulda Daniels; cafateria director, Mrs. Ida Irvine.
THE KING'S DAUGHTERS.
A circle of King's Daughters, a branch of the parent organization which was founded in New York City in 1886, was started in Flint in 1887 by Miss Florence E. Fuller, of the Congregational Sunday school. As the society was non-sectarian, the membership lists soon included workers from all denominations, and in 1916 Opportunity Circle of the King's Daughters, with Mrs. Robert J. Whaley as the honorary member, has an active member- ship of over four hundred. The society was incorporated under the laws of the state of Michigan in April, 1911. In 1912 a property on Stevens street, in the second ward, was purchased and a home, known as the King's Daughters Home, was established. The society maintains in this home a day nursery, which scientifically cares for infants and small children of wage-earning women, the number of children cared for during the fiscal year ending July 1, 1916, numbering about three thousand. The organiza- tion has also supported a visiting nurse to care for the deserving sick since 1907.
The work of the order is carried on through the efforts of its members and the free-will offerings of the public. The only general appeal of the King's Daughters is made on Charity day, which has come to be an annual event .-
The following officers of the society were elected for 1916: President, Mrs. A. A. Patterson; vice-president, Mrs. G. D. Briggs; recording secre- tary, Mrs. J. W. Orr; corresponding secretary, Mrs. F. W. Siegel; treasurer, Mrs. E. W. Hubbard. These officers, with the following ladies, comprise the executive board: Mrs. A. S. Kaufmann, Mrs. C. A. Bishop, Mrs. Will- iam Richards, Mrs. S. Carroll, Miss Jane Ceeley.
THE CHILD'S WELFARE SOCIETY.
The Child's Welfare Society, a purely philanthropic association, was organized in 1914, the object of the society being the alleviation of defec- tive, dependent and delinquent juveniles. The association since its inception has proved itself of inestimable value in the relief of sick children and, from a small beginning of about twenty-five members, has grown to a society with an active membership of over eight hundred. A visiting nurse is maintained, who goes about among the deserving. poor and also instructs the mothers
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of the foreign families in the scientific care of infants. During the month the average number of nursing calls made is one hundred and forty-five; instruc- tive calls, ninety-five, and special service calls, fifty. The society also pro- vides pure milk for infants, which is distributed from regulated refrigerated ice stations, and also maintains a free clinic for infants in the factory dis- trict of the city. It provides clothing for needy children and also proper clothing for mothers, if desired. Although the society has only been in existence two years, it has established a summer camp for delicate children, at the farm home of Mr. and Mrs. Nichol, near Fenton, known as the "Happy Day Farm," which during the summer of 1916 cared for thirty-four children for a period of from one to three weeks, with a nurse in charge. A number of these children found to be in need of medical attention were afterward cared for at the expense of the society at the University Hospital in Ann Arbor and at other institutions. The Child's Welfare Society expects to establish soon a permanent home for the care of children during the summer months and a committee was appointed in June, 1916, to report upon the securing of a building site for this purpose.
The officers of the society for 1916 are: President, Mrs. C. B. Burr; vice-presidents, Mrs. M. W. Clift, Mrs. N. J. Berston, Sr., and Mrs. W. H. Edwards; secretary, Mrs. J. Ed. Burroughs; treasurer, Miss Katharine Bishop; visiting nurse, Miss Mary Chayre.
ST. MICHAEL'S BENEVOLENT SOCIETY.
Among the older organizations which were of benefit in the earlier days, was St. Michael's Benevolent Society, organized in 1866 under the pastorate of Rev. Fr. Charles Decuennick, the chief aim of which was to furnish aid where needed in the burial of its members. The Catholic Mutual Benefit Association was organized in 1878 under the auspices of Rev. Robert W. Haire, which embodied the principle of life insurance as one of its main fea- tures. These organizations were worthy predecessors of the present Catholic benevolent societies of Flint and in their day did great good.
ST. PAUL'S MEN'S CLUB.
Rev. J. Bradford Pengelly, in the winter of 1913-14, organized the St. Paul's Men's Club, for the purpose of inducing the business men of the city to think collectively about the serious problems of the day in municipal and
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