Boston Young Men's Christian Union

Add links
Coordinates: 42°21′7.81″N 71°3′50.63″W / 42.3521694°N 71.0640639°W / 42.3521694; -71.0640639
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Boston Young Men's Christian Union
MPS
Boston Theatre MRA
NRHP reference No.80000451 [1]
Added to NRHPDecember 9, 1980

The Boston Young Men's Christian Union is a historic building at 48

Barbara C. Harris Camp & Convention Center of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts). From its renovation in 2003 to 2011 it was called the Boylston Street Athletic Club, and later the Boston Union Gym or BYMCU Athletic Club.[3] The Boston Young Men's Christian Union claims to be "America's First Gym".[4]

The

Archdiocese of Boston.[5]

Goal (1852)

The BYMCU goal in 1852 was to furnish the young men of Boston and vicinity a place of pleasant resort where the influences are beneficial and elevating, to provide them with opportunity of self-improvement and healthful recreation, at little or no expense; to give them opportunities for doing good, by engaging in charitable and benevolent work.

Members

All young men of good moral character, and claiming to believe in the truths of Christianity, without distinction of sect or party, were eligible as members of this society.[citation needed]

Activities

The report of 1871 shows the Union organized, with committees as follows: finance; lectures, classes, and entertainments; library; rooms; members; benevolent action; public worship and religious study. Sunday religious services were maintained, seats in churches furnished to young men, teachers supplied for Sunday schools and missions, boarding-places recommended, employment secured, savings deposited, and practical benevolent work engaged in. In 1875, there were classes in book-keeping, German, French, parliamentary law, vocal music, astronomy, elocution, and Shakespeare; monthly socials were held, at which many of Boston's most cultured women were present; and a Christmas and New Year's festival was given to poor children. In 1895, we note, 2,318 children and 267 adults were sent to the country for short periods, and carriage and other drives for shut-ins and convalescents to the number of 8,070 provided. The report for 1900 showed that the secular classes had grown in variety and attendance, that the library had 15,000 volumes, that the membership was 5,554, that religious services had been held every Sunday except during July and August, and that over $18,000 had been expended in drives, bay trips, and country visits for the poor.

See also

  • National Register of Historic Places listings in northern Boston, Massachusetts

References

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
  2. ^ a b "Boston Young Men's Christian Union Building: Boston Landmarks Commission Study Report" (PDF). 30 November 1977. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
  3. ^ "Boston Union Gym". Archived from the original on May 31, 2013. Retrieved April 16, 2013.
  4. ISBN 978-1-61996-884-4
    . Retrieved April 1, 2019.
  5. ^ Farragher, Thomas (April 8, 2016). "Amid the skyscrapers, a new home for the needy". The Boston Globe.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Boston Young Men's Christian Union.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Boston_Young_Men%27s_Christian_Union&oldid=1209418940"