The Beginnings of the YMCA in Staunton by Heather Cole
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On Sunday, November 8, 1874, a notice was read from the pulpits of Staunton churches announcing a meeting to discuss starting a Young Men’s Christian Association in town. That afternoon, representatives from five local churches gathered at the First Presbyterian Church and decided to proceed. The group then appointed two members from each church to recruit additional members and made plans to meet a week later at Methodist Episcopal Church. The five churches that sent representatives to the founding meeting of the Staunton YMCA represented each of the major Protestant denominations in Staunton at the time: - Central Evangelical Lutheran Church (now Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church), founded in 1853. Located at the intersection of Beverley Street and Central Avenue in 1874; now located at 2801 N. Augusta Street. - First Presbyterian Church, founded in 1804 and located at 100 E. Frederick Street. - Methodist Episcopal Church (now Central United Methodist Church), founded in 1797 and located at 14 N. Lewis Street. - Staunton Baptist Church (now First Baptist Church), founded in 1853. Previously located at the intersection of Beverley and Washington Streets; now located at 406 W. Frederick Street. - Trinity Episcopal Church, founded in 1746 and located at 214 W. Beverley Street. A YMCA had been organized in Staunton nearly two decades earlier - in January 1856 - and had been met with early enthusiasm. This first Staunton YMCA had a membership of close to 100 men and rented two rooms for a meeting space and a reading room. The organization held at least five public lectures by guest speakers on topics ranging from “The Philosophy of Dress” to “The Types of Modern Infidelity.” However, by the end of the year, interest had apparently dwindled and a writer to the Staunton Spectator complained that there were only a dozen active members and not enough books to fill the shelves of the YMCA’s library. It appears that by early 1857, the first Staunton YMCA had fizzled out. This was not uncommon in the early days of the YMCA movement. When the next generation of Staunton YMCA founders gathered 18 years later, they moved quickly to incorporate the organization and, perhaps, put it on more solid financial and organization footing. By their second meeting on November 14, the founders had the names of 125 local men who were interested in becoming members as well as a draft constitution. They also had an offer of the use of two rooms in a building at the corner of Augusta and Frederick Streets and estimates on what it would cost to launch the organization: a grand total of $526 to purchase furniture, a coal-burning stove, fuel and an assortment of periodicals for the reading room. They also declared their intent to obtain their own building where they could have a full library. The official founding of what would eventually become the STAUNTON-AUGUSTA FAMILY YMCA occurred three days later - November 17, 1874 -at the Methodist Episcopal Church. At this meeting, the gathered accepted a constitution which stated the purpose of the organization as follows: “Its object shall be the promotion of evangelical religion, the cultivation of Christian sympathy, and the improvement of the social, mental and spiritual condition of our young men.” Each attendee was asked to sign the membership register and pay a $1.50 annual membership fee. A total of 61 men became members of the Staunton YMCA on that date. Things progressed quickly from that point. At the next meeting, members approved bylaws that described how meetings would run and established committees that would manage their various activities. They included committees for the library, lectures, publications, Bible classes, religious exercises, Sunday schools and relief of the poor. These were typical activities for a YMCA of the time; physical exercises and sports would be added when the Staunton YMCA had its own building. On the list of founding members of the Staunton YMCA are lawyers, grocers, booksellers and building contractors. Most were born and raised in Staunton, although at least one was originally from New England. They were religious men- active in their respective churches as elders, clerks and Sunday School teachers. Many had fought in the Civil War. Initially, full membership was restricted to “any man who is a member in good standing of any evangelical church,” at the time considered to be any of the Protestant denominations. Men of “Christian character” or “good moral character” could be admitted as associate members, able to participate in YMCA activities, but unable to hold office. While race was not explicitly mentioned in the Staunton YMCA’s first constitution, it was an implicitly segregated organization. But the interest in the YMCA movement was widespread. A year later, in April 1875, a group of what the local newspaper described as “colored citizens of Staunton” met to organize an African American YMCA. At least a dozen men met at the Methodist Episcopal Church - one of the locations in town where the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church met until building their own chapel - and adopted a constitution. Additional research is needed to determine what became of Staunton’s African American YMCA. In 1967, segregation was banned in all YMCAs and the Staunton YMCA was integrated at about the same time.* Despite being denied official membership, women played an important role in supporting the early Staunton YMCA by organizing concerts, bazaars and other fundraising events. Women were particularly vital to the success of the YMCA library, which they were able to visit as guests beginning in 1877. The YMCA Ladies Auxiliary, organized in 1886, raised money, purchased books and led the operation and expansion of the library, which was eventually turned over to the City of Staunton. In 1926, with the support of the Staunton YMCA, local women organized a Young Women’s Christian Association. Founded in 1855 in London to support traveling nurses, the YWCA was a separate organization from the similarly-named YMCA. By the 1920s it was also a largely secular organization, focused on women’s education and social activism. Additional research is needed to determine how closely the Staunton YWCA fit the national mode and what activities it pursued. The YWCA was active for about six years and operated out of space rented from the YMCA. The Staunton YWCA disbanded in 1932, and the following year women were allowed full membership in the Staunton YMCA, per directives from YMCA national leadership. * For details, see Chris Lassiter’s article “How We Integrated” in the February 2024 issue of the SAYMCA Newsletter. To learn what became of the YMCA library, check out Books Bring Adventure: The History of the Staunton Public Library by Katharine L. Brown, available at the Staunton Public Library. Thank you to Donna Huffer, archivist at the Augusta County Historical Society, for her research assistance with this article. WOMEN AND THE "Y" Tracing the role of women throughout the course of the history of the YMCA reflects the larger story of women's rights and the impact created by these early pioneers. World War I and II offered a unique opportunity for women to organize and demonstrate their skills as leaders. Notable leaders of this era include Princess Helena Victoria of Schleswig- Holstein who served as the first president of the YMCA Women's Auxiliary, which was formed in December of 1914. To read more about the women who impacted the SAYMCA scan the QR code to check out the story published in our March 2023 Newsletter.
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A YMCA Women's Auxiliary group during WWII
HONORING OUR HISTORY
Minutes from the first meeting of the SAYMCA in 1874.