History
The YWCA of Minneapolis was founded in 1891 by a group of women pushing the boundaries of social acceptability: women working outside of the home. The YWCA has been at the forefront of social change ever since.
Throughout the early part of the century members fought against the social conventions and prejudices of their day - working for women's suffrage throughout the early 1900s; promoting racial equality and integration in the '40s; and organizing support and advocacy for single parents and welfare recipients in the early '60s.
Timeline
| 1890 | State YWCA Association holds convention in Minneapolis. Minneapolis women stress a need for meeting place, especially during the lunch hour. |
| 1891 | The first committee meets to work towards organizing the YWCA of Minneapolis |
| 1891 | The first YWCA of Minneapolis is established on a second story flat above a store on 45 South 8th Street. A lunchroom and rest areas are provided. |
| 1892 | The YWCA moves to 4th Street South on the second floor above a store. |
| 1893 | The YWCA relocates to 808 Nicollet Mall - on stove heat! - until 1898. The first floor contained a gymnasium and a dressing room. The parlors, offices and lunchroom were located on the second floor. The women's vigorous exercise was halted when a burly Minneapolis Police man came to the door to see what was shaking the building. |
| 1898 | Traveler's Aid program began at the YWCA. Traveler's Aid employees went to the train stations to meet and help women transitioning from rural areas. YWCA moves to 521 First Ave South. Facilities included a gymnasium. The membership total at the YWCA of Minneapolis is 738. The cafeteria serves between 500-700 people daily. |
| 1900 | W.S. Benton secretly buys a plot of land on South 7th Street to donate to the YWCA. |
| 1903 | The YWCA moves to 89 South 7th Street. The building is open 24-hours a day. This is the first building owned and operated by women in Minneapolis! |
| 1903 | The F.W. Lyman family buys summer home on Lake Minnetonka. It sits on 10 wooded acres and 600 feet of shoreline. |
| 1908 | YWCA opens small camp on Lake Calhoun - Camp Lindsey. Participants are girls who work in Minneapolis factories. |
| 1911 | YWCA President, Mrs. W.S. Benton, decides the organization needs a swimming pool and raises $10,000 to build one. She does this despite the public opinion that "...the girls could do very well without one." The pool is completed in 1913. |
| 1918 | Mr. Fredrick W. Lyman donates summer home on Lake Minnetonka, along with all the furniture in the house. In return, the YWCA gives Mr. Lyman a gold piece set in a silver locket with the inscription "From the Young Women's Christian Association Girls of Minneapolis." The camp is named "Elizabeth Lyman Lodge" after Mr. Lyman's late wife. The YWCA later built an additional lodge and called it "Tipi Mochi" thinking that the name meant "House for Young Women." They were shocked to learn that the name actually translated to "House of the Dead." The name was abruptly changed to "Tipi Wikoski," or "Lodge of Little Women." |
| 1929 | YWCA opens at 1130 Nicollet Avenue. Annual membership dues were $1.00 for adults and $.50 for children. 25 transient rooms were available for $1.00 a day. |
| 1932 | The Great Depression forces the YWCA to severely cut the program budget and staff salaries. |
| 1942 | The first African-American member of the YWCA of Minneapolis board is elected. |
| 1945 | The YWCA offers the first racially integrated pool in the Twin Cities. |
| 1955 | The YWCA Camp Mekahga opens on Lake Pokegana, six miles from Grand Rapids, MN. |
| 1968 | The Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese removes restrictions forbidding Catholics from becoming members of the YWCA and YMCA. |
| 1970 | The YWCA begins providing pregnancy prevention programming for teens. |
| 1970 | The YWCA holds a 3-day seminar at Lyman Lodge with the purpose of combating racism. |
| 1970 | After 41 years, the YWCA cafeteria closes for good. |
| 1971 | The Theater at Noon operates in the former cafeteria. The performance closes after one month due to lack of interest and the cafeteria goes unused. |
| 1973 | The Lyman Lodge stops the camping program and becomes a year-round program and retreat center. |
| 1973 | Ruth Hawkins Center (North Commons) opens in North Minneapolis. This center was made possible from a $100,000 gift from the estate of Ruth Hawkins. Ms. Hawkins grew up on the north side of Minneapolis and was very devoted to the YWCA. The philosophy of the center is to eliminate racism through programs that bring the community together. |
| 1974 | The YWCA signs interim housing lease for the 4th floor of the Marquette building. It is used during the Nicollet Ave building transition. The YWCA auctions off furnishings and equipment from the original 1130 Nicollet Avenue building. It makes $41,266.36 on the sale. The original building, constructed in 1924, is demolished. Work begins on its replacement. |
| 1976 | Staff begins moving into the new YWCA building at 1130 Nicollet Avenue. On April 19th, the Dedication of the new building is held. Proclamation read by Senator Hubert Humphrey. |
| 1979 | The YWCA of Minneapolis pool is named "Best in Twin Cities." |
| 1986 | The West High gym is converted into the Uptown YWCA. The facility opens in 1987. |
| 1989 | The YWCA of Minneapolis Phillips Children's Center opens to meet the childcare needs of the Phillips community. |
| 1990 | The YWCA sells Lyman Lodge. |
| 2000 | The YWCA Midtown building opens. |
| 2006 | The YWCA Children's Center at Abbott Northwestern opens. |
| Today | The YWCA of Minneapolis continues to work towards its mission of empowering women and girls and eliminating racism. |