YWCA Organized 1871 14 East Park November 3, 1913 - <?>: 53 Washington Street Photos Do you have a photo of this association? If so please email me.

Newspaper Articles

November 2, 1913 - A Building to be Proud Of

From: Social Services Directory of Newark 1912

YWCA

Established for the benefit, spiritual, intellectual, social, and physical of all young women. Religious services and social and recreational gatherings open to all.

Departments - Day and evening classes in dressmaking, millinery, embroidery, painting, English, gymnasium, systematic Bible study.

Recreation Centre maintained for the social development of all girls who will avail themselves of it.

Board Homes - (a) 562 Broad Street, (b) 105 Mt. Pleasant Avenue. Charges $3.75 to $7.50 per week.

Employment Bureau - $1.00 per year to all women, $1.00 to employers.

Note - The YWCA has raised $300,000 and will erect an Association building at 53 Washington Street., and a Boarding Home at 310 Broad Street.

From: "Newark, the City of Industry" Published by the Newark Board of Trade 1912

With a big fund that was recently raised by public subscription the Young Women's Christian Association is soon to be built, for the use of its members, an up to date home and there, as in the YMCA, provision will be made for the mental and physical advancement of its members, and also for their convenience and comfort.

What promises to be one of the finest buildings of its kind in the country is now being built for the YWCA. It, like the home of the YMCA, will be located not far from the centre of the city and will overlook Washington Park, one of the small breathing spots in the city.

The structure is to be five stories in height. It is estimated that it will cost in the neighborhood of $250,000. This, with $50,000 invested in the ground and a similar sum for equipment and furnishings will mean an outlay of approximately $350,000. Of the sum $300,000 was raised through popular subscription in a vigorous campaign that was inaugurated about a year ago. The structure is to be of brick with a base course of limestone and a decorative treatment in marble. The style is to be Colonial with Old English features. Across the front of it at the second floor there is to be a balcony, and it is expected that the use of small panes of glass in all the windows will give an exceedingly homelike effect to the structure.

In addition to a large swimming pool in the basement there is to be a large well lighted gymnasium, an assembly room for lectures, dances and plays, commodious reception rooms, and a large, well appointed lunch room, in which 1,500 persons may be accommodated every noon hour. There is also to be an attractive roof garden, rest rooms, fitter up with couches and other comforts, rooms for industrial and educational classes, Bible classes for teaching foreigners, committee rooms, social club rooms, cooking school rooms, kitchens and kitchenettes. Provision has also been made for a junior department for girls under fifteen years of age, and for bath rooms and all sorts of accessories such as cloak rooms, dressing rooms, etc.

The entrance to this structure is to be on a level with the street. Steps from the entrance hall lead to a vestibule opening into the various departments, including the offices and the library. Telephone booths and cloak rooms will also be located on that floor and there also will be a general foyer hall with a great fire place, in which it is planned to burn wood.

Arrangements for the location of the other rooms and departments have been carefully made with the idea of providing for the comfort of the members. On the second floor will be dressing rooms, showers and lockers, the office of the extension secretaries and some of the club rooms. On the third floor will be the general reception room, the committee room, a women's cloak room and large lavatories. Almost the entire fourth floor is to be devoted to the educational department, and on the fifth, or top floor, is to be the lunch room with enough tables for 200 diners at a time.

The roof garden will occupy a space of about 60 x 100 feet. The elevators stop at the top floor, from which a flight of stairs ascend to the roof, where, in the garden, will be provided many attractions to make sultry evenings enjoyable.

That breathing place, however, will not be the only cool spot in the building. Careful provision has been made for ventilating and lighting the entire structure. In addition to a large lighting court at the south side, there will be ventilating courts at the north side of the building, and for the structure there has been arranged an excellent ventilating system, that is to be operated by means of supply and exhaust fans.