Junior League History

About Us/Mission

Junior League History

1901
The Junior League is Founded
In 1901, Mary Harriman, a 19-year-old New York City debutante with a social conscience, forms the Junior League for the Promotion of Settlement Movements. Harriman mobilizes a group of 80 other young women, hence the name "Junior" League, to work to improve child health, nutrition and literacy among immigrants living on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Inspired by her friend Mary, Eleanor Roosevelt joins the Junior League of The City of New York in 1903, teaching calisthenics and dancing to young girls at the College Settlement House.

1907-1920
The Movement Expands
The second Junior League is formed in Boston, MA in 1907 and is soon followed by the founding of the Brooklyn, NY Junior League in 1910. In 1912, The Junior League of Montreal becomes the first League in Canada.

Junior Leagues shift their focus from settlement house work to social, health and educational issues that affect the community at large. The Junior League of Brooklyn successfully petitions the Board of Education to provide free lunches in city schools. In 1914, the founders of the Junior League of St. Louis march for women's suffrage.

During World War I, Junior Leagues play an active role, selling bonds and working in Army hospitals. The San Francisco Junior League forms a motor delivery service that serves as a model for the nationwide Red Cross Motor Corps.

1920s-1930s
In 1921, approximately thirty Junior Leagues create the Association of Junior Leagues of America (AJLA) to provide professional support to the Leagues. Dorothy Whitney Straight becomes the first AJLA President.

During the 1920s, the Junior League of Chicago pioneers children's theater, an idea that is subsequently taken up by more than 100 Leagues across the country.

Junior Leagues respond to the Great Depression by opening nutrition centers and milk stations. They operate baby clinics, day nurseries for working mothers, birth control clinics and training schools for nurses. Junior Leagues also establish volunteer bureaus to recruit, train and place much-needed volunteers in the community. Many Leagues create State Public Affairs Committees (SPACs) to influence public welfare policy.

The Junior League of Mexico City joins the Association in 1930, further expanding the international nature of the organization. By this time more than 100 Leagues are in existence.

1940s
During World War II, Junior League members play a major role in the war effort by chairing hundreds of war-related organizations in virtually every city where Junior Leagues operate. Canadian and American League members serve overseas. Oveta Culp Hobby, a Houston League member, leads the Women's Army Corps.

In 1940, the first Junior League cookbook, a compilation of recipes by The Junior League Augusta titled Recipes from Southern Kitchens, appears and begins a tradition of fundraising through cookbook publishing.

1950s
By the 1950s, nearly 150 Junior Leagues are volunteering in remedial reading centers, diagnostic testing programs and programs for gifted and challenged children. Leagues collaborate in the development of educational television and are on the forefront of promoting quality programming for children. In 1952, the Mexico City League establishes the Comité Internacional Pro Ciegos, a comprehensive, international center for the blind.

By the end of the decade, Junior Leagues are involved in over 300 arts projects and multiple partnerships in many cities to establish children's museums. The 1950s also marks the growth of regional Junior League cookbooks as a key fundraising tool, spearheaded by the Charleston League who aggressively and successfully markets its Charleston Receipts cookbooks to food editors and critics around the country.

1960s
In this period of great turbulence and social change, Junior Leagues rise to meet many challenges. As the decade progressed, nearly half the Leagues had health and welfare projects, including alcohol programs, adoption services, clinics, convalescent care and hospital services, and many Junior Leagues begin to add environmental issues to their agendas. The Junior League of Toledo produces the educational film, Fate of a River, a report on the devastating effects of water pollution. Leagues also establish programs addressing the education, housing, social services and employment needs of urban residents.

By now, more than 200 Leagues are part of the Association, which dedicates itself anew to building leadership skills and increasing membership diversity.

1970s
In 1971, the Association changes its name to the Association of Junior Leagues, Inc. (AJL). Throughout the 1970s, Leagues expand their participation in public affairs issues, especially in the areas of child health and juvenile justice. In 1973, almost 200 Leagues work with the National Commission on Crime and Delinquency and the U.S. Justice Department on a four-year program seeking to improve the criminal justice system. In Canada, the Canadian Federation is formed to promote public issues among the Canadian Leagues.

In 1978, the first Junior League outside North America is established in London.

1980s
211 Junior Leagues
During the 1980s, Junior Leagues in the U.S. gain recognition for advocacy efforts to improve the child welfare system. U.S. Leagues also help gain passage of the first federal legislation to address domestic violence. More than 100 Leagues develop the "Woman to Woman" campaign that actively and comprehensively tackles the impact of alcohol abuse on women. The Canadian Federation holds its first national conference focusing on violence against women and the negative impact of pornography.

In 1981, Junior League of Phoenix member, Sandra Day O'Connor, becomes the first woman to be appointed a Supreme Court Justice of the United States.

In 1988, the Association officially becomes the Association of Junior Leagues International, Inc. (JLBC), better reflecting the international scope of the member Leagues.

In 1989, the Association is presented with the prestigious U.S. President's Volunteer Action Award.

1990s
294 Junior Leagues
In the early 1990s, 230 Leagues participate in a public awareness campaign to encourage early childhood immunization called "Don't Wait to Vaccinate." In 1998, Clotilde Perez-Bode Dedecker becomes the first Hispanic President of the Association.

The Junior Leagues renew their dedication to the Junior League Mission. The Association's Board adopts goals to guide and position the Association for its second century. The goals stress the importance of the Association in helping Junior Leagues develop women for community leadership, achieve a shared, positive identity, and function as strong, viable and healthy organizations, consistent with The Junior League Mission.

2001-Present
The Junior League's Second Century
In 2001, Deborah Brittain, the Association's first African-American President, presides over The Junior League's centennial celebration. Maya Angelou, Nane Annan, and Gloria Steinem, among others, address the members at the Association's Annual Conference in New York City, site of the first Junior League.

JLBC co-chairs the U.S. Steering Committee for the United Nations' International Year of the Volunteer (IYV) with the Points of Light Foundation. As part of IYV activities, President Vicente Fox recognizes the Junior League of Mexico City's members for their "high level of social leadership and human quality."

In 2002, the Association launches the Junior League PR/Marketing Campaign, which includes a new brand logo and tagline. The Association's Board of Directors also launches its "Healthy League Initiative," a formal self-evaluation process designed to ensure that each League continues to achieve its full potential in its community by assessing its strengths and weaknesses.

In 2006, over 225 Junior Leagues participated in the launch of Junior Leagues’ Kids in the Kitchen, an initiative to address the problems associated with childhood obesity and poor nutrition. The initiative was taken on long-term in 2007, with over 255 Junior Leagues participating across four countries.

In 2008, The Association of Junior Leagues International won the Award of Excellence in the 2008 Associations Advance America Awards program, a national competition sponsored by the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) & The Center for Leadership, Washington, D.C. for its Kids in the Kitchen program.