The Hull House
Introduction:
Settlement houses were being created during the late 19th century, with the primary purpose of helping immigrants who had recently arrived in America. These houses, usually named after their architects, provided help in English, could act as daycares, and provided basic level education classes. After reading about them in past chapters, I grew interested in the Hull House specifically, and its history.
The Hull House:
Founded by Jane Addams and less notably, Ellen Gates Starr, the Hull House was founded in the year 1889, in Chicago, Illinois. Addams was inspired after visiting a social reform institute, similar to the early day Hull House, and rented out part of the Hull Mansion to launch her creation. Originally serving as a kindergarten school, which grew in popularity around this time period as well, the Hull House soon grew to include a nursery and daycare center, primarily for working mothers. As time progressed, Hull House grew in both size and prestige, eventually able to provide college level curriculum to people of all backgrounds, but still notably those who had recently emigrated to Chicago.
Legacy:
Today, the Hull House is still open and can be visited in Chicago. Now a museum, the house serves as a reminder of important social reformists, dedicated to helping immigrants. The Hull House, specifically its founders, were able to champion state child labor reforms, preventing the exploitation of child labor, and allowed for the creation of establishments and government agencies to regulate and protect underage children and minors. Additionally, the Hull House would have never garnered as much attention as it did, if it were not for pieces of literature that spread its ideals. Alice Hamilton and Florence Kelley’s novels all spread positive news about Hull House, helping the house and its attendants.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, the Hull House served as a notable American social reform institution, that inspired many other settlement houses to follow in its example. These houses further spread knowledge, and assisted immigrants among others, allowing American literacy rates to be increased, and spread word of needed reforms to the American public. It is apparent that settlement houses, like the Hull House, greatly influenced American education, and without them, our country and its people would be at great danger for illiteracy.
Source:
Wow! The Hull house is a very interesting piece of US history, and I was surprised to hear that it offered college- level curriculum. Given that the Hull House was formed at the time when people feared the "New Immigrants" because they thought they either couldn't or wouldn't assimilate to US culture, do you think the Hull House was founded out of good will or to facilitate the assimilation of the immigrants? Or maybe both?
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