Founded in 1877, the Women's Educational and Industrial Union of Boston is still in existence today. Although a pioneer in the fields of social reform, industrial education, women's organizations, and social science, it has long been neglected by historians. The first thirty-five years of the Union's history were particularly important in establishing a diversity of activities and a set of priorities. As an organization committed to mutual aid and benevolence, the WEIU, on the one hand, provided fellowship and an outlet for the energies of social-reform minded women, and, on the other hand, provided information and crucial services to the many young women who were newcomers to Boston, often alone, and in need of lodgings and employment. In particular, the Union deserves special attention for its concern with enabling women of all classes to support themselves. To this end, it sponsored some of the first women's handwork shops, employment agencies, and trade schools in the nation.
This thesis follows the development of the WEIU between its founding in 1877 and the appointment of its first paid and professionally education president in 1912. The Union had three presidents during this period, Dr. Harriet Clisby (1877-1880), Abbey MortonDiaz (1881-1891), and Mary Morton Kehew (1892-1912). The terms of Diaz and Kehew each correspond to the two major phases of the Union's early development, and therefore mark transitions within this paper. In each case, the president' s own outlook significantly influenced the philosophy which shaped the Union's work, makingit appropriate to examine it in some detail.","abstract_html":"<p>Founded in 1877, the Women's Educational and Industrial Union of Boston is still in existence today. Although a pioneer in the fields of social reform, industrial education, women's organizations, and social science, it has long been neglected by historians. The first thirty-five years of the Union's history were particularly important in establishing a diversity of activities and a set of priorities. As an organization committed to mutual aid and benevolence, the WEIU, on the one hand, provided fellowship and an outlet for the energies of social-reform minded women, and, on the other hand, provided information and crucial services to the many young women who were newcomers to Boston, often alone, and in need of lodgings and employment. In particular, the Union deserves special attention for its concern with enabling women of all classes to support themselves. To this end, it sponsored some of the first women's handwork shops, employment agencies, and trade schools in the nation.</p> <p>This thesis follows the development of the WEIU between its founding in 1877 and the appointment of its first paid and professionally education president in 1912. The Union had three presidents during this period, Dr. Harriet Clisby (1877-1880), Abbey MortonDiaz (1881-1891), and Mary Morton Kehew (1892-1912). The terms of Diaz and Kehew each correspond to the two major phases of the Union's early development, and therefore mark transitions within this paper. In each case, the president' s own outlook significantly influenced the philosophy which shaped the Union's work, makingit appropriate to examine it in some detail.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Briggs, Charlotte H L"],"institution":"Oberlin College Honors Theses","degree_name":"BA","degree_level":"bachelors","degree_discipline":"History","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Lasser, Carol"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":1985,"date_issued":"1985","date_published":"1985","updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:37:01Z","subjects":["Labor Relations","Womens Studies","American History","American Studies","WEIU","Women's Educational and Industrial Union","Boston"],"languages":["English"],"rights":["unrestricted","This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws."],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=oberlin1363700437","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Lasser, Carol"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Briggs, Charlotte H L"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["1985"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Oberlin College Honors Theses / OhioLINK"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Electronic Thesis or Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["History"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["bachelors"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["BA"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["Oberlin College Honors Theses"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Labor Relations","Womens Studies","American History","American Studies","WEIU","Women's Educational and Industrial Union","Boston"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["unrestricted","This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws."]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=oberlin1363700437"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["
Founded in 1877, the Women's Educational and Industrial Union of Boston is still in existence today. Although a pioneer in the fields of social reform, industrial education, women's organizations, and social science, it has long been neglected by historians. The first thirty-five years of the Union's history were particularly important in establishing a diversity of activities and a set of priorities. As an organization committed to mutual aid and benevolence, the WEIU, on the one hand, provided fellowship and an outlet for the energies of social-reform minded women, and, on the other hand, provided information and crucial services to the many young women who were newcomers to Boston, often alone, and in need of lodgings and employment. In particular, the Union deserves special attention for its concern with enabling women of all classes to support themselves. To this end, it sponsored some of the first women's handwork shops, employment agencies, and trade schools in the nation.
This thesis follows the development of the WEIU between its founding in 1877 and the appointment of its first paid and professionally education president in 1912. The Union had three presidents during this period, Dr. Harriet Clisby (1877-1880), Abbey MortonDiaz (1881-1891), and Mary Morton Kehew (1892-1912). The terms of Diaz and Kehew each correspond to the two major phases of the Union's early development, and therefore mark transitions within this paper. In each case, the president' s own outlook significantly influenced the philosophy which shaped the Union's work, makingit appropriate to examine it in some detail."]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application/pdf","p.75","26.63 MB"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["From Social Reform to Social Science: The Women's Educational and Industrial Union of Boston, 1877-1912"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Lasser, Carol"],"dc:creator":["Briggs, Charlotte H L"],"dc:date":["1985"],"dc:description":["
Founded in 1877, the Women's Educational and Industrial Union of Boston is still in existence today. Although a pioneer in the fields of social reform, industrial education, women's organizations, and social science, it has long been neglected by historians. The first thirty-five years of the Union's history were particularly important in establishing a diversity of activities and a set of priorities. As an organization committed to mutual aid and benevolence, the WEIU, on the one hand, provided fellowship and an outlet for the energies of social-reform minded women, and, on the other hand, provided information and crucial services to the many young women who were newcomers to Boston, often alone, and in need of lodgings and employment. In particular, the Union deserves special attention for its concern with enabling women of all classes to support themselves. To this end, it sponsored some of the first women's handwork shops, employment agencies, and trade schools in the nation.
This thesis follows the development of the WEIU between its founding in 1877 and the appointment of its first paid and professionally education president in 1912. The Union had three presidents during this period, Dr. Harriet Clisby (1877-1880), Abbey MortonDiaz (1881-1891), and Mary Morton Kehew (1892-1912). The terms of Diaz and Kehew each correspond to the two major phases of the Union's early development, and therefore mark transitions within this paper. In each case, the president' s own outlook significantly influenced the philosophy which shaped the Union's work, makingit appropriate to examine it in some detail."],"dc:format":["application/pdf","p.75","26.63 MB"],"dc:identifier":["http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=oberlin1363700437"],"dc:language":["English"],"dc:publisher":["Oberlin College Honors Theses / OhioLINK"],"dc:rights":["unrestricted","This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: all rights reserved. It may not be copied or redistributed beyond the terms of applicable copyright laws."],"dc:subject":["Labor Relations","Womens Studies","American History","American Studies","WEIU","Women's Educational and Industrial Union","Boston"],"dc:title":["From Social Reform to Social Science: The Women's Educational and Industrial Union of Boston, 1877-1912"],"dc:type":["Electronic Thesis or Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["History"],"thesis:degree_level":["bachelors"],"thesis:degree_name":["BA"],"thesis:institution_name":["Oberlin College Honors Theses"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:37:01Z"}