The WOMEN'S PHILANTHROPIC UNION, established on 27 Sept. 1926, succeeded the WOMAN'S CHRISTIAN TEMPERANCE UNION (WCTU), NON-PARTISAN, of Cleveland. The WCTU changed its name in recognition of the broadening scope of its philanthropic efforts, beyond advocating abstention from the use of alcohol (see TEMPERANCE). A private charitable foundation (see FOUNDATIONS), it has distributed donations to projects such as the RAINEY INSTITUTE, the Cleveland Training Home for Girls (which evolved into the Cogswell Hall home for the elderly), the Lakeside Rest Cottage, and the FRIENDLY INN SOCIAL SETTLEMENT. In the 1990s it has limited its giving to the Friendly Inn and Cogswell Hall. Although these organizations at times share board members with the Women's Philanthropic Union, they represent separate entities. Income for the Union has included bequests and membership dues, and in the early years, support from the Welfare Federation (see FEDERATION FOR COMMUNITY PLANNING). Its first year the Women's Philanthropic Union gave away over $16,000 of its $20,000 in assets. In 1993 from offices in the Huntington Bldg., it dispersed $257,657 of its $6 million.
Woman's Christian Temperance Union, Cleveland, Ohio, Records, WRHS.