Arlington Club
Encyclopedia
The Arlington Club is a private social club
organized in 1867 by 35 business and banking leaders of Portland
in the U.S. state
of Oregon
. First called the Social Club and later re-named the Arlington Club, it offered its all-male members, most of whom were relatively wealthy and powerful, an exclusive place to socialize and discuss their interests.
During its first century, a total of more than 3,300 men were club members at one time or another. Many, in addition to pursuing their livelihoods, were officers in civic, cultural, philanthropic, or social organizations, and some held government posts at the local, state, or federal levels.
For about 100 years, the club excluded Jews and minorities regardless of other criteria, and for 123 years it excluded women. In response to public pressure, it broadened the membership criteria for men by the late 1960s and for women in 1990. In 2011, the Arlington Club continues to gather at its building in downtown Portland.
and 34 other Portland men organized what they called the Social Club to "fraternize for mutual enjoyment and relaxation, and to provide a meeting place for discussing their own and Portland's destiny". The club, "the social headquarters of Portland's male elite" was dominated through the late 20th century by largely white, mostly Anglo-Saxon
men from the city's business and banking leadership. Among the founders were John C. Ainsworth
(Ainsworth National Bank), Henry Failing
(merchandising, shipping, iron and steel, First National Bank), William S. Ladd
(merchandising, transportation, flour milling, Ladd & Tilton Bank), Donald Macleay
(merchandising, shipping, United States National Bank), George Weidler
(steamships, real estate, lumber), and many others who made a lasting impact on the city.
Paul G. Merriam describes the city's early social elite, including the members of the Social Club, as "primarily businessmen and their close associates, such as lawyers and editors". The social elite were heads of families who "held property valued at $50,000 or more, and who were officers in one or more civic, cultural, philanthropic, or social organizations." Merriam counts 38 such men in Portland in 1870, 31 of whom at one time or another held local government office and several of whom held state and federal offices. Most were nominal Republican
s; some were Democrats
, but they crossed party lines depending on issues and personalities.
Although one of the club's goals was to pattern itself after gentlemen's club
s of Europe and older American cities, it also had "civic interests at heart and civic leaders as members...". However, according to Portland historian E. Kimbark MacColl, club members at times equated self-interest with civic interest:
Big banks, utilities, railroads, and U.S. Senators
from Oregon were well-represented within the membership. Generally in the 1890s four or five club members were part of the Oregon Legislature
. Three other clubs—the Multnomah Amateur Athletic Club
(1891), the Waverly Golf Club (1896), and the University Club (1896)—formed during the 1890s, and memberships often overlapped with the Arlington Club. The Concordia Club, formed in 1878, was the Jewish version of the Arlington Club, which was at the time open only to gentile
s.
Among the club's self-generated list of notable members between 1867 and 1967 were George H. Williams
, appointed Chief Justice of the Territorial Courts of Oregon in 1853, elected to the U.S. Senate in 1864, named United States Attorney General
in 1871, and elected mayor of Portland in 1892. Another was Frederick Van Voorhies Holman
, general counsel for an electric utility in the early 20th century, patron of the arts, and author of a biography of John McLoughlin
. Journalist Harvey W. Scott
, a mid-19th-century editor of The Oregonian and author of a six-volume history of Oregon, is on the list as is Lewis A. McArthur
, a 20th-century electric utility executive and author of Oregon Geographic Names
. University presidents, a bishop, and an Air Force general are among others on the list. Well-known guests of the club have included U.S. presidents William Howard Taft
, Rutherford B. Hayes
, and Ulysses S. Grant
, author Aldous Huxley
, heart surgeon Michael E. DeBakey
, General George C. Marshall
, bridge designer Ralph Modjeski
, and many others.
. Architects for the latter structure, a four-story, low-rise building of brick and terra cotta
in a neo-classical style, were William M. Whidden
and Ion Lewis
. The Park Blocks just south of the clubhouse are flanked by churches, the Portland Art Museum
, the Oregon Historical Society Museum
, and Portland State University
, as well as other buildings forming part of the city's core. The building was nominated to become a National Register of Historic Places
building in April 2010, and was listed on the registry in August of that year.
In October 1989, citing a federal law banning discrimination on the basis of gender, the Portland City Council
, led by Commissioner Earl Blumenauer
, passed a unanimous resolution urging the Arlington Club and the University Club, another men-only club, to admit women. At the time, the Arlington Club had about 500 members and did not normally allow women inside its building. During the City Council meeting, five women, representing the Multnomah Bar Association, the Commercial Club of Portland, the Association of Black Lawyers, Oregon Women Lawyers, and the American Civil Liberties Union
, testified that the clubs' discrimination barred them from business opportunities afforded to men. Representing the Oregon Eagle Forum
, a woman, the only person testifying against the resolution, cited a constitutional right to assemble without government intrusion.
In March 1990, the Arlington Club members voted 320 to 145 to allow women to join the club; 5 members abstained, and others of the 525 members did not vote. Since the ratio of "yes" to "no" votes was 68.8 percent, slightly more than the two-thirds supermajority
required to change the club's rules, women, after 123 years of exclusion, were thereafter admitted. The club building was subsequently remodeled to add women's restrooms and a lounge, and women were officially allowed on February 11, 1991. In 2011, the Arlington Club still meets at its building on Southwest Salmon Street in downtown Portland.
Gentlemen's club
A gentlemen's club is a members-only private club of a type originally set up by and for British upper class men in the eighteenth century, and popularised by English upper-middle class men and women in the late nineteenth century. Today, some are more open about the gender and social status of...
organized in 1867 by 35 business and banking leaders of Portland
Portland, Oregon
Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
. First called the Social Club and later re-named the Arlington Club, it offered its all-male members, most of whom were relatively wealthy and powerful, an exclusive place to socialize and discuss their interests.
During its first century, a total of more than 3,300 men were club members at one time or another. Many, in addition to pursuing their livelihoods, were officers in civic, cultural, philanthropic, or social organizations, and some held government posts at the local, state, or federal levels.
For about 100 years, the club excluded Jews and minorities regardless of other criteria, and for 123 years it excluded women. In response to public pressure, it broadened the membership criteria for men by the late 1960s and for women in 1990. In 2011, the Arlington Club continues to gather at its building in downtown Portland.
History
In 1867, Simeon ReedSimeon Gannett Reed
Simeon Gannett Reed was an American businessman and entrepreneur in Oregon. A native of Massachusetts, he made a fortune primarily in the transportation sector in association with William S. Ladd...
and 34 other Portland men organized what they called the Social Club to "fraternize for mutual enjoyment and relaxation, and to provide a meeting place for discussing their own and Portland's destiny". The club, "the social headquarters of Portland's male elite" was dominated through the late 20th century by largely white, mostly Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon
Anglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
men from the city's business and banking leadership. Among the founders were John C. Ainsworth
John C. Ainsworth
John Commingers Ainsworth was an American pioneer businessman and steamboat owner in Oregon. A native of Ohio, he moved west to mine gold in California before immigrating to Oregon where he piloted steamships and became a founder of the Oregon Steam Navigation Company and several banks.-Early...
(Ainsworth National Bank), Henry Failing
Henry Failing
Henry Failing was a banker, and one of the leading businessmen of the Pacific Northwest of the United States. He was one of Portland, Oregon's earliest residents, and served as that city's mayor for three two-year terms...
(merchandising, shipping, iron and steel, First National Bank), William S. Ladd
William S. Ladd
William Sargent Ladd was an American politician and businessman in Oregon. He twice served as Portland, Oregon’s mayor in the 1850s. A native of Vermont, he was a prominent figure in the early development of Portland, and co-founded the first bank in the state in 1859...
(merchandising, transportation, flour milling, Ladd & Tilton Bank), Donald Macleay
Donald Macleay
Donald Macleay was a prominent 19th century merchant and banker in Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. A native of Scotland, he emigrated at the age of 16 with his parents to the Canadian province of Quebec before relocating as an adult to California and, later, Oregon...
(merchandising, shipping, United States National Bank), George Weidler
George Washington Weidler
George Washington Weidler was a prominent 19th century transportation agent, investor, and business owner in Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. Born in Pennsylvania, he moved as a young man to St. Louis, Missouri, where he began a career in merchandising and shipping...
(steamships, real estate, lumber), and many others who made a lasting impact on the city.
Paul G. Merriam describes the city's early social elite, including the members of the Social Club, as "primarily businessmen and their close associates, such as lawyers and editors". The social elite were heads of families who "held property valued at $50,000 or more, and who were officers in one or more civic, cultural, philanthropic, or social organizations." Merriam counts 38 such men in Portland in 1870, 31 of whom at one time or another held local government office and several of whom held state and federal offices. Most were nominal Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
s; some were Democrats
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, but they crossed party lines depending on issues and personalities.
Although one of the club's goals was to pattern itself after gentlemen's club
Gentlemen's club
A gentlemen's club is a members-only private club of a type originally set up by and for British upper class men in the eighteenth century, and popularised by English upper-middle class men and women in the late nineteenth century. Today, some are more open about the gender and social status of...
s of Europe and older American cities, it also had "civic interests at heart and civic leaders as members...". However, according to Portland historian E. Kimbark MacColl, club members at times equated self-interest with civic interest:
In the 1890s at least, what was good for "them" was usually considered good for "the city". Rarely did the members distinguish between the public interest and their own private interests if actions and words have been reported accurately. It would appear that many of the major decisions affecting Portland's business and political life were actually reached during "informal" discussions held within the club's portals.
Big banks, utilities, railroads, and U.S. Senators
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
from Oregon were well-represented within the membership. Generally in the 1890s four or five club members were part of the Oregon Legislature
Oregon Legislative Assembly
The Oregon Legislative Assembly is the state legislature for the U.S. state of Oregon. The Legislative Assembly is bicameral, consisting of an upper and lower house: the Senate, whose 30 members are elected to serve four-year terms; and the House of Representatives, with 60 members elected to...
. Three other clubs—the Multnomah Amateur Athletic Club
Multnomah Athletic Club
The Multnomah Athletic Club is a private social club and athletic club in Portland, Oregon, United States.Founded in 1891, the club has expanded greatly from its beginnings. It now fills two buildings totaling , making it the largest indoor athletic club in the world...
(1891), the Waverly Golf Club (1896), and the University Club (1896)—formed during the 1890s, and memberships often overlapped with the Arlington Club. The Concordia Club, formed in 1878, was the Jewish version of the Arlington Club, which was at the time open only to gentile
Gentile
The term Gentile refers to non-Israelite peoples or nations in English translations of the Bible....
s.
Among the club's self-generated list of notable members between 1867 and 1967 were George H. Williams
George Henry Williams
George Henry Williams was an American judge and politician. He served as Chief Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court, was the 32nd Attorney General of the United States, and served one term in the United States Senate...
, appointed Chief Justice of the Territorial Courts of Oregon in 1853, elected to the U.S. Senate in 1864, named United States Attorney General
United States Attorney General
The United States Attorney General is the head of the United States Department of Justice concerned with legal affairs and is the chief law enforcement officer of the United States government. The attorney general is considered to be the chief lawyer of the U.S. government...
in 1871, and elected mayor of Portland in 1892. Another was Frederick Van Voorhies Holman
Frederick Van Voorhies Holman
Frederick Van Voorhies Holman was a prominent lawyer and civic leader of the late 19th and early 20th centuries in Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. Legal counsel for the Portland Railway, Light and Power Company and other businesses, he was active in Democratic Party politics and in...
, general counsel for an electric utility in the early 20th century, patron of the arts, and author of a biography of John McLoughlin
John McLoughlin
Dr. John McLoughlin, baptized Jean-Baptiste McLoughlin, was the Chief Factor of the Columbia Fur District of the Hudson's Bay Company at Fort Vancouver. He was later known as the "Father of Oregon" for his role in assisting the American cause in the Oregon Country in the Pacific Northwest...
. Journalist Harvey W. Scott
Harvey W. Scott
Harvey Whitefield Scott was an American pioneer, newspaper editor, and historian.Scott was born in on a farm in Illinois and migrated to Oregon with his family in 1852, settling in Yamhill County. He and his family moved near Olympia, Washington in 1853. At age 18, he fought in the American Indian...
, a mid-19th-century editor of The Oregonian and author of a six-volume history of Oregon, is on the list as is Lewis A. McArthur
Lewis A. McArthur
Lewis Ankeny McArthur , known as "Tam" McArthur, was an executive for Pacific Power and Light Company. He was also the secretary for the Oregon Geographic Board for many years and the author of Oregon Geographic Names. His book, now in its seventh edition, is a comprehensive source of information...
, a 20th-century electric utility executive and author of Oregon Geographic Names
Oregon Geographic Names
Oregon Geographic Names is an authoritative compilation of the origin and meaning of place names in the U.S. state of Oregon. , the book is in its seventh edition and is compiled and edited by Lewis L. McArthur, who took over from his father, Lewis A. McArthur, as of the fourth edition...
. University presidents, a bishop, and an Air Force general are among others on the list. Well-known guests of the club have included U.S. presidents William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States and later the tenth Chief Justice of the United States...
, Rutherford B. Hayes
Rutherford B. Hayes
Rutherford Birchard Hayes was the 19th President of the United States . As president, he oversaw the end of Reconstruction and the United States' entry into the Second Industrial Revolution...
, and Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
, author Aldous Huxley
Aldous Huxley
Aldous Leonard Huxley was an English writer and one of the most prominent members of the famous Huxley family. Best known for his novels including Brave New World and a wide-ranging output of essays, Huxley also edited the magazine Oxford Poetry, and published short stories, poetry, travel...
, heart surgeon Michael E. DeBakey
Michael E. DeBakey
Michael Elias DeBakey was a world-renowned Lebanese-American cardiac surgeon, innovator, scientist, medical educator, and international medical statesman...
, General George C. Marshall
George Marshall
George Catlett Marshall was an American military leader, Chief of Staff of the Army, Secretary of State, and the third Secretary of Defense...
, bridge designer Ralph Modjeski
Ralph Modjeski
Ralph Modjeski was a Polish-born American civil engineer who achieved prominence as a pre-eminent bridge designer in the United States.-Life:...
, and many others.
Meeting places, buildings
For its first 14 years, the club members met in dining places, hotels, government chambers, or "any place available". When the club reorganized and re-named itself the Arlington Club in 1881, it had grown to a membership of about 100. At that time, it moved into its first clubhouse, the former J.C. Ainsworth residence at Southwest Third Avenue at Pine Street, which became available when the Ainsworths moved to California. It built its second clubhouse, at West Park Avenue and Alder Street, which it occupied from 1892 to 1910 until moving to the building the club still occupies, on Southwest Salmon Street facing the South Park BlocksSouth Park Blocks
The South Park Blocks form a city park in downtown Portland, Oregon. The Oregonian has called it Portland's "extended family room", as Pioneer Courthouse Square is known as Portland's "living room"....
. Architects for the latter structure, a four-story, low-rise building of brick and terra cotta
Terra cotta
Terracotta, Terra cotta or Terra-cotta is a clay-based unglazed ceramic, although the term can also be applied to glazed ceramics where the fired body is porous and red in color...
in a neo-classical style, were William M. Whidden
William M. Whidden
William Marcy Whidden was a founding member of Whidden & Lewis, a prominent architectural firm in Portland, Oregon, United States.-Early life:...
and Ion Lewis
Ion Lewis
Ion Lewis was a founding member of Whidden & Lewis, a prominent architectural firm in Portland, Oregon, United States around the beginning of the 20th century. The firm was formed with partner William M. Whidden...
. The Park Blocks just south of the clubhouse are flanked by churches, the Portland Art Museum
Portland Art Museum
The Portland Art Museum in Portland, Oregon, United States, was founded in 1892, making it the oldest art museum on the West Coast and seventh oldest in the United States. Upon completion of the most recent renovations, the Portland Art Museum became one of the twenty-five largest art museums in...
, the Oregon Historical Society Museum
Oregon Historical Society Museum
The Oregon Historical Society Museum is a history museum housed at the Oregon History Center in downtown Portland, Oregon, United States. The museum was created in 1898 and house about 44,000 visitors annually....
, and Portland State University
Portland State University
Portland State University is a public state urban university located in downtown Portland, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1946, it has the largest overall enrollment of any university in the state of Oregon, including undergraduate and graduate students. It is also the only public university in...
, as well as other buildings forming part of the city's core. The building was nominated to become a National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
building in April 2010, and was listed on the registry in August of that year.
Controversy
From the beginning, only business and community leaders were invited to join the club, a total of 3,300 of them during the club's first century, but other exclusions applied as well. Jews and ethnic minorities were kept out of the Arlington Club until the late 1960s after Portland's Jewish leaders including Gus Solomon, a federal judge, criticized the exclusion rules. Change occurred slowly; The Oregonian newspaper reported that in 1989 Jews and ethnic minorities made up less than 3 percent of the Arlington Club membership and that the membership included no African Americans.In October 1989, citing a federal law banning discrimination on the basis of gender, the Portland City Council
Government of Portland, Oregon
The Government of Portland, Oregon, a city in the U.S. state of Oregon, is based on a city commission government system. Elected officials include a Mayor, a City Council, and a City Auditor. The mayor and commissioners are responsible legislative policy and oversee the various bureaus that...
, led by Commissioner Earl Blumenauer
Earl Blumenauer
Earl Blumenauer is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1996. He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes most of Portland east of the Willamette River. A native of Portland, he previously spent over 20 years as a public official representing the city.-Early...
, passed a unanimous resolution urging the Arlington Club and the University Club, another men-only club, to admit women. At the time, the Arlington Club had about 500 members and did not normally allow women inside its building. During the City Council meeting, five women, representing the Multnomah Bar Association, the Commercial Club of Portland, the Association of Black Lawyers, Oregon Women Lawyers, and the American Civil Liberties Union
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...
, testified that the clubs' discrimination barred them from business opportunities afforded to men. Representing the Oregon Eagle Forum
Eagle Forum
Eagle Forum is a conservative interest group in the United States founded by Phyllis Schlafly in 1972 and is the parent organization that also includes the Eagle Forum Education and Legal Defense Fund and the Eagle Forum PAC. The Eagle Forum has been primarily focused on social issues; it describes...
, a woman, the only person testifying against the resolution, cited a constitutional right to assemble without government intrusion.
In March 1990, the Arlington Club members voted 320 to 145 to allow women to join the club; 5 members abstained, and others of the 525 members did not vote. Since the ratio of "yes" to "no" votes was 68.8 percent, slightly more than the two-thirds supermajority
Supermajority
A supermajority or a qualified majority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level or type of support which exceeds a simple majority . In some jurisdictions, for example, parliamentary procedure requires that any action that may alter the rights of the minority has a supermajority...
required to change the club's rules, women, after 123 years of exclusion, were thereafter admitted. The club building was subsequently remodeled to add women's restrooms and a lounge, and women were officially allowed on February 11, 1991. In 2011, the Arlington Club still meets at its building on Southwest Salmon Street in downtown Portland.
Sources
- MacColl, E. Kimbark (1979). The Growth of a City: Power and Politics in Portland, Oregon, 1915 to 1950. Portland, Oregon: The Georgian Press. ISBN 0-9603408-1-5.
- MacColl, E. Kimbark; Stein, Harry H. (1988). Merchants, Money, and Power: The Portland Establishment 1843–1913. Portland, Oregon: The Georgian Press. ISBN 0-9603408-4-X.
- MacColl, E. Kimbark. (1976). The Shaping of a City: Business and Politics in Portland, Oregon, 1885 to 1915. Portland, Oregon: The Georgian Press.
- Merriam, Paul G. "Urban Elite in the Far West: Portland, Oregon, 1870–1890". Arizona and the West 18.1 (Spring 1976): pp. 41–52.
- Montgomery, Richard G., et al. (1983) [1968]. Arlington Club and the Men Who Built It: Centennial Anniversary, updated edition. Portland, Oregon: The Arlington Club. .