Chapter History
Since our founding in Philadelphia in January 1938, Jack and Jill of America, Inc. has grown into a strong national organization. The story of its growth is one of amity and felicity. The idea of bringing together children in a social and cultural relationship spread to New York City, where a similar organization was started in 1939. The third club was formed in March 1940, in Washington, DC. Thus, Jack and Jill, which began as a local group of mothers, became an inter-city association. Enthusiasm and interest in Jack and Jill spread westward, after four successful years in Philadelphia, New York, and Washington. In 1944 a chapter was formed in Pittsburgh. Between 1944 and June 1946, Jack and Jill groups expanded to ten with the addition of the following chapters: Baltimore, Maryland; Boston, Massachusetts; Buffalo, New York; Columbus, Ohio; Durham, North Carolina and Memphis, Tennessee.
Mrs. Dorothy Wright, who was president of the Philadelphia Club at this time, felt that Jack and Jill had reached a point when consideration of organizing these groups into a national organization was indicated.
“The Philadelphia Chapter voted unanimously to call a meeting to bring these groups together into a national body when the formation of such was presented in my program for the year 1945-46. With this support of my chapter and with the encouragement of the clubs established or being formed, invitations were sent to these ten groups for participation in a meeting to be held June 1, 1946, in Philadelphia.”
June 1, 1946, the birth date of the national organization, brought together representatives of eight of the ten groups present – Philadelphia, New York, Washington, DC, Pittsburgh, Buffalo, Columbus, Baltimore and Boston. The purpose and aims were set forth and they voted to formulate plans for a national organization, subject to the approval of their respective groups. Committees were set up – Constitution, Time and Place, and Nomination. Plans for incorporating were discussed. After a day of working – planning and discussing – the representatives were guests of the Philadelphia Chapter at a banquet where the new officers were installed – Dorothy B. Wright, President; Emilie Pickens, Vice President; Edna Seay, Secretary-Treasurer; Constance Bruce, Corresponding Secretary; Marion Stubbs, Journalist. Because of limited funds, the roster of officers was kept at a minimum to curtail traveling expenses to the national meetings. (Report from Dorothy B. Wright, Organizer and First National President of Jack and Jill of America, Inc. to Burma Whitted, National Program Director, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, June 10, 1958.)
Chapter Listing By Year
The Philadelphia Chapter was founded in 1938, followed by three additional chapters between 1939 and 1944. The order of chapter entry is listed below.
-
1938-1944
Philadelphia, PA (1938)
New York, NY (now Metropolitan Chapter) (1939)
Washington, DC (1940)
Pittsburgh, PA (1944) -
1944-1946
Baltimore, MD
Boston, MA
Buffalo, NY
Columbus, OH
Durham, NC
Memphis, TN -
1947
Chicago, IL
Nashville, TN
Newport News, VA
St. Louis, MO
Springfield, MA -
1948
Atlantic City, NJ
Norfolk, VA -
1949
Cleveland, OH
Gary, IN
Los Angeles, CA
Petersburg, VA
Tulsa, OK -
1950
Albany, GA
Kansas City, MO
Lynchburg, VA
North Jersey, NJ
Raleigh, NC
Richmond, VA -
1951
Atlanta, GA
Columbia, SC
Dayton, OH
Hamlet, NC
Indianapolis, IN
Lincoln University, PA
Roanoke, VA
Tallahassee, FL
Winston-Salem, NC -
1952
Bluefield, WV
Brooklyn, NY
Houston, TX
Milwaukee, WI
New Orleans, LA
Oklahoma City, OK
Phoenix, AZ
Queens, NY
San Francisco, CA
Toledo, OH
St. Paul-Minneapolis (now Minneapolis), MN -
1953
Austin, TX
Bergen-Passaic, NJ
Cincinnati, OH
Dallas, TX
Detroit, MI
San Antonio, TX
Stamford, CT
Trenton, NJ
Tuskegee, AL -
1954
Bridgeport, CT
Charleston, SC
Hampton, VA
Louisville, KY
South Jersey, NJ
Westchester, NY
Wilberforce-Xenia, OH -
1955
Birmingham, AL
Charleston, WV
Chattanooga, TN
Danville, VA
East Bay Area (now Oakland Bay Area), CA
Fort Worth, TX
Jackson, TN
Montgomery, AL
Pensacola, FL
Pine Bluff, AR
San Diego, CA
Santa Barbara, CA
Wilmington, NC -
1956
Denver, CO
Graham-Burlington (now Burlington-Graham), NC
Mobile, AL
New Haven, CT
Orlando, FL
Pasadena, CA
Sacramento, CA
Waco, TX -
1957
Charlotte, NC
Fayetteville, NC
Kansas City, KS
San Mateo, CA
South Los Angeles, CA
Topeka, KS -
1958
Evanston, IL
Hartford, CT
Nassau County, NY
Portland, OR
Portsmouth, VA
Seattle, WA -
1960
Flint, MI
Greenville, SC
Savannah, GA
Waterbury, CT -
1962
Akron, OH
Des Moines, IA
East St. Louis, IL
Palo Alto, CA
Prairie View (now Katy-Prairie View), TX
Rochester, NY
Montgomery County, MD
Suffolk County, NY
Wichita, KS
Salisbury, NC -
1964
Baton Rouge, LA
Elizabeth City, NC
Fort Lauderdale, FL
Galveston, TX
Manatee County, FL
Miami, FL
Providence, RI -
1966
Alexandria/Mt. Vernon, VA
Columbus, GA
Knoxville, TN
Newton, MA
Northern Virginia, VA
Orangeburg, SC
Port Arthur, TX -
1968
Alexandria, LA
Chesapeake, VA
Fernandina Beach, FL
Jackson, MS
Jacksonville, FL
Martinsville, VA
Rocky Mountain, NC
Salem-Cumberland, NJ
Springfield, OH
San Jose, CA
Tyler, TX -
1970
Augusta, GA
Columbia, MD
Inglewood, CA
Omaha, NE -
1972
Johnson County, KS
Lexington, NC
Overland Park, KS
Tri-County, NY -
1974
Bellevue, NE
Buffalo, NY
Burlington-Willingboro (now Burlington County), NJ
Prince George’s County, MD
Reston, VA
Wilmington (now New Castle County), DE -
1976
Ann Arbor, MI
Chester County, PA
Halifax-Northampton, NC
Highland Park, IL
Macon, GA
Missouri City-Ft. Bend (now Missouri City-Sugar Land), TX
North Shore, IL
Peoria, IL
South Suburban Chicago, IL
Spartanburg, SC -
1978
Ann Arbor, MI
Oakland County, MI
San Fernando Valley, CA
Tucson, AZ -
1980
Fort Wayne, IN
Fresno, CA
Lake Charles, LA
Madison, WI
North Suburban Atlanta, GA
Sanford, FL
South Suburban Denver, CO
Tacoma, WA
Williamson County Area, TN -
1982
Contra Costa County, CA
Greater Lansing, MI
Moline, IL
Morris County, NJ
North Suburban Dallas, TX
Orange County, CA
St. Paul, MN
San Gabriel Valley, CA
Syracuse, NY
West Suburban Chicago, IL
Western Cook County, IL -
1984
Boulder Valley, CO
Burke-Fairfax, VA
Central New Jersey
Little Rock (now Greater Little Rock), AR
Monmouth County, NJ
Montgomery County, PA
North Houston Suburban, TX
Potomac Valley, MD
Prince William County, VA
St. Clair County, IL
Shreveport/Bossier City, LA
Vancouver, WA
Wichita, KS -
1986
Aiken, SC
Anderson, SC
Beaumont, TX
Greater Tampa, FL
Greater Union County, NJ
Inland Empire, CA
Lawrenceville, VA
Loraine County, OH
North Augusta, SC
Ocean County (now Jersey Shore), NJ
Saginaw, MI
Stone Mountain, GA
Treasure Coast, FL
West Covina, CA
Ypsilanti, MI -
1988
Athens, GA
Baltimore County (now Greater Baltimore County), MD
Bluefield, WV
Bucks County, PA
Clear Lake Bay Area, TX
Derby City, Y
Greater Vallejo, CAL
Humble-Kingwood, TX
Long Beach, CA
Lubbock, TX
Lynchburg, VA
Peach-Houston, GA
Polk County, FL
South Miami, FL
South Shore, MA
Stockton/San Joaquin, CA
The Woodlands, TX -
1990
Crisp-Dooley, GA
Greater Albany, NY
Greater Glen Burnie (now Arundel Bay Area), MD
Greater Harrisburg, PA
Golden Circle, TN
Griffin, GA
Huntsville (now Greater Huntsville), AL
Mercer County, NJ
Metro Kalamazoo (now Southwestern Michigan), MI
Midlothian, VA
Pinellas County (now Suncoast), FL
Rockland (now Rockland-Orange County), NY
Roanoke Valley, VA
Selma, AL
Tuscaloosa, AL
Volusia County (now Daytona Beach), FL
Youngstown, OH -
1992
Arlington, TX
Florence, SC
Gateway West, MO
High Desert (now Pomona Area), CA
Las Vegas, NV
Mid-Hudson Valley, NY
Monroe-Bastrop, LA
Republic of Germany
South Belt Houston, TX
Ventura, CA -
1994
Bronx, NY
Conway, SC
Greater Channel, TX
North County San Diego, CA
North Puget Sound, WA
South Palm Beach, FL
Tri Valley, CA -
1996
Rock Hill, SC
Motor City, MI -
1998
Madison County, AL
North Oakland/Macomb, MI
North Texas, TX
Windy City, IL -
2000
Air Capital Wichita, KS
Bloomington-Normal, IL
Central Area Springfield, IL
Fayette County Area, GA
Greater Little Rock, AR
Metropolitan St. Louis, MO
Quad Cities IL/IA
San Fernando Valley, CA
Anchorage, AK
Greater Essex County, NJ -
2002
Beaumont, TX
Katy-Prairie View, TX
Loudoun County, VA
Southwest Suburban Dallas, TX
Brevard County, FL -
2004
DFW Mid-Cities, TX
James River, VA
Manassas-Woodbridge, VA
Texarkana, TX
Lake Spivey, GA
Jackson, TN
North Atlanta (now Buckhead Atlanta), GA -
2006
Essex Hudson, NJ
Long Beach, CA
Tyler-East Texas, TX
Southern Maryland -
2008
Central Kentucky
Charlottesville, VA
East Suburban Atlanta, GA
Gastonia-Piedmont, NC
Greater Frisco, TX
Lake Shore, IL
Santa Clarita/Antelope Valley, CA
Sugar Land, TX
Tulsa, OK -
2010
Eastern North Carolina
Greater Grand Rapids, MI
Greater North Atlanta, GA
Hammond-Northshore, LA
National Harbor, MD
Queen City, NC
South Charlotte, NC -
2012
Capital City, NC
Circle City, IN
City of Lakes, MN
Greater Metropolitan Atlanta, GA
Northeast Dallas, TX
Palm Beach County, FL
Red River, LA -
2014
Bakersfield Golden Empire, CA
Dunwoody Atlanta, GA
Greater Chattanooga, TN
Greater Peoria, IL
Mississippi Gulf Coast, MS
Northwest Arkansas, AR
Portland-Willamette Valley, OR
Western Maryland -
2016
Greater Fredericksburg, VA
Greater North Central Florida
Greater Pikes Peak, CO
Greater Suburban Maryland
South Central Wisconsin
Western Massachusetts -
2018
El Paso-Southern New Mexico, TX
Erie Shores, OH
Far North Dallas, TX
Great Lakes Bay Region, MI
Greater Champaign-Urbana, IL
Greater Northeast Indiana
Greater Pocono, PA
Nation’s Capital, DC
Southwest Louisiana
West Georgia -
2020
Central Missouri
Forest City, IL
Magnificent Mile, IL
North Mississippi
Sun Valley, AZ -
2022
Aiken County, SC
Golden Isles, GA
Greater Chapel Hill, NC
Greater Lake Allatoona, GA
Monarch Cities, IL
Nature Coast, FL
Southern Crescent, GA
Southwest Florida
Upper Palmetto, SC
Valdosta, GA