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Wikipedia / Union Club of Boston

The Union Club of Boston, founded in 1863, is one of the oldest gentlemen's clubs in the United States. It is located on Beacon Hill, adjacent to the Massachusetts State House. The clubhouse at No. 7 and No. 8 Park Street was originally the homes of John Amory Lowell (#7), and Abbott Lawrence (#8). The houses were built c.1830-40, and they were remodeled for club use in 1896. The clubhouse overlooks the Boston Common, and has views of the Common itself, Boston's Back Bay neighborhood, and the hills to the west of the city.

The club has EIN 04-1920190 under the classification 501(c)(7) Social and Recreation Clubs; in 2024, it claimed total revenue of $1,854,562 and total assets of $3,622,354.

The Union Club was formed by members of another prominent Boston gentlemen's club, the Somerset Club, after disagreement over whether to support the Union cause during the American Civil War, about which the members of the club split along political lines. In response, defectors formed the Union Club, which demanded "unqualified loyalty to the constitution and the Union of our United States, and unwavering support of the Federal Government in effort for the suppression of the rebellion." The founders of the club did not restrict membership to those of a single political party, but accepted all those willing to support the Union Cause in the Civil War. 

The club later became the first male club in the city to welcome women as members. A few months later, in 1983, the club welcomed its first Black member.

Notable Members

President of the United States

Vice-president of the United States

Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives

United States Senators

United States Supreme Court Justices

Governors of Massachusetts

Presidents of Harvard University

Presidents of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Men of letters, authors, poets, scholars, politicians, etc.

See also

References