A Guide
to the Charles Alling Diary
Below is an alphabetical listing of people, events, terms, etc.
found in Charles Alling's diary. Students from His234
Studies in American Cultural History: The Middle Class, taught by Sarah McNair Vosmeier (2009
to 2014) provided this background information and contributed to the transcription
of the diary.
The original diary is available at the Duggan
Library Archives, Hanover College (Hanover, Ind.).
Alling, Charles (Sr.) |
Charles Alling, Sr. was a hardware merchant and raised
eight children.
Source: Tenth Census, 1880, Hanover, Jefferson County, Indiana, series T9, roll 287, p. 147, s.v. Charles Alling,
Alling, Robinson |
Rob is short for Robinson, who was ten years old in 1883.
Source: Tenth Census, 1880, Hanover, Jefferson County, Indiana,
series T9, roll 287, p. 147, s.v. Charles Alling.
-- research by Sarah Helms, HC 2012
Alling and Lodge Hardware Co |
Source: Ron Grimes and Bob Thomas, Jefferson County Historical Society volunteers, conversation with author, 22 Sep. 2010.
-- Brandon Doub, HC 2013
Baird, William Martyn |
William came from a working-class family with middle-class ideals and aspirations. Even though his father earned his wages through tough manual labor, he still believed in seeking out higher education for his children. In the late 1800s, the national college attendance rate was less than five percent. So, for a farming man to want to send his son to college is a mark of growing middle-class values. Even John F. Baird, William's brother, was a teacher. William could be classified into the outsider sub-culture of college life in the late 1800s. For one, he is not wealthy. The majority of those in the participant sub-culture come from wealthy families, and they are not in college to learn from the professors, but to gain more connections made in college with peers. In Alling's journal entry whenever he mentions Baird, the pair of them and a few other friends are either studying or reading. So, as one can see, he is focused on his studies more than extracurricular activities like intramural sports. However, both Alling and Baird were well-known on campus for their orations. One can view this as extracurricular, but one can also view this as an educational exercise, as public speaking is an art that every successful person must master. This is the reasoning behind placing Baird in the outsider sub-culture.
William's brother, John F. Baird, was employed as a teacher at the time
of the census. At the time of William's attendance at Hanover College, he
was on the faculty. John was twenty-eight in 1880, making him thirty-one
in 1883. It was common practice to attend college to pursue a future in
the Church; this would explain the Rev. title given to John. In October,
1877, John F. Baird presented Vol. 1 No.1 of the Hanover College
Monthly. Hanover College Monthly was one of many campus
newspapers that were started in the late 1800s. Others include: The
Hanoverian (1880), The Bohemian (1882-1883), and The
Journal of Hanover College (1894). John F. Baird was involved in
spurring on many literary publications on Hanover's campus in the late
nineteenth century.
Sources: 1880 United States Census, s.v. William Martyn Baird, Hanover,
Jefferson County, Indiana, accessed through Ancestry.com; Sarah M.
Vosmeier, lectures for American Cultural History: Middle Class, Hanover
College, 29 September 2014, 9 September 2014; Hannah Clore, Charles
Alling, Jr., Diary, Sunday, May 25, 1884, in Notes
on the Charles Alling Diary (accessed 30 Sept. 2014); William
Alfred Millis, The History of Hanover College From 1827 to 1927
(Hanover, Indiana: Hanover College, 1927), 242, Hanover
Historical Texts Collection (accessed 30 Sept. 2014).
-- Matthew Todd, HC 2016
Brewer, Lottie |
Census and land ownership records indicate that Miss Lottie, or Lotta Brewer was the daughter of Samuel Brewer, a printer living in the 4th Ward. The Brewers resided at 509 West Street. Lotta Brewer is seventeen years old when she is referenced in this passage.
Source: Ron Grimes and Bob Thomas, Jefferson County Historical Society volunteers, conversation with author, 22 Sep. 2010; U.S. Department of the Interior, Census Office, Tenth Census, 1880, Hanover, Jefferson County, Indiana, s.v. Samuel Brewer, Heritage Quest, HeritageQuestOnline.com.
-- Brandon Doub, HC 2013
Clothing |
Source: John Todd, The Student Manual (Northampton: J. H. Butler, 1835).
-- Kelsey Weihe, HC 2014
DeWitt, John |
At McCormick Theological Seminary, John DeWitt became a well-known professor. The salary that DeWitt earned while working at the college can be found in the book, A History of the McCormick Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church. It states that he earned three thousand dollars per year. In addition to his salary, he was provided with a place to live on the seminary grounds like the other professors. Reverend DeWitt stayed with the McCormick Theological Seminary until 1892. In 1892 DeWitt went back to where his schooling all started, Princeton Theological Seminary. By this time, the school actually went by Princeton instead of College of New Jersey. While at Princeton, he was a professor of Church History again and also served as a trustee. DeWitt was a professor until 1912; he then lived his life out in Princeton, New Jersey, until his death on November 23, 1923.
Reverend DeWitt lived a busy life and seemed to be a successful man. He
was able to move around multiple times and recognized for his success by
two different colleges, one which was Hanover College. John DeWitt not
only left an impression on Charles Alling, but on many others over the
course of his life as well.
Sources: Leroy Jones Halsey, A History of the McCormick
Theological Seminary of the Presbyterian Church, 1893 (University of
California, 2007), pg 439-440 (accessed online);
Special Collections staff, Princeton Theological Libraries, The John
DeWitt Manuscript Collection Summary, 1881-1910, Princeton Theological
Seminary, New Jersey (accessed online,
Sept. 26, 2014).
-- Amelia Facemire, HC 2015
Fisher, Daniel Webster |
Daniel Webster Fisher is often referred to as D.W.
Fisher. Fisher began his career at Hanover as a Holliday Prof. of
Logic and Mental Philosophy and Crowe Memorial Prof. of Biblical
Instruction, but his s impact on Hanover College did not end with
teaching. He became president of the college in 1879, ending his
term in 1907.
-- Jared Gluff, HC 2011
We learned from Helen Lefkowitz Horowitz that the
student-professor relationship was often a hostile one. We do not hear
much of students taking an interest in getting to know their professors on
a personal level as Alling does. One explanation that did cross my
mind while investigating this mystery in the archives was that Dr. Fisher
had a son named Howard who was the same age as Alling. If Charles Alling
was close to Howard Fisher, he would probably know his father very well as
well.
Source: Helen L. Horowitz, Campus Life:
Undergraduate Cultures from the End of the Eighteenth Century to the
Present (Chicago and London: University of Chicago Press, 1987),
23-55, 193-219.
-- Michael Gilliam, HC 2011
Fisher, Edith |
Edith Fisher is signified as being a sophomore at Hanover College during the 1884-85 academic year. Edith is listed as having been one of the few that took Special courses compared to the traditional Scientific or Classical courses.
Source: Edith Fisher, The Alumni Record, in Bulletin Hanover College, ed. Joshua Bolles Garritt et al, Vol. V, No. 11, March 1, 1913.
-- Brandon Doub, HC 2013
Graham, Alexander and Jennie |
Source: Tenth Census, 1880, Hanover, Jefferson County, Indiana,
series T9, roll 287, p. 153, s.v. Alexander Graham, Jennie Graham.
-- research by Tiffanie Patton, HC 2012.
Hanover College |
The 1884 Hanover Monthly includes an advertisement encouraging people to enroll in the upcoming semester, noting that Hanover accepted both sexes and promoting the two tracks offered: Classical and Scientific. Tuition was free, boarding ranged from $2.75 to $3.50 per week, and other expenditures ranged from $40 to $60, totaling no more than $175 to $200 per semester. The Hanover College Timeline gives a sense of what Hanover was like in the 1880s. The first thing that caught my attention was that women were not admitted to full privileges as students at Hanover College until September of 1880. The next event that struck me was the charter of Kappa Alpha Theta on campus on January 2, 1882. The first fraternity at Hanover was established in 1853, only 29 years before the arrival of a sorority on campus. Calla Harrison, the first woman of Hanover College, graduated in 1883. Finally, the Department of Music and Art was not established until 1887.
Sources: Hanover Monthly: From 1883.-84.-85. (Hanover College); Hanover College History, Hanover College: Duggan Library, http://library.hanover.edu/archives/hchistory.php (accessed 24 Sept. 2012); Annual Catalog of Hanover College 1884 (Hanover College: Duggan Library); Sarah McNair Vosmeier, lecture for Studies in American Cultural History: The Middle Class, 19 September 2012.
-- Emily Fehr, HC 2013
.
Hanover College, Class of 1885 |
Charles Alling's junior class in 1884 had nineteen students,
including Alling. Based on the names of the students, it is reasonable to
assume Alling's class was composed solely of males. Thus, it is fair to
assume that at this time it was rare, if it happened at all, for a woman
to attend school at Hanover. Sixteen students out of Alling's class were
either from Hanover or neighboring towns in Indiana. Only three students
were from out of state. Out of the students from Indiana, four were from
Madison, one was from Charleston, one was from Franklin, one was from
Vernon, three were locals from Hanover, one was from Greensburg, two from
Vevay, one from Seymour, and finally one from Deputy, Indiana. The three
from out of state were from Nicholasville, Ohio; New Liberty, Kentucky;
and Chilocothe, Ohio. Hence, due to the class ratio from local Indiana
students and students from out of state, and due to the difficulty and
expense of travel, one can make the inference that it was difficult for
students from a considerable distance to get to Hanover or even hear about
it.
Sources: Annual Catalog of Hanover College, Hanover College Archives, 1833-present, April of 1884, Frank S. Baker, Glimpses of Hanover's Past, 1827-1977. [s.l.]: Graessle-Mercer Co., 1978.
-- Amber Carrell, HC 2010
Hanover College,
curriculum (1883) |
In these two entries from Alling's diary, he makes mention of some of the classes and projects he was involved in during his junior year at Hanover College. What is of interest is how the freshmen are required to read Livy and how he himself must study Latin while simultaneously taking chemistry and political science classes. While it may just seem like Alling is fulfilling the tradition of a liberal education at Hanover College, his academic curriculum while attending Hanover College was mirrored all around the United States roughly around the late nineteenth century.
A look at the Hanover Catalogue from this time shows a strictly structured academic career planned out from freshman year to senior year. Yet, there was a heavy emphasis placed on a classics education at the commencement of their college career. First-year students were expected to study the ancient works of Livy, Xenophon, Horace, and Homer, with barely any classes geared towards the sciences, mathematics, or theology. The emphasis on the classics in colleges and universities in the United States during this time harkened back to the European ideology that knowledge was a fixed body that was meant to exercise reason, memory, imagination, judgment, and attention in the student.
Carol Gruber also argues that such a definition of higher education was more reflective of that needed to enter the clergy, an older profession which was one of few career paths that actually required higher education. To err away from the generally agreed upon body of knowledge was not necessary for an educated man who sought to enter the clergy because there was little point in deviating from a tried and true method to mold the future men of the church. The late nineteenth century was a time of change, though, and academia had begun to shift their understanding of higher studies into a form that modern students could more easily identify. This shift created an emphasis on not just the classics and theology but towards the sciences and mathematics sometime in the 1870s after European universities and colleges experienced their own overhaul of traditional educations to accommodate new interests and careers. Thus, it is not strange for Alling to write about classes that deal more with the sciences as Hanover College was experiencing this transition to a new definition of what was an acceptable education.
In fact, the Hanover Catalogue also reflects this shift in the importance of higher studies. Although the early years of a nineteenth century student's academic career would be bogged down with courses based on a classics' education, by their junior and senior years, they began to have more options in different areas of studies. By their senior year, there are more classes centered on the sciences, theology, and mathematics, than any classes for Greek or Latin. It is very much possible that this would have been the last year that Alling would need to study his Latin seriously at all.
Sources: Catalogue of Hanover College, Indiana, Archives of Hanover College, Duggan Library, Hanover College (Hanover, Ind.); Carol Gruber, Backdrop, The History of Higher Education (Boston 1997: Pearson Custom Publishing), 203, 204.
-- Ivana Eiler, HC 2015
Hanover College, College Point House |
The College Point House existed where the Administration building sits now (in 2009), adjacent to the Fiji fraternity house and College House. The Point House was built obviously prior to 1884, and lasted until it was torn down in 1958 during the year that also marked the end of Albert Charles Parker, Jr.'s term as president at Hanover College and marked the beginning of John Edward Horner's term as president. The Point House began as an all-male dormitory, but as a few students fondly remember, it became a controversial co-ed dorm before it was destroyed in 1958.
Sources: Annual Catalog of Hanover College, Hanover College Archives, 1833-present, April of 1884, Frank S. Baker, Glimpses of Hanover's Past, 1827-1977. [s.l.]: Graessle-Mercer Co., 1978.
-- Amber Carrell, HC 2010
Hanover College,
Presbyterian affiliation |
In Allings diary of September 16, 1883, he mentions that all of the men of the college are required to attend Sunday School. He states that Professor Garritt and Professor Fisher are the leaders of the Sermon. During their sermon that day, they gave a lesson on the first of Samuel. He says that they also mention Proverbs 1:10, quoting Consent not, my son, where sinners entice thee.
Many college campuses during this time period were religiously-affiliated. In Allings case at Hanover College, the affiliation was Presbyterian. According to Mary Brown Bullock, the Presbyterian and Reformed tradition shaped the nature of American higher education in the 19th century, especially the culture and mission of liberal arts colleges. Princeton University, founded in 1746, was the first college with ties to the Presbyterian religion. John Witherspoon brought the ideas of the Scottish Reformed educational tradition to the school, and then these values spread to the rest of the country. These values included the importance of both faith and knowledge, a Christian sense of vocation, the idea that a college campus should be the center for morality, as well as the notion that college students should be preparing for a life of service to the world (Bullock).
Specifically, the combination of Presbyterianism and a liberal arts college, like Hanover, was formed to emphasize educating for a life beyond self, beyond pure knowledge, its emphasis on character and on the full human potentiality of all persons (Bullock). These values, which existed as the founding philosophy for liberal arts schools, still exist today. In the case of Hanover College, the Hanover Presbyterian Churchs pastor founded the school, largely supported by the church's officers and members. The most prominent elder of the congregation, Judge Williamson Dunn, donated time, land, and money for the founding of the college (Millis). Without the Presbyterian Church of Hanover, there would be no Hanover College.
Although from 1836-1837, the catalogue of Indiana Theological Seminary and Hanover College provides a general schedule of theological instruction at Hanover College in the 19th century. The students were divided by year as Juniors, Middle, and Seniors. Terms were eight months, from November to June. At the end of each term, the Juniors and Middle class were publically examined on their term information. Seniors were examined on the term information from all three terms. Students were expected to learn the subjects of Scriptures, Biblical Literature, Archeology, and Hermeneutics. With the Professor of Ecclesiastical History, to Sacred Chronology, Biblical History, Church Government, and the Composition and Delivery of Sermons as well as Mental and Moral Philosophy, Natural and Revealed Religion, didactic, Polemic, and Pastoral Theology (Millis).
Sources: Mary Brown Bullock, The Birthright of Our Tradition: The Presbyterian Mission to Higher Educatio, The Presbyterian Outlook, 2002 (accessed online); William Alfred Millis. The History of Hanover College From 1827 to 1927 (Hanover, Indiana: Hanover College, 1927), 79-91 (accessed online).
-- Mina Enk, HC 2015
Hanover College, Spring
Exhibition |
Source: John Holliday, Conservatists
in Hanover
Historical Review 7 (1999).
-- Michael Gilliam, HC 2011
Harper, Florence |
Source: Tenth Census, 1880, Hanover, Jefferson County, Indiana,
series T9, roll 287, p. 118, s.v. Florence Harper; Ron Grimes and Bob
Thomas, Jefferson County Historical Society volunteers, conversation with
Brandon Doub, 22 Sep. 2010.
-- research by Brandon Doub, HC 2013, and Tiffanie Patton,
HC 2012.
In Alling's journal from the nineteenth century, there is a mention from the passage transcribed of a girl named Florence Harper. As she is mentioned once as a potential friend that Alling had at Hanover College, she became interesting as a potential woman who received a higher education in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Thus, I will be examining the education common for women in the second half of the nineteenth century and specifically what was expected of them. There is no evidence of Florence or any of her siblings attending Hanover College, suggesting she was merely a local girl who came for visits. However, there is an interest in the education that a girl of her status was likely to receive in her time and space.
To begin with, Florence Harper was the second youngest of six children by a Fred Harper, a druggist in Madison, Indiana. Her mother is listed as a keeper of the house, but what especially snags the interest is the addition of one aunt with a separate last name, who is listed as a schoolteacher. Furthermore, the aunt is unmarried but living with her brother-in-law and her sister. Teaching as a career for women was interesting, as again there was no evidence of the aunt attending Hanover College4. Thus, the fact she is living with her sister could suggest that she is underpaid or simply lonely. Teaching in Madison would suggest that the aunt had at least some rudimentary education to draw on. The education ubiquitous to women in the second half of the nineteenth century (after 1850) and the cultural significance of women became interesting.
An article by Arthur D. Elfland offered an idea of how women were educated and how their education advanced in the nineteenth century. Elfland focuses chiefly on art as a vehicle of female education, as women who were accomplished in art were seen to be the epitome of female morality. While his main focus centers on art, there was also a considerable amount of evidence regarding the growth of education in Boston for young women. The primary reason behind a woman's education prior to the latter half of the nineteenth century was to find a husband6. However, with increasing numbers, women were beginning to enter the teaching profession, just as Florence's aunt did in Madison, Indiana. As the demand for teachers grew, education for women became a necessity.
Therefore, schools became much more interested in educating people outside of the rich and privileged upper classes, as had been the case before with the case of drawing. Since the main form of schools in America at the time for women were private schools, new formations of schools such as high schools began, which could offer education to the working or middle classes. Curriculums offered at these schools came to mirror that of the elite privates schools, mostly due to the educated young women who were now teaching. As with many societies, those of the working class often found themselves with little money or little reason to send their children to school, in sharp contrast with the middle class, which valued the potential education of their children. Teaching remained the main drive behind young, middle class women attending schools, as it was the main career a girl could aspire to.
It is unknown whether or not Florence Harper's aunt was one of these women with a certain 'moral character' that was required to be a teacher in the nineteenth century. Since Elfland's article is primarily limited to the women living in and around Boston after 1852, it is hard to determine whether or not a woman in Madison, Indiana, would have received a similar education. It is hard to imagine, as Florence's aunt was living in southern Indiana with her brother-in-law and sister. Women in the nineteenth century were beginning to receive more and more education, which is quite apparent with Elfland's article and the rise of the middle class. The factors associated with the further education of women suggest a growing need to educate both genders, rather than leaving education and knowledge up to the men. One could speculate that perhaps Florence herself followed a path similar to her aunt and attended a college other than Hanover. It is likely that she married someone and became a housewife like her mother as well. But it is an undeniable fact that the education of women was slowly morphing into system that could be equal to male education.
Sources: 1880 United States Census, s.v. Florence Harper, Hanover, Jefferson County, Indiana, accessed through Ancestry.com; Arthur D. Elfland, Art and Education For Women in 19th Century Boston, Studies in Art Education 26, no. 3 (1985). 133-140; Catalogue of Hanover College, Indiana, Archives of Hanover College, Duggan Library, Hanover College (Hanover, Ind.).
-- Annabelle Goshorn-Maroney,
HC 2015
Kimmel's skating rink |
Source: Ron Grimes and Bob Thomas, Jefferson County Historical Society volunteers, conversation with author, 22 Sep. 2010.
-- Brandon Doub, HC 2013
Lepper, Lilly, and Daisy
Lepper |
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, Census Office, Tenth Census, 1880, Hanover, Jefferson County, Indiana, s.v. William C. Lepper, Heritage Quest, HeritageQuestOnline.com.
-- Brandon Doub, HC 2013
.
Mistletoe Bough |
McCoy, John B. |
Moore's Hill College |
Moore's Hill College was a college founded in the small town of Moores Hill in southeastern Indiana, not too far northeast of Madison, Indiana in Dearborn County. Opening in 1854, Moores Hill College remained in Moores Hill until 1917 when it closed its doors to make the move to Evansville, Indiana. Moores Hill College reopened its doors in 1919 under the new name of Evansville College. Today, some 156 years later, the legacy of Moores Hill College lives on through what is now known as the University of Evansville.
Source: History, University of Evansville, (accessed 25 Sep. 2010).
-- Brandon Doub, HC 2013
Powell, Nathan |
Nathan Powell was born in Madison, Indiana. After graduating from Hanover
College in 1884, he studied law at Johns Hopkins University and Harvard
University.
Source: Alumni File of Nathan Powell, Class 1884, Archives of
Hanover College, Duggan Library, Hanover College, (Hanover, Indiana).
-- Jake Cummins, HC 2012
First, I felt it important to cover what contributes to the change of money's value. Scott Derks, author of The Value of A Dollar: 1860-1999 (1999), stated that a particular item in any given year has potential to be sold at different prices depending on three factors: availability (amount of supply), demand of the consumer, and/or the retailer's need for cash. Moreover, within the same city, the price of an item may vary depending on the cost of inventory, overhead, competition between businesses, demographics of the retailer's consumer base, holiday sales advertising, cash flow, or simply the inclination of the owner. The consumer plays a significant role to the value of a dollar, as well. The majority of consumers do not make personal economic choices based on ratios, the latest craze, and models. More often than not, a consumer's buying choice will be strongly based on options and what takes priority.1 For example, one would more than likely make the choice to pay the monthly water bill over buying a new pair of shoes.
As a student at Hanover in 1883 (along with most students in the present day), Charles Alling probably made several financial decisions during his college term; perhaps some responsible and some not. However, the value of a dollar during this time period is quite different than today. Based on the composite consumer price index of 1860, the dollar's worth was exactly $1.00. Due to inflation or deflation, a dollar's worth can increase or decrease. By 1883, it took $1.21 to buy one dollar's worth of 1860's goods.2 Today, it would take approximately $23.63 to purchase one dollar's worth of 1860's goods.3 So, if Alling would have sold his desk for $5.00, today's price would have been an estimated $118.00. His $3.50 profit he could have made on his desk, would now be approximately $83.00. The price of $8.25 he paid for his college textbooks, would now cost him almost $200.00.
Looking at standard jobs and income in 1883 can give one an interesting perspective on that era's economy. Job descriptions vary during this time from an average farm laborer (New York) working an estimated 63 hours a week and earning $1.25 a day to a glassblower/bottle maker (Massachusetts) working an estimated 51 hours a week and earning $4.23 a day.4 Other prices include men's apparel: a suit costing $4-$10, shoes $1-$3; women's apparel: skirts costing $1.50-$2.50, shoes $.05-$1.50; entertainment ranging from $1.50 opera tickets to $.15 museum tickets; food products: $.04/lb. for sugar to $.10/lb. for roast beef. However, let us not forget about Charles Alling's college tuition. Around the 1883 time period, he would have paid approximately $200 a year for tuition.5 What would he say about Hanover's $32,000 tuition today? Which in turn makes me wonder what future Hanover students will say 150 years from now about our 2014 college tuition fee.
As our glance into the economics and money value of 1883 comes to a close, we can gain an appreciation and understanding of the quality of life in early America. The value of a dollar is and will always be determined directly through supply and demand, and these two contributing factors are never stagnant. The ever-changing cycle will continue on generation to generation. Just as my grandparents told me stories of their cheap purchases in their younger years, so will I tell my future grandchildren of mine: I remember the day when I only paid $3.30 for a gallon of fuel.
Sources: Scott Derks, The Value of a Dollar: 1860-1999 (New York: Grey House Publishing, Inc., 1999), xi, xix, 12; Kimberly Amadeo, What Is the Value of a Dollar Today? About News, 17 Sept. 2014 http://useconomy.about.com/od/inflationfaq/f/value_of_a_dollar_today.htm (assessed 27 Sept. 2014).
-- Clarissa Akers, HC 2015
Second Church |
Presumably, the church being referenced here was the old 2nd Presbyterian Church located in Madison at 101 East Main Street. The church was constructed in 1835, and the building remains, though the church no longer resides there. Today it is named the 'John T. Windle Auditorium' and is said to be open to the public for cultural and presentations and other special events.
Source: Ron Grimes and Bob Thomas, Jefferson County Historical Society volunteers, conversation with author, 22 Sep. 2010.
-- Brandon Doub, HC 2013
YMCA |
During the late nineteenth century, the YMCA's primary focused was on religious proselytization, (Zald, 216) that concentrated on Biblical scripture. Included in this emphasis on spirituality, there would be a minister employed at the YMCA who would give sermons, teach, and lead the young men through various activities. As claimed by Alling, he attended an influential meeting in the new YMCA hall that had quite an effect on me and I have lived a better day than for many past. A sermon was a typical spiritual activity offered to its members. Other activities that would have been offered include prayer meetings and Bible readings. This reaction by Alling reflects the success of the YMCA's methods to maintain its motto to develop a well-rounded man.
At the turn of the century, the interest in religion decreased therefore,
the organization shifted to a focus emphasizing character development and
recreation. The YMCA offered more enhancement activities to help people
progress in their careers. The programs offered courses in typing, human
resources, and management, to name a few. The recreation activities helps
people to develop (Zald, 221), which included athletic activities that
ranged from dancing classes to card games. Overall the YMCA maintained its
goal to help advance members whether it was spiritually, physically or
mentally. As seen in the first account of Charles Alling, the culture of
the YMCA towards the end of the nineteenth century successfully influenced
Alling through the means of spirituality.
Sources: Pat Whitney, New Uses for Oldest College YMCA, Madison
Courier, 10 April 2010, madisoncourier.com
(accessed Sept 29, 2014); Mayer N. Zald and Patricia Denton, From
Evangelism to General Service: The Transformation of the YMCA, Administrative
Science Quarterly, Vol.8, No.2 (1963), 214-23.
-- Marissa Peppel, HC 2014