Helping Hands

The large number of immigrants coming into the country at the turn of the century led to crowded living conditions in city tenements.

- Shawn Hoffelt and Mike Wilson

While Jane Addams was on a trip abroad in the 1880s, she was horrified to watch the sale of decaying fruits and vegetables to the poor. After visiting Toynbee Hall, the world’s first settlement house located in an impoverished section of London, England, she was inspired by the progressive work being done there.

Addams realized that America had its share of poverty-stricken areas. In her home state of Illinois, the city of Chicago had grown quickly in the second half of the 1800s. Its rapid industrial growth had attracted large numbers of immigrants. Many of the newcomers lived in overcrowded conditions. With her friend Ellen Gates Starr, Addams decided to establish a residence in which privileged young women like her would get to know and assist working-class immigrants by living and working among them.

The two women found and fixed up a rundown mansion that had been built by Charles J. Hull, an early Chicago pioneer. The house was located in an immigrant neighborhood that was lean on resources but rich in spirit and culture. In September 1889, Addams and Starr moved into HullHouse. It was Chicago’s first settlement house and one of the first such places to be established in the United States.

Immigrants faced many difficulties. Few spoke English. They often were unable to find work or took the most menial, low-paying jobs. Entire families, including children, worked for pennies a day in factories. Few homes had indoor water or plumbing.