Rutland Corner House (Boston, Mass.)

Founded as the "Home for Working Women" in 1877, and incorporated in 1878 as the "Temporary Home for Working Women," Rutland Corner House provided a place where "women desirous of making an honest living, but penniless and friendless, may find shelter and employment until able to secure a permanent position." In the first year of operation, 368 women were given shelter in a house on Tremont Street, Boston. Laundry and sewing rooms were set up for the working residents, whose clients were mostly local hospitals. The Home was administered by a Board of Managers, who paid a matron and assistants to live in and oversee the residents. In 1886 a permanent building was purchased at 453 Shawmut Avenue, at the corner of Rutland Street. The three prerequisites for admission were "poverty, respectability, and ability to work." Most residents were referred through social agencies, although some were accepted directly from the streets.

In the early 1920s the Home discontinued its industries in laundry and sewing due to the postwar boom. In 1925 the name was changed to Rutland Corner House. The Board noticed an increase in "undesirable types" among the residents, and the House's new function became to serve as temporary lodging for girls and women awaiting final placement by various agencies. This changed composition of residents continued through the 1940s and early 1950s, as illustrated in an annual report from 1947: "Among those helped were unmarried mothers, psychopathic cases, those discharged from hospitals, young runaways, and court cases." With increasing specialization of social service agencies, the Board came to believe that the House served too varied a clientele to be effective, and should focus their efforts on a specific group of individuals.

A 1952 study of the House and its future direction stimulated consultation with various social agencies. In 1953 the Board voted to reorganize, and the House began to serve as a transitional residence for women who were recuperating psychiatric patients, becoming the first urban resource of its kind in the United States. The House formed a cooperative working arrangement with the Boston Psychopathic Hospital. Although not a "treatment" residence, staff were trained to work with emotionally disturbed persons. The Board continued its function; the matron was replaced by a trained social worker, an associate director, and housekeeper. Referrals were primarily from mental hospitals, and occasionally, private therapists. Admission requirements included regular involvement with a therapist, access to an inpatient facility willing to admit on an emergency basis, and participation in full/part-time employment, study, or day hospital. The reorganization made it necessary to move the facility closer to the Boston Psychopathic Hospital, which could handle emergencies that could not be resolved by House staff; a house was purchased at 103 Francis Street. The Boston Psychopathic Hospital leased the first floor for one dollar a year, using it as a club where former and current patients could meet for group activities. The club served as a social gathering place for Rutland Corner House residents as well. In 1962 a larger house was purchased and residents moved to 1027 Beacon Street, Brookline, Massachusetts.

In 1973, the Cambridge-Somerville Mental Health and Retardation Center invited the Board to open a second facility to provide assistance to both women and men. A house was purchased on Lee Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and opened that same year. However, due to lack of funds and physical deterioration, it was closed in 1980. The Cambridge-Somerville Mental Health Center bought the facility and continued to operate it as a community residence. In August of 1993, the Long-Range Planning Committee decided to discontinue the psychiatric halfway house program; the House closed later that year.

From the guide to the Additional records of Rutland Corner House (Boston, Mass.), (inclusive), (bulk), 1950-1999, 1955-1975, (Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute)