Union League of Philadelphia facts for kids
The Union League Logo
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| Type | Social club |
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| Headquarters | 140 South Broad Street |
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Union League of Philadelphia
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| Lua error in Module:Location_map at line 420: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). | |
| Built | 1864–65 |
| Architect | John Fraser Horace Trumbauer |
| Architectural style | Second Empire, Beaux Arts |
| NRHP reference No. | 79002331 |
| Added to NRHP | June 22, 1979 |
The Union League of Philadelphia is a private club founded in 1862 by the Old Philadelphians as a patriotic society to support the policies of Abraham Lincoln. As of 2022, the club has over 4,000 members. Its main building was built in 1865 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
Union League clubs, which are legally separate but share similar histories and maintain reciprocal links with one another, are also located in Chicago and New York City. Additional Union League clubs were formerly located in Brooklyn, New York and New Haven, Connecticut.
History
The Union League of Philadelphia was founded on November 22nd, 1862, as a patriotic society to support the Union and the policies of President Abraham Lincoln. It laid the philosophical foundation for other Union Leagues that followed suite during the American Civil War. It has supported the American military in all conflicts since. Its motto is "Amor Patriae Ducit" or "Love of Country Leads." It is today the oldest of the remaining loyalty leagues.
Although the club is no longer exclusively white or male in membership, allowing its first black member in 1972 and first female member in the 1980's, it is still considered to be politically conservative. The club drew criticism from its members for giving a gold medal, the same award it gave to Lincoln, to Florida Governor Ron DeSantis in 2022. Other recipients of the award include George H. W. Bush, George W. Bush, and Donald Rumsfeld. The club has given other awards to conservative figures such as Jeff Sessions, Clarence Thomas, and Samuel Alito.
The club's building, a Second Empire-style structure with a brick and brownstone façade, was designed by John Fraser and completed in May 1865. The opening was originally scheduled for March of that year, with President Lincoln in attendance, but was delayed due to wartime construction supply shortages. Christopher Stuart Patterson, formerly the Dean of the University of Pennsylvania Law School, was the 13th President of the Union League in 1897 and 1898. In 1905, Philadelphia architect and Union League member Horace Trumbauer won a design competition to build major additions to the building. The Beaux Arts-style additions, completed in 1910 and 1911, expanded the length of the building to an entire city block. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
The club's has a Heritage Center to store and display its extensive collection of Civil War-related documents and objects. It also maintains a large library for members.
In 2014, the club purchased the Torresdale-Frankford Country Club in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and renamed it the Union League Golf Club at Torresdale.
In 2017, the club purchased the Sand Barrens Golf Club in Swainton, New Jersey, and renamed it the Union League National Golf Club.
The club has been giving out scholarships and providing public education on Philadelphia and the Civil War since the 1940's. In 2019, it combined these efforts by founding the Legacy Foundation with the goal of "inspiring more educated, engaged, and responsible citizens."
In 2021, the club purchased the Ace Club and Conference Center (formerly the Chubb Insurance Conference Center) in Lafayette Hill, Pennsylvania, and renamed it the Union League Golf Club at Liberty Hill.
Gallery
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Washington Grays Monument by John A Wilson in front of Union League of Philadelphia
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1911 addition, from 15th Street
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Memorial Room
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Historical Marker
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See also
- Union League Club of Chicago
- Union League Club of New York
- Union League Golf and Country Club
- List of American gentlemen's clubs
- Old Philadelphians
