Union League of the Deaf
Union League of the Deaf
Union League of the Deaf, Inc., is a social club
exclusively for deaf-mutes. It was founded in
1886 and has four hundred members.
Union League of the Deaf
The original name of and this club was the DeafMutes' Union League. The Union League of the
Deaf was established on January 3, 1886 by four
graduates of the Institution for the Improved
Instruction of Deaf Mutes (now the Lexington
School for the Deaf). Because the term deafmutes was both offensive and inaccurate the
name was changed.
Union League of the Deaf
On January 6, 1887, dues were established at 25
cents per month, with a 50 cents initiation fee
and 15 cents admission to each meeting. An
absence without reason demanded a fine of 25
cents.
Originally the club only admitted male members of
the Deaf society. In 1904, wives and lady friends
of members formed a ladies' society and met in
the club-rooms in the afternoons.
Union League of the Deaf
The membership grew to 500, with over 100 nonresident members. Membership, once restricted
to men, now included women and ethnic-minority
people.
The club provided a place for social recreation:
entertainment; fund-raising affairs; card and
bingo games; captioned films; basketball and
softball tournaments (Eastern Athletic
Association of the Deaf).
Union League of the Deaf
The original founders were Adolf Pfeiffer, Charles A.
Bothner, Samuel Frankenheim a prominant
member of the Jewish community, and Joseph
Yankauer.
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