Start Club (Chicago)

Start Club (Chicago)
Name	Start Club (Chicago)
Formation	20th century
Headquarters	Chicago, Illinois
Location	United States
Leader title	Director

Start Club (Chicago) Start Club (Chicago) is a private social and recreational club established in Chicago, Illinois. It developed within the urban context of the Near North Side, Lincoln Park, and the Loop, intersecting with Chicago cultural institutions and civic organizations. The club has been associated with a range of Chicago institutions, neighborhoods, and national events.

History

The origins trace to early 20th-century civic initiatives linked to the Chicago Civic Federation, the Chicago Historical Society, and neighborhood associations around Lincoln Park, Bronzeville, and the Near West Side. During the Progressive Era the club interacted with figures from the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Daily News, and the Art Institute of Chicago, while events overlapped with municipal reforms under mayors such as William Hale Thompson and Anton Cermak. Mid-century developments connected the club to the Chicago Stock Exchange, the Chicago Board of Trade, and the University of Chicago community including affiliates of the Chicago School of Sociology and urban planners influenced by Daniel Burnham and Jane Addams. Postwar expansion saw engagement with institutions like the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and the Museum of Science and Industry; later decades involved partnerships with the Chicago Transit Authority, the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority, and cultural movements centered on the Chicago Blues scene, Maxwell Street, and Chicago Public Library branches. The club’s timeline intersected with national moments such as the Century of Progress Exposition, the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, and public projects led by the Illinois General Assembly and Cook County Board.

Membership and Organization

Membership historically drew from professionals connected to the Chicago Bar Association, the Illinois State Bar Association, and business networks tied to Marshall Field & Company, Sears, Roebuck and Co., and the Merchandise Mart. Leadership structures mirrored governance models found in associations like the Rotary Club of Chicago, the Union League Club of Chicago, and the Economic Club of Chicago, with board officers, committees, and advisory councils analogous to those in academic institutions including Northwestern University and DePaul University. Membership rolls included executives from companies listed on the Chicago Board Options Exchange and commodities traders associated with the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, as well as academics from the University of Illinois at Chicago, medical staff from Rush University Medical Center, and creative professionals linked to Second City, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, and Chicago Film Office initiatives. Recruitment and outreach referenced civic partners such as the Chicago Urban League, the United Way of Metropolitan Chicago, and cultural nonprofits including the Goodman Theatre and the Joffrey Ballet.

Activities and Programs

Programming encompassed lectures and panels featuring speakers from the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, the Illinois Institute of Technology, and the Brookings Institution; networking events paralleling activities at the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, the National Federation of Independent Business, and the Civic Committee of the Commercial Club of Chicago; and cultural evenings with collaborations involving the Field Museum, the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, and the Chicago Architecture Center. Educational offerings echoed curricular collaborations with the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and the Harris School of Public Policy, while philanthropic drives coordinated with the Chicago Community Trust, the Greater Chicago Food Depository, and arts funders like the MacArthur Foundation. Recreational programs included rowing or sailing partnerships with clubs on the Chicago River and Lake Michigan alongside sports clinics referencing the Chicago Bears, Chicago Bulls, Chicago Blackhawks, and Chicago Cubs alumni appearances. Special events aligned with festivals such as Lollapalooza, Chicago Blues Festival, and the Chicago Air and Water Show.

Facilities and Locations

Facilities were situated in proximity to landmark sites including the Magnificent Mile, Navy Pier, Millennium Park, and Grant Park, with satellite meeting spaces near the Loop’s LaSalle Street corridor and River North loft districts. The club utilized venues comparable to those at the Palmer House, the Drake Hotel, and the Congress Plaza Hotel for large gatherings, while smaller programs took place in spaces modeled after the Chicago Cultural Center, the Harold Washington Library Center, and neighborhood fieldhouses run by the Chicago Park District. Training and exhibition spaces connected to the Merchandise Mart’s showroom floors, the Fulton Market Innovation District, and tech incubators in the Fulton River District and West Loop. Accessibility efforts referenced transit nodes served by the Chicago Transit Authority’s Red Line, Blue Line, and Green Line; proximity to O'Hare International Airport and Midway International Airport supported regional travel.

Notable Members and Alumni

The club’s roster reportedly included business leaders with ties to companies such as Boeing, McDonald’s, Walgreens, and Exelon; legal figures associated with the Illinois Supreme Court and Cook County Circuit Court; academics from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and Northwestern Pritzker School of Law; and cultural practitioners connected to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Steppenwolf Theatre Company, and the Chicago Tribune newsroom. Members have intersected with political figures linked to the Illinois Governor’s office, the Chicago mayoralty, the Illinois State Legislature, and delegations to the United States Congress. Philanthropic alumni engaged with organizations such as the MacArthur Foundation, the Field Museum, and the Art Institute of Chicago, while entrepreneurial alumni founded startups within 1871 and the Illinois Technology Association ecosystem.

Cultural Impact and Legacy

Start Club (Chicago) influenced civic discourse in ways resonant with entities like the Commercial Club of Chicago, the Chicago Cultural Alliance, and the Teatro ZinZanni network of performance spaces, shaping conversations hosted by the Chicago Humanities Festival and contributing to neighborhood revitalization projects akin to those led by the Lincoln Park Conservancy and Preservation Chicago. The club’s legacy can be seen in collaborations with institutions such as the Chicago Architecture Center, the Chicago Historical Society, and the Chicago Public Library, and in cultural legacies connected to the Chicago blues and jazz traditions, the city’s theatrical scene, and the architecture of the Chicago School. Its archival materials have been consulted alongside collections at the Newberry Library and university archives for studies of Chicago’s social networks and civic institutions.

Category:Organizations based in Chicago