Avenger of the Week | Mary Harriman Rumsey, Founder of The Junior League

As the daughter of Railroad titan and financier, E.H. Harriman, it was clear to Mary Harriman Rumsey that she lived a life of privilege. While at Barnard College in New York, Rumsey volunteered at one of the settlements in the area and immediately recognized that she and her wealthy friends should be using their privileges for social reform.

Mary Harriman Rumsey

In 1901, Rumsey and 79 of her friends came together to form The Junior League for the Promotion of Settlement Movements. This organization was the first of its kind, “designing the archetype of a new kind of civic leadership: volunteer-driven social services and policies grounded in education and intense training from subject-area experts. This model allowed knowledgeable volunteers to fill gaps left by government agencies, private corporations, and individual philanthropists.” The Junior League eventually grew to include more than 150,000 women in 292 Leagues across the US, Canada, Mexico, and UK. Evidence of her effort is still found in communities today by way of domestic violence shelters, children’s museums, and the like.

Rumsey also went on to found the Community Councils of the City of New York, whose work included the creation of approximately 500 playgrounds throughout the city.

🦸‍♀️ In college, Mary Harriman Rumsey realized she and her wealthy friends should use their privilege for social reform, so she founded the 1st @JuniorLeague, transforming NY and then US, Can, Mex & UK with 292 Leagues. #GenderAvenger #AvengerOfTheWeek https://www.genderavenger.com/blog/avenger-of-the-week-mary-harriman-rumsey