During the late 19th century, few individuals were able to advance to receive a high school diploma. Working in the mills or retail beckoned many young people to help their struggling families financially. An avenue opened up whereby workers could take either day or night courses to improve their writing skills and learn new business practices, thereby enhancing their future job opportunities.
One of the first, if not the first, was the Holyoke Business College, formed in 1883. The school was initially located at 69 Dwight Street. The numerical postal system at the time shows this on the north side of Dwight Street, about midway between High and Front Street. A map is shown below.
In 1883, a second school, Child's Hampden Business College, was opened in Springfield. Later, the name Child's was dropped.
The schools were founded in the fall of 1883 by Charles H. Childs, and in January 1884, he was joined by Elmer E. Childs, a master of penmanship. The two semesters provided six months of learning skills for both women and men. When graduates were hired by local companies, their names appeared in the newspaper, recognizing them and serving as a sign of the program's success.
Newspaper ads soliciting prospective students held out the promise of better jobs, increased earnings, and improved working conditions. Motivational and business speakers frequently came to the school to reinforce these goals.
Some of the training course offerings between 1883 and 1899 included:
Arithmetic
Business Penmanship
Typing
Shorthand
Composing Business Correspondence
Commercial Law
Preparing invoices, bills, and ›preparing drafts
Conversational German
In 1886, the school's name was changed to Childs Business College. The school relocated to 271 High Street, close to Holyoke City Hall. A map of this location is shown below.
In November 1899, two events reshaped the commercial college landscape in Holyoke.
> The Child's Business College was sold to Mr. & Mrs. James E. Joiner from Cortland, New York. The business was renamed the Holyoke Business Institute.
> Hannah Thompson, a longtime instructor at the school, left to form her own commercial college, one that stood the test of time.
More on these two events and the Holyoke business schools in the final three installments to follow.
Citations:
Newspapers.com (paid subscription): Citations: Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript & Transcript-Telegram; Springfield (Massachusetts) Republican; publication dates and pages are shown.
Holyoke Public Library History Room, online Price & Lee City Directories, Holyoke, Massachusetts.
~ Map Source: 1884 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map, Holyoke, Massachusetts
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