Grace Hoadley Dodge (May 21, 1856 - December 27, 1914) was an American philanthropist.[1]
She was the great-granddaughter of David Low Dodge, and granddaughter of William E. Dodge. Grace Dodge donated about $1.5 million and many years of service to philanthropic work. She was instrumental in forming the Kitchen Garden Association, which became the Industrial Education Association. She was the main source of funds for the New York College for the Training of Teachers, which became Teachers College, and subsequently a school of Columbia University. Committed to help working girls, Dodge organized the first Working Girls Society among a group of silk workers in 1884, According to Dodge, the specific objectives of the Society were to "furnish pleasant rooms where its members can pass the evening; to organize classes for mutual enjoyment and improvement; to collect a circulating library for use of members; and to develop co-operative measures which shall be for the benefit of the members. On February 16, 1885, eleven of the clubs in New York City united to form the Association of Working Girls' Societies, with Dodge as founder and driving force. She negotiated the merger of two opposing young women's groups into the Young Women's Christian Association (YWCA) of the United States. She also organized the Travelers' Aid Society of New York in 1907 to protect female travelers from falling victim to vice, especially the so-called "white slave traffic" (the coercion of white women into prostitution). She had called for the creation of a National Travelers' Aid Society, but died before this could be accomplished.[2] She was also a major force in the foundation of the international Travelers' Aid movement. The Grace Dodge Career and Technical Education High School, named in her honor, is located in the Bronx, New York.
A biography of Grace H. Dodge was written by Abbie Graham, copyright 1926. She also lectured on this biography at various colleges [3] The Grace Hoadley Dodge Papers, 1882-1995 (Bulk: 1882-1915)are located within the Sophia Smith Collection, Smith College, Northampton, Mass.[4]
New York times article