Historical Sketch

The Boston Young Men's Christian Union was organized 17 September 1851 as the Biblical Literature Society, holding its meetings at the homes of its members, church vestries, and other available spaces. Its first elected president was George W. Warren, and the vice presidents were Frederic Walker Lincoln, Jr. and Thomas A. Goddard. The organization was incorporated 3 May 1852 as the Boston Young Men's Christian Union for the purpose of moral and Christian improvement as a "union of all sects and parties." It held rooms at 36 School Street during this time. It temporarily ceased operation at the start of the Civil War, later reorganizing and resuming active work in 1868 under William Henry Baldwin as president. During this time, BYMCU held rooms at 12 West Street before moving to 300 Washington Street in 1869.

The organization acquired land in 1874 and completed and dedicated its new building 15 March 1876 at 18 Boylston Street. The building was designed by Nathaniel Jeremiah Bradlee. More space was needed, and the building expansion was dedicated 28 May 1893, adding 72 feet along its frontage on Boylston Square. Other smaller renovations were done throughout the 1920s-1950s and again in the 2000s. The building was designated a historic landmark by the Boston Landmarks Commission in 1977 and by the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. In 1947, the organization's public name was briefly changed to the Boston Social Union, though its corporate name remained the Boston Young Men's Christian Union. By 2013, the property mainly operated as a gym facility, and in 2015 the Boston Redevelopment Authority approved over $22 million for the building to be renovated into 46 affordable housing units. The project was completed in 2018, and the building also housed the administrative offices of St. Francis House, which had worked with the Planning Office for Urban Affairs of the Archdiocese for the renovation.

BYMCU's purpose was to provide "a home for young men; to offer every possible attraction in the shape of books, papers, games, pleasant companions, classes, public religious services, lectures, dramatic and musical entertainments, and other means of instruction and recreation." At its permanent location at 48 Boylston Street, designated rooms were offered for various religious, social, recreational, educational, and physical activities. The building contained "one of the largest and most complete gymnasiums in the country," as well as event halls and a library. Over time, it offered boarding and lodging, social and employment services, and charitable programs to it members and neighboring communities. These charitable programs included "Country Week," which offered vacations at camps and farmhouses in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine to children and mothers; "Rides for Invalids," which provided rides to hospitals and recreational rides to the country and to visit friends; and a "Christmas Festival." BYMCU also acquired land for its own summer camps and offered outdoor recreation at Camp Union (Greenfield, New Hampshire), Camp Hammond (Plymouth, Massachusetts), Whispering Willows (Stoughton, Massachusetts), and Bazeley Vacation House (Manomet, Massachusetts), previously known as Esta-Naula.

BYMCU also offered training courses for examinations to join civil service positions, including the postal service, police departments, and fire departments, as well as a large selection of evening classes focused on hobbies, completing education, or acquiring skills for employment. During World War II, it offered rooms, gym and shower facilities, and social activities to servicemen. An objective of the BYMCU was cooperation with social service organizations within the Greater Boston area whose "liberal traditions and aims" aligned with their own. These included the Citizenship Training Program, in which the BYMCU collaborated with the Boston Juvenile Court and other groups "to work with maladjusted boys to prevent the development of serious problems." This program was a requirement for boys 12-17 years old that were placed on probation by the Boston Juvenile Court. The BYMCU also offered the use of its spaces as meeting places for other social and educational groups.