Planned Parenthood Collection       ( PP)

Table of Contents

Administrative History

The Planned Parenthood movement in America owes its inception to Margaret Sanger who, in 1916, opened the first birth control clinic in New York City. As more physicians and lay persons became convinced of the necessity of controlling haphazard births, clinics sprang up in other section, of the country, and in 1923 the Birth Control Federation of America was formed to correlate the work of these various groups.

Planned Parenthood of Maryland, first known as the Bureau for Contraceptive Advice, began in 1927 as a clinic at 1028 N. Broadway, one of the thirteen in the nation. It was founded by prominent physician, from the Johns Hopkins Hospital: William H. Howell, Raymond Pearl, J. Whitridge Williams, Donald E. Hooker, and Bessie Moses, who became its first Medical Director. Since public opinion was adamantly against contraception, only those married women who were referred in writing by their physician on the basis of serious health problems, which wouId be aggravated in the event of a pregnancy, could be served.

A secondary function of the Clinic was to ascertain the efficiency of the advice given, as well as determine the relative value of the various birth control methods recommended. After 1,000 patients had been studied a report was made by Dr. Moses in her book, Contraception as a Therapeutic Measure.

The Bureau was financed by private individuals, chiefly Dr. and Mrs.Donald H. Hooker, whose large contributions made it possible not only to start the clinic but to continue it. They gave the house at 1028 N. Broadway to the organization. In 1932 the clinic was reorganized under the name of the Baltimore Birth Control Clinic, which was incorporated in 1935. It was decided in 1932 to treat married women for social and economic a well as health reasons.

In 1938 the Northwest Maternal Health Center was opened on McCulloh Street for the treatment of African American patients. This clinic had its own medical and clerical staff and its own board of directors on which served many of the outstanding members of the Black community. As such, it was the first all black clinic in the United States. Although the clinic conducted many of its own affairs, the Board of Directors of the Broadway Clinic exercised supervisory powers especially in financial matters, and Dr. Moses was Medical Director of both clinics.

In 1938 the local organization became a member of the national federation, and in 1942, in recognition of the expanding role of the program, the name of both the local clinic and the national organization was changed and Planned Parenthood became the accepted term. This change was made because clinics were widering their services to include the treatment of sterility and marriage counseling.

From time to time the Baltimore Clinic has provided some patients with marriage counseling. An exhaustive study was made to determine the criteria for designing and evaluating marriage counseling agencies.

In January, 1946, the Fertility Clinic was opened for the treatment of childless couples. Because of the popularity of this clinic it soon became necessary to increase the number of clinic sessions and the size of the medical staff.

The Maryland League for Planned Parenthood was formed in February, 1940, to speed the foundation of clinics throughout the State. It had became evident that the Baltimore Clinic, concerned as it was with the treatment of the individual patient, could not carry on an adequate educational program outside of the City, nor reach patients far removed from the local clinic. It is noteworthy, however, that the Baltimore Clinic was instrumental in organizing clinics in Hagerstown and Easton, in the Health Departments, and in Ellicott City, before the Maryland League came into being. The State organization, since it conducts no clinics, can concern itself with education and expansion of clinic services and is in a position to see where such services are most needed.

In 1965, the Planned Parenthood of Maryland received a major grant in the anount of $57,512 under Title II-A of the Economic Cpportunity Act of 1964 to conduct and administer the family planning component for the Community Action Program.