Catholic Social Institutions and Urban Development: The View from Nineteenth-Century Chicago and Milwaukee

The Catholic Church, like many other religious denominations, committed itself to the improvement of American life by establishing a variety of urban social institutions. Hospitals, asylums, colleges, and schools were obvious physical embellishments of the urban landscape and each of these institutions helped Catholics and sometimes non-Catholics to cope with inadequate health care facilities, homeless children, and the education of the young. The formation of Church-sponsored organizations such as the St. Vincent de Paul Society and the Irish Colonization Society also gave direction to Catholic concern about urban problems. ¹ Even non-Catholics appreciated the value of the Church’s work in the city.