Our History
The El Segundo Woman’s Club was founded in 1922 to promote civic, educational, and philanthropic interests in the community. The seventeen founding members, many of whom were wives of oil company workers who came from the Midwest, West, and California to settle the newly formed town, recognized the need to foster civic engagement. The El Segundo Woman’s Club remains the only organization of its kind in the City of El Segundo and continues to carry on the philanthropic and civic initiatives that have distinguished the organization since its founding. The Club’s Articles of Incorporation, adopted on 7 July 1931, stated: “that said club is formed to promote educational, literary and philanthropic work among its members and to develop an interest in the civic, social and economic conditions of the community.”
The Club was federated with the State in 1922; with the County, General, and District Woman's Clubs in 1931; and continues as part of the Marina District. The mission of the General and State Federation of Women’s Clubs, founded in 1890 and 1900 respectively, mirrored the interests and concerns of the women forming the El Segundo Woman’s Club. Community involvement and the betterment of others locally, nationally, and internationally were at the core of the organizations, which advocated the need to “address worldwide issues and serve those in need within their communities and beyond.”
Immediately after forming the Club, members advocated for social improvements, from addressing the offensive odors from the Hyperion Reclamation Plant to asking the school to open the Plunge swimming facility in the summer so people could bathe. On the Hyperion Plant issue, Club members enlisted support from the El Segundo City Council, the Chamber of Commerce, and organizations in neighboring cities. Concerned that El Segundo did not appear on the map of Los Angeles, members wrote letters to the Los Angeles Community Development Association, the Los Angeles Times, and the El Segundo Herald. That issue was quickly rectified, unlike the Hyperion situation, which would occupy Club members for many years.
In the 1920s, Club members were instrumental in supporting the community’s campaign for a high school for El Segundo; before then, high school students attended Inglewood High School. El Segundo High School, designed by architects Alfred W. Rea and Charles E. Garstang, opened on 13 December 1927. Members worked to improve children’s welfare and, upon establishing a Child Welfare committee, they invited the County nurse for public schools to address one of their meetings. They supported the formation of Children’s Hospital and continued to assist the organization through charitable donations. In recognition of their community service, the Chamber of Commerce invited the Woman’s Club to become an honorary member in 1924.
In 1935, the Club’s executive board voted to use the student loan fund for emergency loans “with small amounts to students of El Segundo seeking higher education.” They established a committee to select students and disburse funds, not to exceed $50 per student. Students were required to sign a contract detailing repayment, and the committee left the question of interest to its discretion. In subsequent years, the repayment requirement was eliminated, and the funds were designated as scholarship grants. In 2026, the El Segundo Woman’s Club provided college scholarships totaling $23,500 to El Segundo High School and Arena High School seniors.
In the 1940s, Woman’s Club members supported the war effort by hosting blood banks in the clubhouse, donating blood, and raising money for war bonds and the Red Cross. The Garden Club’s popular “Garden Exchange,” in which members gave away seeds and plants to El Segundo citizens in the 1930s, expanded during World War II to help residents who planted their own Victory Gardens.
In the late 1950s, Club members begun gathering historical material on the history of El Segundo. The School District donated a small room at the high school for the Club to display the vast quantity of material they had acquired but they eventually amassed more memorabilia than the space could accommodate. They moved to a larger space at City Hall and in 1958, the collection was put on public view. This material now resides in the El Segundo Library History Room and is managed by volunteer members of the History Committee.
The El Segundo Woman’s Club’s acquisition and judicious renovation of the original 1912 El Segundo schoolhouse reflects the organization’s civic commitment to the community. By repurposing this historic building for its clubhouse, the Woman’s Club has retained an important representation of the settlement and development of Southern California. The 1940 Mariposa entrance preserves a small piece of residential architecture by John C. Austin, best known for creating iconic civic buildings in Los Angeles. Since its renovation, the Clubhouse has served member and community needs, including administering the polio vaccine in the late 1950s, providing a space for local merchants to sell their wares, and serving as a community rental space for personal and civic events. Revenue from Clubhouse rentals has enabled the Woman’s Club to fulfill one of its fundamental goals: donating to local, national, and international charities, maintaining the building, and providing college scholarships to local high school students.