The National Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs, Inc., is the largest organization dedicated to the economic interests of business and professional women and was begun during World War I. Members of the Young Women's Christian Association took the initiative and called representative women to a conference in New York in May, 1918. Later in July, 1919, at St. Louis, Missouri, a permanent organization was formed.
Shortly thereafter, on November 12, 1919, the first official dinner meeting of the Madison club was held with approximately 200 members present. The group called itself the Business and Professional Women's League and established committees to facilitate action and economic progress for business and professional women. Through these committees, activities were carried out, such as card parties to raise funds and the selection of local vocational and high school girls for loans and scholarships. In 1925, the club hosted the state convention for the first time. During this same period of the organization, Leora Westlake was elected president and subsequently became the first state president from the Madison club.
The establishment of local club social activities such as the annual State Night, Halloween, and Christmas parties in the 1920s continued well into the 1930s, a continued prosperous decade for the club. In October 1930, the name of the club was changed from the “Business and Professional Women's League” to the “Madison Business and Professional Women's Club.” The mid-1930s brought about a cooperation with the League of Women Voters in urging the abolition of the spoils system in civil service in the state. 1938 saw the hosting of the state convention again as well as in 1940 along with the hosting of the North Central Regional Conference convention.
The 1940s marked continued achievement for the club. In 1944, the 25th anniversary of the club was celebrated. The meeting was held in the same room in the Women's Building and the same guest speaker, Mrs. Marvin B. Rosenberry, was present as on the night of the first meeting in December 1919. Speakers at the monthly meetings were and are the main method of education and promotion of the established yearly themes promoting the welfare of women. Speakers range from officers of national consumer affairs groups to Frank Lloyd Wright, a featured speaker in 1945. The first trip to the Trees for Tomorrow conservation camp, a scholarship award for a young person, was made in 1949. This trip started the statewide use of this conservation camp.
The club's achievements continued in the 1950s. From 1952 to approximately 1956, teams of two sat atop the Belmont Hotel to search the skies for unfriendly aircraft. Citations were given to the club for their contribution to the civil defense of the country.
Legislative efforts took a stronger hold after 1950s awareness campaigns and in 1961, the club strongly supported an amendment to add the word “sex” to Wisconsin's anti-discrimination statutes. The 50th anniversary of the club was held in 1969 with social activities planned to celebrate the occasion.
Membership dropped off in the 1960s and 1970s and this may be attributed to more women entering the work force. Although membership did drop, committee activities continued. Legislative work for the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment in the 1970s demonstrated the group's ongoing pursuit of better conditions for women.
