The Woman’s Club of Lodi 325 W Pine Street

In the 1890s, Lodi women couldn’t vote but they longed to have a voice in improving their lives and community. Some women organized small lodges; some joined suffrage and temperance groups but their desire to use their collective energy finally took shape when Lodi incorporated as an official city in 1906. The time was right to push for civic improvements!That year, 28 women gathered in the Methodist Church and formed The Ladies Improvement Club “to assist in the progress and betterment of Lodi.”By 1908, these Lodi women had joined with women in six other valley counties and were enthusiastically planting trees along the highways, installing drinking fountains on Sacramento and Pine streets (so Lodi men could choose a non-alcoholic beverage!), and petitioning the Lodi Board of Trustees to build more sidewalks.Helping Lodi’s public library was the next big project for The Ladies Improvement Club. The library desperately needed a permanent home but getting funds from philanthropist Andrew Carnegie required first owning property for the building. So, in 1909, The Ladies Improvement Club held a dance and raised the down payment on a Pine Street lot. The building Carnegie funded became Lodi’s library for the next 69 years. Today, the meeting chambers of the Carnegie Forum at 305 W Pine Street host Lodi city council and city commissions meetings.In 1913, the club changed its name to The Woman’s Club of Lodi and set its sights on building its own clubhouse. By 1923, a stately colonial-style building was completed west of the library, at Lee Avenue and Pine Street. The home of The Woman’s Club of Lodi is now listed on the California and federal registries of historic places and its fellowship of women remains a vital part of the city of Lodi.