The Haven, 1878-1930: A Toronto Charity's Transition from a Religious to a Professional Ethos

Abstract

The Haven, a Toronto charity for women, was established in 1878 by evangelically inspired members of the city's economic and political elite. In the early 1890s, religious impulses began to wane and were replaced, in the post-World War I period, by a professional ethos. Several principles of social casework were adopted in the 1920s. By the early 1930s, the organization was well on its way to working with a one-client population, the so-called "mentally retarded". Thus, religiously-motivated volunteers had been replaced by professionals trained in secular social work practice.