Twilight Club
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Twilight Club was a dinner club in New York City that operated from 1883 until 1904. It was founded by Charles F. Wingate "to cultivate good fellowship and enjoy rational recreation."[1]
On January 4, 1883, the Twilight Club was founded by Charles Frederick Wingate[1][2][3][4][5] during "a gathering at Mouquin's restaurant of a number of congenial friends..."[6] Meetings consisted of dinner[7] or discussions both humorous and serious on disputable topics of the day. Some recorded topics were fishing, rearing of children, and the value of a college education. Sometimes the questions would be hypotheticals such as, "what would you do if you were King of Manhattan Island?", or "who is the most remarkable man on earth?"[1][8][9]
The inspiration for the club came from a dinner at Delmonico's held to honor sociologist Herbert Spencer on November 9, 1882,[10][11][12][13] prior to his departure from the United States.[14] Herbert Spencer made a speech on this occasion in which he said, "We have had somewhat too much of the Gospel of Work; it is time to preach the Gospel of Relaxation."[13] This motto engendered the formation of the Twilight Club.[10][13] Herbert Spencer did not participate in the club. However, Charles Wingate offered him an honorary membership, which, upon acceptance, he offered this advice to the club, "I would, however, remark that the reports of your proceedings seem to imply rather more gravity of speech in your conversations than is altogether consistent with the 'expectation of relaxation.'"[15] The official motto of the club was, "To cultivate good fellowship and enjoy rational recreation."[1]
Membership, principles, and officers
By 1884, the Twilight Club was heralded as a hot spot for the “who’s who” of Manhattan. “Among all the clubs in New York, of which prominent men are members, few are better known than the Twilight club, and, at the same time, few are more worthy of note…" trumpeted a local publication.[16]
Rather than formal “Rules,” the Twilight Club had a list of “Principles”:
Principles
- No dues
- No debts
- No by-laws
- No president
- No constitution
- No salaries
- No initiation fee[a]
- No full dress
- No mutual admiration
- No defalcations
- No decamping treasurer
- No watered stock
- No parliamentary rules
- No previous questions
- No lengthy speeches
- No late hours
- No profanity
- No 'fish stories'
- No 'sailors' yarns'
- No dueling
- No free dinners
- No scandal
- No bribery
- No personalities
- No party politics
- No preaching
- No gambling
- No dynamite
- No 'bouncer'
- No conventionality
- No grand reform
- No high ideal
- No 'papers'
- No 'dudes'
- No puns
- No gush
- No cant
- No red tape
- No formality
- No humbug
Additions and amendments were accepted, but they were required to be submitted in writing, along with a deposit of $17.34 (as a guarantee of good faith) two years before being voted on.[1][16][17]
There was an executive committee. However, the only officer was Charles F. Wingate, who acted as "secretary, treasurer, committee of admission, and head and doer of what ever was to be done." Wingate kept a complete list of members, which was published in a contemporaneous biography of the club and corroborated in multiple newspaper articles at the time.[1][6][10][17][18]
While the Club defined its members as "club-able fellows with $1,” specific evenings were designated as "ladies' nights,” where women were invited to attend the dinners and to actively engage in the discussions.[1][6][13]
In January 1887, after three years in operation, the Club raised its annual membership dues from $1 to $2 per year[19] and later to $3 per year.[6]
While “full dress was absolutely prohibited,” some guests would nonetheless dress to impress, arriving in full dinner dress.