The orchardists of Southern Oregon’s Rogue Valley had their men’s club in Medford. The women gathered at the Nash Hotel until they formed their own Colony Club in 1911. After meeting in several locations the first few years, they purchased a home on Geneva Street in 1928 where some 50 club members still congregate.
Originally the Colony Club was purely a social club, which promoted dramatic readings and held bridge parties. Soon its members added charitable projects. As early as 1912, they furnished and maintained a charity room at Sacred Heart Hospital.
In 1914, the Colony Club joined the national Drama League and brought many first-rate dramatic actors to Medford theaters, among them Maude Adams. They also formed a library.
Over the years, the tax-exempt charitable organization raised money for the Red Cross, United Fund, Girl Scouts, YMCA and other organizations.
A New York actress and local orchard wife, Grace Fiero, was a founding member and wrote a short history of the Colony Club in 1965.
Source: Fiero, Grace. Report on the Colony Club. [found in the “Colony Club” vertical file at the Southern Oregon Historical Society Research Library] 1965. [Medford, Ore.]
