Throughout our long history we've continuously evolved and enhanced our services to provide the very best therapeutic environment for children and their families.

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Early Years
Lawrence Hall's roots date to 1865 when Chicago and the nation nursed the wounds of a brutal Civil War. The conflict left thousands of children orphaned and homeless. Many flocked to Chicago seeking work and a place to live. Vulnerable and without skills, they faced disease, crime, and exploitation on the streets.

The Rev. Martin Van Arsdale responded to their needs by opening one of the city's first shelters for homeless boys. Eventually, Rev. Van Arsdale's shelters became known as Lawrence Hall School for Boys.

Some years later, Judge Mary Bartelme, a pioneer in the juvenile justice system and a colleague of Jane Addams in the settlement house movement, opened her own home to troubled girls.

Growth, Continuity, Collaboration
In 1988 Lawrence Hall School for Boys and Bartelme Homes & Services merged to create Lawrence Hall Youth Services. This ambitious merger created one of the largest co-educational child welfare agencies and the largest Episcopal Charity in Illinois. As a result of that smooth merger and transition, Lawrence Hall received the 1989 Beatrice Foundation Award for Management Excellence.

Today, Lawrence Hall believes that collaboration is an important tool in providing resources in a successful long-term approach to meeting the changing needs of children, families, and our communities.

Lawrence Hall successfully collaborated with the Chicago public schools (CPS), the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), and two other residential treatment centers to establish a pilot project providing up to 30 days of diagnostic assessment and education evaluation for children placed in residential treatment.

Lawrence Hall is also a founding member of The Consortium for Child Welfare, an organization that provides specialized case management and supervisory training to social services organizations throughout Illinois.

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