“It is plain that the idea behind this name ‘Chamber of Commerce’ is that the merchants of Boston, by associating themselves together, can accomplish some good for the welfare of our city and state.” – James J. Storrow, first president of the Chamber, 1913
In June of 1909, a merger of two major business groups created the modern day Boston Chamber of Commerce. At the time the Chamber was the largest civic organization in the U.S., and it wielded a great deal of power on Beacon Hill, Capitol Hill, and in the White House. Chamber members hosted banquets featuring the President of the United States and traveled the world to promote the region
as a center of world commerce.
“Citizens of Massachusetts have come to respect the title: Chamber of Commerce. Credit goes to the Greater Boston Chamber, which impressed people by its efforts to do something for the city and state above and beyond normal Chamber activities…The Greater Boston Chamber’s example shows what can be done.” – Ian Menzies, The Boston Globe, 1964
Intensive lobbying by Chamber leaders helped bring about the creation of the Boston branch of the Federal Reserve Bank, and its members partnered with the state legislature to pay for construction of a new commercial airport in East Boston. The Boston Chamber was the first in the nation to elect a woman to its board of directors, and helped forge the infrastructure that transformed our economy in the middle of the 20th century.
More recently, the Chamber has played a key role in some of the region’s most impactful policy issues. From education reform and preservation of MCAS, to development of the South Boston Waterfront and construction of the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, to landmark health care reform and implementation, the Chamber continues working to ‘accomplish some good for the welfare of our city and state.’
For 100 years, the Chamber has been a force for the public good in Greater Boston. Yet all that the Chamber achieves and all that we strive to accomplish is driven by you, our members. In these challenging economic times, your involvement in the Chamber and in our community is more important than ever. You represent the Power of our Past and the
Promise of our Future. With your continued commitment and guidance, we will lay the foundation for a new century of leadership.
“We at the Chamber have been at the forefront of these initiatives, and together with government leaders we have laid the foundation for change. Paul Guzzi, 2009