List of gentlemen's clubs in the United States

Christopher Doob wrote in his book Social Inequality and Social Stratification in U.S. Society: “The most exclusive social clubs are in the oldest cities – Boston, New York City, Philadelphia, and Washington D.C. Others, which are well respected, have developed in such major cities as Pittsburgh, Chicago, and San Francisco. The most exclusive social clubs are two in New York City – the Links and the Knickerbocker (Allen 1987,25)” [2]

Doob further explains: “Personal wealth has never been the sole basis for attaining membership in exclusive clubs. The individual and family must meet the admissions committee’s standards for values and behavior. Old money prevails over new money as the Rockefeller family experience suggests. John D. Rockefeller, the family founder and the nation’s first billionaire, joined the Union League Club, a fairly respectable but not top-level club; John D. Rockefeller, Jr., belonged to the University Club, a step up from his father; and finally his son John D. Rockefeller, III, reached the pinnacle with his acceptance into the Knickerbocker Club (Baltzell 1989, 340).” [2]

E. Digby Baltzell explains in his book Philadelphia Gentlemen: The Making of a National Upper Class: “The circulation of elites in America and the assimilation of new men of power and influence into the upper class takes place primarily through the medium of urban clubdom. Aristocracy of birth is replaced by an aristocracy of ballot. Frederick Lewis Allen showed how this process operated in the case of the nine “Lords of Creation” who were listed in the New York Social Register as of 1905: ‘The nine men who were listed [in the Social Register] were recorded as belonging to 9.4 clubs apiece,’ wrote Allen. ‘Though only two of them, Morgan and Vanderbilt, belonged to the Knickerbocker Club (the citadel of Patrician families) [indeed, both already belonged to old prominent families], Stillman and Harriman joined these two in the membership of the almost equally fashionable Union Club; Baker joined these four in the membership of the Metropolitan Club of New York (Magnificent, but easier of access to new wealth); John D. Rockefeller, William Rockefeller, and Rogers, along with Morgan and Baker were listed as members of the Union League Club (the stronghold of Republican respectability); seven of the group belonged to the New York Yacht Club. Morgan belonged to nineteen clubs in all; Vanderbilt, to fifteen; Harriman, to fourteen.’ Allen then goes on to show how the descendants of these financial giants were assimilated into the upper class: ‘By way of footnote, it may be added that although in that year [1905] only two of our ten financiers belonged to the Knickerbocker Club, in 1933 the grandsons of six of them did. The following progress is characteristic: John D. Rockefeller, Union League Club; John D. Rockefeller, Jr., University Club; John D. Rockefeller 3rd, Knickerbocker Club. Thus is the American aristocracy recruited.'” [3]

The traditional gentlemen's club originated in London (in particular the St. James's area) in the 18th century as a successor to coffeehouses.[1] Today, these clubs also continue to operate in the United States. The five oldest existing American clubs are the South River Club in South River, Maryland (c.1690/1700), the Schuylkill Fishing Company in Andalusia, Pennsylvania (1732), the Old Colony Club in Plymouth, Massachusetts (1769), The Philadelphia Club in Philadelphia (1834), and the Union Club of the City of New York in New York City (1836).[1] The Boston Club, of New Orleans, named after the card game and not the city, is the oldest southern club, founded in 1841 and recently celebrated its 175th Anniversary (2016).[4] The five oldest existing clubs west of the Mississippi River are the Pacific Club in Honolulu (1851), the Pacific-Union Club (1852), Olympic Club (1860), and Concordia-Argonaut Club (1864), all in San Francisco, and the Arlington Club in Portland, Oregon (1867).

While most major American cities today have at least one gentlemen's club, they are most prevalent in older cities, especially those on the East Coast.[1] As detailed below, only thirteen American cities have five or more such clubs: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Cincinnati, Denver, Detroit, Los Angeles, New Orleans, New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle, and Washington, D.C. Also as detailed below, New York City contains more than any other American city, including the Yale Club of New York City, the largest traditional gentlemen's club in the world.[5] Throughout the country, though, many clubs have reciprocal relationships with the older clubs in London, with each other, and with other gentlemen's clubs around the world.

A few American gentlemen's clubs maintain separate "city" and "country" clubhouses, essentially functioning as both a traditional gentlemen's club in one location and a country club in another: the Piedmont Driving Club in Atlanta, the Wisconsin Club in Milwaukee,[6] the New York Athletic Club in New York City, the Union League of Philadelphia, the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis, and the Olympic Club in San Francisco. Similarly, the Jonathan Club in Los Angeles functions as a traditional gentlemen's club in one location and a beach club in another.

Because the term "gentlemen's club" is commonly used in the United States to refer euphemistically to strip clubs, traditional gentlemen's clubs often are referred to as "men's clubs" or "city clubs" (as opposed to country clubs) or simply as "private social clubs" or just "private clubs". For other meanings and nuances of the word "club", see club.

• List of gentlemen's clubs in India
• List of gentlemen's clubs in London
• List of gentlemen's clubs in Sri Lanka
• List of traditional gentlemen's and working men's club buildings
• List of women's club buildings

• "Club men of New York: their occupations, and business and home addresses", New York : The Republic press [etc.], 1893. Cf. starting at p. 39.
• Seth Alexander Thévoz, Global Clubs Directory