History
Prudence Crandall Center for Women was founded by women in 1973 to identify and fulfill the health, employment, and social service needs of local women. Meeting in the basement of the South Congregational Church in New Britain, the center initially empowered women to participate in all aspects of community life by providing training and support groups in a safe meeting place. Through their early work, the center discovered women in the community desperately needed emergency housing, especially after domestic violence incidents and marital separations or divorces.
.
At first, the “Safe Home” network of concerned community members welcomed battered women and children into their homes to provide a safe refuge from abuse. In October of 1975, a six room apartment was rented in New Britain to provide temporary shelter to battered women and their children. This “Safe Apartment” was very significant as it represented the first shelter for battered women in Connecticut. It was a historic event for the battered women’s movement, marking the establishment of one of only a handful of battered women’s shelters in the United States.
.
In 1978 a home was purchased and ultimately renovated to comfortably accommodate 22 people. This is the largest domestic violence shelter in the state of Connecticut. The exact location of the emergency shelter is kept confidential for client safety and privacy.
.
In 2003, PCCW changed its name to the Prudence Crandall Center, Inc. in order to better reflect the diversity of clients helped: men, women, and children. Prudence Crandall Center partnered with the Daughters of Mary of the Immaculate Conception to renovate the Rose Hill Campus in New Britain. This renovation allowed us to open our transitional and permanent supportive housing programs in 2009.
.
Today, PCC is one of the few programs in the country offering this unique continuum of shelter, housing, and support services needed to address the long-term needs of victims, helping them move forward to safe, self-sufficient lives, free from their abuser. Prudence Crandall Center remains as committed to ending domestic violence as the day it was founded. We strive to end domestic violence through our dedication to working with people who have experienced domestic violence, on their behalf, and in their memory.
