From the beginning the nursery has been devoted to quality care for young children. In September 1916,
a group of public spirited women, led by Hilda Ives, instituted a nutrition campaign in Portland.
Their goal was better healthcare for babies. This group opened a Milk Station in City Hall on May 7, 1917
under the direction of Katherine L. Quinn, Portland’s first trained public health nurse. During the
year 1919, the women recognized a need for a service that would provide custodial care for children in
the community. They met this need by establishing a day nursery at the Waynflete School Building at
339 Danforth Street. The day nursery was incorporated under the name of Portland Baby Hygiene and
Welfare Association. In March 1920 Catherine Morrill Day Nursery was named in memory of Catherine Morrill,
the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. George Burnham Morrill. Before her death, Miss Morrill had been a devoted,
loyal and beloved volunteer at the Nursery. In 1922, Mrs. Franklin Payson and her son, Donald Payson,
purchased the house at 96 Danforth Street and the adjoining lot and donated in to the Nursery in memory
of Mrs. Payson’s sister, Mrs. Margaret Ella Chamberlain.
As the years have passed, the Nursery has worked diligently to meet the challenges of the times, in keeping
with the original mission “to provide quality care for Portland’s Children.”
Today, the Nursery is still housed at 96 Danforth Street, rich in history and expectant of what the future
may bring. The Nursery has grown from a custodial care service to a nationally accredited program that
promotes young children’s cognitive, physical, social and emotional development.
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