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It was the will of Fanny Spencer Wilder that prompted the opening of Wilder's first children's day care program in 1911. Fanny's wish was that care be provided to the children of poor, working mothers. The nursery's popularity led to the building of a new facility which received national attention because of its well-planned design. Wilder eventually operated four day care centers and five school-age programs. Today the Foundation has a cluster of programs designed to support early childhood development.

In 1913, the new Amherst H. Wilder Charity Building opened on the corner of Fifth and Washington Streets, facing Rice Park. In their wills, the Wilders requested that an administration building bearing Amherst's name be erected in the central city. The handsome four-story stone and brick building housed not only the Wilder Charity, but other charities that received free rent and utilities, furnishings and the use of the public rooms, including a 200-seat auditorium. The Wilder Building stood on that site until 1982 when it was razed to make room for the Ordway Theatre.

One of the most popular and still talked about Wilder programs was also suggested by Mrs. Wilder in her will. The Wilder Baths and Pool, which opened in 1914, was designed to meet the needs of the many Saint Paul residents without adequate bathing facilities. It boasted 85 shower baths and a 35- by 70- foot swimming pool. The baths were operated for 60 years.

In the fall of 1916, the Saint Paul Association of Commerce asked the Wilder Charity to conduct a survey of housing conditions in the city. The Charity hired Dr. Carol Aronovici, a noted Boston sociologist, to head the project. Wilder researchers visited more than 5,000 dwellings that were home to approximately 22,000 people. When the study was published in 1917, its conclusions were shocking. Housing conditions were described as a "menace to the health, safety and privacy of thousands of Saint Paul people." Some sections of the city were described to be "wholly unsuited for human habitation." The controversial findings contained in the report generated enough support and calls for action from the public to cause the enactment of the first Saint Paul housing ordinance in March 1918. Continue...