The ASPCA has been protecting animals since 1866. Its founder was a wealthy diplomat who saw cruelty abroad and decided America needed to change.
A Diplomat's Awakening
Henry Bergh was born in 1813 into a wealthy New York shipbuilding family. President Abraham Lincoln appointed him to a diplomatic post at the Russian court of Czar Alexander II. While in Russia, Bergh was horrified to witness work horses being beaten by their drivers. On his way home in 1865, he visited the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in London and resolved to create an American equivalent.
Building the Movement
On February 8, 1866, Bergh addressed an audience at Clinton Hall in New York City, describing cockfighting and slaughterhouse conditions. On April 10, 1866, the New York legislature granted the ASPCA its charter. Nine days later, the first effective anti-cruelty law in the United States was passed, giving the ASPCA power to investigate complaints and make arrests. Bergh served as unpaid president until his death in 1888, personally patrolling New York streets to enforce animal protection laws.
160 Years of Protection
Today, the ASPCA has provided over $200 million in grant funding to more than 3,500 organizations. It works with hundreds of partners including animal welfare groups, law enforcement, and social services agencies, and is a key responder during natural disasters when animals are displaced alongside their owners.
Learn more on our ASPCA page.
