The Maternal Health Association opened its first branch on the West Side in 1936. Founders Dorothy Hamilton Brush and Hortense Oliver Shepard attempted to birth control at area hospitals and clinics, but their efforts were in vain, due to fear of the Comstock Act (which made it illegal to send "obscene, lewd, and/or lascivious" materials - including information regarding contraception - through the mail) and Cleveland's large Roman Catholic population. They provided contraception to married women (though not abortion) as well as marriage counseling. My grandmother used to work for the Maternal Heath Association.
In 1966, the MHA changed its name to Planned Parenthood of Greater Cleveland.
Sources:
Encyclopedia of Cleveland History
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