清光绪二十一年 (1895)十二月二十二日,天津基督教青年会在海大道建立,当时青年会的中文名称为“天津学塾幼徒会”。会员大都是学生。总干事为来会理(又译李昂)。该会是北美协会在中国建立的第一个基督教青年会。
        来会理于清同治九年(1870)出生在宁波,其父是美国长老会在华的传教士。来会理的幼年时代是在杭州度过的。光绪七年(1881),他进入美国俄亥俄州的伍斯特大学预科学习。此时,正是基督教青年会在美国迅速发展的时期,他加入了青年会组织,并担任了学校青年会的主席。
        光绪十七年(1891),他在伍斯特大学毕业后,进入芝加哥麦考密克神学院,积极参加“学生海外志愿运动” ,并担任该组织的干事。光绪二十一年(1895)九月,他作为基督教青年会北美协会第一任中国干事,被委派到中国,组织在华基督教青年会。
        青年会成立之初,主要活动是每周一次的查经班,用英文宣讲圣经,然后用英文讨论,锻炼英语的表达能力。同时也组织体育活动,尤其是篮球运动。
        光绪二十三年(1897),在上海召开了由29个城市基督教青年会参加的第一次全国会议。正式组成全国性的青年会组织,来会理为总干事。总部设在天津。转年,在天津创刊了中国基督教青年会的第一份刊物《学塾月报》。每月刊发一期,包括中外情况和英文,主要内容是宣讲圣经等。

        

·天津基督教青年会

        光绪二十四年(1898)4月,美国普林斯顿神学院毕业的格林(Robert R.Gailey),抵达天津,担任天津青年会总干事。来会理辞去天津青年会总干事,专任中国青年会总干事。
        庚子事变以后,由于青年会会员主要来源的几所高等学堂在战乱中停课,青年会的工作重心由租界地转向老城区,发展华人成员担任干事,并创办学堂。光绪二十七年(1901),格林联合天津的士绅,在铃铛阁创办了普通中学堂,这是天津创办最早的新式中学堂。两年后,由于地方政府需要铃铛阁开办官立学堂,普通中学堂迁至仓廒街“城厢会所”旁。又过了两年,普通中学堂再次迁至经司胡同。
        光绪三十一年(1905)9月,严修第一次到青年会,听取大主教 “基督教与教育”的演讲,并聘请青年会的外国教师韩慕儒(R.M.Hersey),到他刚创办一年的私立中学堂(即南开中学)去教英语和地理。其它学堂也有聘请青年会的教师去任教的。
        光绪三十四年(1908),私立南开中学堂的创办人张伯苓加入基督教,并成为青年会的华人领导人; 转年,被选为青年会董事会的主席。青年会的领导权开始掌握在中国人自己手里。这在社会上层产生了很大影响。
        张伯苓上任后的第一件事,就是筹建新会所。经过募集,欧阳旭德捐银2万两,加上其它捐助,共银3.7万两,用以购置了东马路内侧建筑用地。此后又募到美国友人万那美捐助的美金11.4万元。
        1913年5月23日,东马路会所开工兴建;1914年10月16日,天津基督教青年会新会所在东马路(现在少年宫址)落成。袁世凯的代表曹嘉祥、朱家宝的代表王麟阁和美国驻华公使芮恩施等,出席揭幕式。
        新会所建筑为4层(含地下室),楼内设礼堂、乒乓球室、台球室、健身房、阅览室; 特别是建有一个不标准的篮球场,这是中国建立的第一个室内篮球场。
        天津基督教青年会,在推动天津近代体育运动发展上,更是发挥了很大作用。它在天津许多大中学校组织开展了篮球、足球等体育活动,并参与组织了很多项体育赛事。20世纪初至30年代,其体育活动达到高潮。
        On December 22,1895 (the 21st year of EmperorGuangxu),the Tianjin Young Men`s ChristianAssociation (YMCA) was set up at Hai Road. It wasthe first CYMA in China set up by the North AmericanYMCA. The association`s original name was "TianjinStudents` Christian Association". Most of its memberswere students. The director-general was David WillardLyon.
        Willard Lyon was born in Ningbo in 1870. Hisfather was a missionary dispatched by the AmericanPresbytery. Willard Lyon spent his childhood inHangzhou of Zhejiang Province. In 1881,he studied atthe preparatory school of Worcester University in Ohio,US. The YMCA grew fast during this period. He joinedthe association and became the secretary general ofYMCA of Worcester.
        After graduation in 1891,Willard Lyon enteredChicago McCormick Divinity School and was active inparticipating the Student Expatriate Voluntary Movementas the secretary-general. In September 1895,he was thefirst secretary general sent to China by the YMCA ofNorth America. He organized the YMCA in China.
        Early activities of the YMCA mainly included Biblestudy once a week. Participants read Bible in Englishand then held discussions. It also organized physicalactivities,especially basketball.
        In 1897,the first national YMCA conference washeld in Shanghai,attracting YMCAs from 29 cities.During the conference,the China YMCA was officiallyestablished with Willard Lyon served as the secretary-general. Headquartered in Tianjin,the China YMCApublished in 1898 a bilingual magazine the ChineseStudents Journal in order to publicize Bible.
        In April 1898,Willard Lyon resigned from theTianjin YCMA and another US citizen called Robert R.Gailey arrived in Tianjin and took Lyon`s position. Lyonthen took the position of secretary-general of the ChinaYCMA.
        After the incident of Boxer Indemnity,someuniversities in Tianjin had to suspend their class due tothe turbulence caused by war. The YCMA then shiftedits focus from the concessions to the old downtownareas. More Chinese secretaries were absorbed into theYMCA,which began to open schools. In 1901,Gaileyand some esquires in Tianjin co-established a middleschool at Lingdanggao. This was the first modern middleschool in Tianjin. Two years later,the local governmentplanned to build a public school at Lingdanggao,so themiddle school was moved to Chengxiang Chamber atCang`ao Street. Two years later,the school was relocatedto Jingsi Lane.
        In September 1905,scholar Yan Xiu listened toa lecture "Christian and Education" delivered by anarchbishop at YMCA. He then invited R. M. Hersey ofthe association to teach English and geography at theNankai Middle School,which had been established oneyear before. Later some other schools followed the suitto invite YMCA teachers.
        In 1908,Zhang Boling,the founder of the NankaiMiddle School,became a Christian. One year later,he was selected as the chairman of YMCA. The eventthat a Chinese became the top leader of the associationexerted much influences to the society. Zhang`s firstaction after taking the post was to build a new chamber.The YMCA received a total of 37,000 taels,of which20,000 were donated by Ouyang Xude. It purchased apiece of construction land near Dongmalu with thesedonations. Later,an other American friend contributedUS＄ 114,000 to the association.
        On May 23,1913,the Tianjin YMCA began tobuild the Dongmalu Chamber. On October 16,1914,it completed the construction (now the site of theChildren`s Palace). Cao Jiaxiang,who represents YuanShikai,Wang Linge,who represents Zhu Jiabao,as wellas Paul S. Reinsch,the then US Ambassador to China,attended the opening ceremony.
        The new chamber had four stories (including thebasement),including an auditorium,a table-tennisroom,a billiards room,a gymnasium,a reading roomand a basketball court. The basketball court was thefirst one of its kind in China. The Tianjin YCMA playedan important role in Tianjin`s history of athletic sports,reaching to a climax in 1920s-30s.

        

·天津私立第一小学校民国三年脚球部