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Jonathan Club
Not publicly disclosed. The club does not publish eligibility criteria; secondary sources describe membership as by invitation only.
A profile page holds what the organization publishes and what named sources report: who it admits, what it costs, how it is structured, where it operates, and how it has changed. Every figure carries the date it was checked. A dash means the organization does not publish that fact.
Founding: Two dates appear at the downtown clubhouse entrance: 1894, when the club was formed as a political club, and 1895, when it was chartered in California as a non-political social club. The club bases its anniversaries on 8 June 1895.
The Jonathan Club is a private social club in Los Angeles with two premises: the Town Club, a downtown clubhouse at 545 South Figueroa Street occupied since 1924, and the Beach Club on the sand in Santa Monica, in operation since 1927 in a building by the architect Gene Verge Sr. The club was formed in 1894 as a political club and chartered the following year in California as a non-political social club; it dates its anniversaries from 8 June 1895. Membership is described in secondary reporting as by invitation only, and the club publishes no eligibility criteria, application process or fee schedule -- its website could not be retrieved for this record because of a certificate and content-delivery configuration that blocks access. A 2024 Thrillist survey of Los Angeles members-only clubs, cited by Wikipedia, put the initiation fee at roughly $50,000 with monthly dues on top; the club does not confirm or publish these figures. The club had a long exclusionary history: it was accused of anti-Black and antisemitic bias in 1965, restricted women guests to certain floors, dining rooms and entrances as late as 1975, and voted to admit women as full members only in 1987.
How it works
Members use two premises under one membership: a downtown business and social clubhouse and a beach club in Santa Monica. Beyond that the club publishes nothing about its programme, dining, athletics, reciprocal arrangements or member services, and none of its own pages could be read for this record.
Typical member
Not publicly disclosed. Wikipedia reports more than 650 female members; no total membership, occupational or age profile is published.
Membership requirements
Requirements in detail, with history →Requirements are the tests the organization itself publishes: an age ceiling, a company-revenue floor, a net-worth minimum, a role. Where a figure straddles a range, the organization's own assessment decides. Local chapters can apply stricter tests than the published standard.
| Criterion | Published requirement | Provenance |
|---|---|---|
| Invitation | Membership is by invitation only | Verified September 2026Medium confidenceSource ↗ |
| Gender | Open to men and women since a 1987 vote to admit women as full members | Verified September 2026Medium confidenceSource ↗ |
Published criteria as verified on the dates shown. Final eligibility and admission decisions belong entirely to Jonathan Club. See how you compare against these criteria →
Initiation fees are paid once on joining; dues recur. Chapter dues, retreats, travel and events are usually additional and are listed separately when the organization discloses them. Figures are as published or reported on the date shown, not quotations.
| Cost | First year | Three years | Provenance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly dues | Not publicly disclosed. Secondary reporting states that monthly dues are payable in addition to the initiation fee to remain in good standing, but gives no amount. | Source ↗ | |
| Initiation fee | Not publicly disclosed by the club. Reported at approximately $50,000 as of 2024 in a Thrillist survey of Los Angeles members-only clubs, cited by Wikipedia. The club neither publishes nor confirms the figure, and the underlying source is a lifestyle publication rather than a business title, so the number should be treated as indicative only. | Source ↗ | |
Structure and programming
Where it operates
2 chapters on file · 1 citiesChapters verified from published sources.
Each dot is a city with at least one chapter on file. City positions © OpenStreetMap contributors.
2 chapters
| Chapter or location | City | Country | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Town Club clubhouse 545 South Figueroa Street, downtown Los Angeles; opened 1924 | Los Angeles | United States | ||
| Beach Club clubhouse Operating since 1927; building designed by Gene Verge Sr. | Santa Monica | United States | ||
| No chapter on file matches that. This list is not complete, so one may still exist. | ||||
Independent context
The Jonathan Club is the least documentable club in this batch that is still clearly operating. Its site is unreachable, so every material fact here rests on secondary sources, and the widely repeated $50,000 initiation figure traces to a single 2024 lifestyle-publication survey rather than to the club or to a business publication. Treat it as an order-of-magnitude indication, not a price. What is well documented is the exclusionary history: bias accusations in 1965, women confined to specific floors and entrances into the mid-1970s, and full membership for women only after a 1987 vote. The two-premises structure -- a downtown business club plus a Santa Monica beach club -- is the club's real distinguishing feature and the reason it competes with both city clubs and coastal beach clubs. Anyone assessing it should assume there is no published route in and that terms are discussed privately after an invitation.
Editorial analysis by Peer Group Guide editors. It is separated from the record above and follows the editorial policy.
Similar organizations
Alternatives, grouped by need →History and changes
Site-wide change log →- milestoneClub formed in Los Angeles as a political club ↗
- milestoneChartered in California as a non-political social club; the club dates its anniversaries from this day ↗
- milestoneTown Club opened at 545 South Figueroa Street in downtown Los Angeles ↗
- milestoneSanta Monica Beach Club began operating, in a building designed by Gene Verge Sr. ↗
- fee changeClub accused of anti-Black and antisemitic bias; controversy over city funds subsidising Mayor Sam Yorty's membership dues ↗
- milestoneWomen were still restricted to certain floors, dining rooms and entrances, later gaining access to the main elevator and lobby ↗
- milestoneClub voted to admit women as full members ↗
- fee changeInitiation fee reported at approximately $50,000 in a Thrillist survey of Los Angeles members-only clubs ↗
Milestones as published by the organization or reported by a named source. “Record” entries are changes to this site’s own record of the organization, kept in the public change log rather than overwritten.
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Sources
- Jonathan Club (site could not be retrieved), The Jonathan Club. Accessed 6 September 2026.tier 1
- Jonathan Club, Wikipedia. Accessed 6 September 2026.tier 8
Source tiers follow the published hierarchy: 1 official site · 2 official membership materials · 3 application documents · 4 annual reports · 5 government filings · 6 reliable business publications · 7 credible interviews · 8 other reputable secondary sources. Sources and data policy.
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