Poole's settlement house was active teaching classes and housing club groups during the day. In the evenings it hosted a steady stream of guests, including some of the most famous progressive activists of the day, including social worker Jane Addams, journalist Lincoln Steffens, British author H. G. Wells and left wing politicians Keir Hardie and Ramsay MacDonald, as well as renowned attorney Clarence Darrow. Acquaintances were made and ideas absorbed by Poole, who increased in commitment to attempt to the wrongs of society through intelligent social reform.