On the initiative of the Catholic Women's Association, a refuge for "fallen girls" was established in 1906. Julie Countess Matuschka-Greiffenklau (1849-1913), Maria Siegfried, Dorothea von Witzleben and Mathilde Großmann (1853-1918) formed the board of directors, with the latter providing 63,000 marks for the purchase of a plot of land on Platter Straße. After the consecration of the house, the operation was taken over by the Order of the Augustinian Sisters of Cologne. The first extension was built in 1911. The institution financed itself through sewing, washing and ironing work. This was supplemented by care fees for individual girls and, above all, donations from the public and collections from the surrounding parishes. In 1927, a maternity ward was set up in the Johannesstift. Early on, the father of the child was accepted as a close companion to his wife before, during and after the birth. In 1937, the Augustinian Sisters were replaced by the Hiltrup Missionary Sisters. The home was subject to restrictions imposed by the National Socialist authorities, but was able to prevent the National Socialist People's Welfare (NSV) from using it as a home for infants and mothers. During an air raid on Wiesbaden, the building was slightly damaged by bombs. In 1963, a day care center was built in another new building. The maternity ward was closed in 1975 due to underutilization.

In 1979, a secular general manager was appointed for the first time. The Johannesstift was subsequently converted into a modern youth welfare facility. In 1975, the "Agnes Neuhaus School" was founded as a special school for educational support and the sick, residential groups for children, adolescents and young adults were set up in the city and the surrounding region, a mother-father-child home was opened in accordance with the latest developmental psychology concepts and a wide range of vocational assistance was added as a further division. With around 100 employees and around 250 people in its care, the "Jugendhilfezentrum Johannesstift GmbH", as it has been known since 1992, is one of the most important providers of social services in Wiesbaden.