The History Of Rotary

It was on the evening of February 23, 1905, that Paul Harris, a young lawyer in Chicago, Illinois, asked three friends to meet with him. He presented an idea he had been developing, the formation of a group to enlarge their circle of business and professional acquaintances? Out of the discussion that followed came the beginnings of a club, membership in which would be limited to one representative from each business or profession. It was agreed that a member should be a proprietor, a partner, or a corporate officer.

The first meetings were hosted in turn by the members and the Secretary kept a record of the business done among these associates. This latter concept was soon dropped, but the meetings continued, held on a rotational basis in each members place of business. The name Rotary was derived from this method of meeting.

Thus it was that a lawyer, a mining engineer, a merchant tailor, and a coal dealer formed the first group ever gathered together in the fellowship of Rotary. Very shortly a printer and a real estate dealer were added to the group.

It is important to know that these men met in fellowship. They were congenial and friendly and each represented a different vocation. They had been selected without regard to religious, racial or political background. It is, therefore, important to understand that Rotary is a non-sectarian, non-political organization.

More than three years elapsed between the establishment of the first Rotary Club and the formation of a second club. Yet by August 1910, when the first Rotary convention was held in Chicago, there were 16 clubs in existence, 14 of which were represented at the convention.

The Rotary Club idea spread quickly and by 1910, the National Association of Rotary Clubs was formed. Rotary became international with the formation of a club in Winnipeg in 1910. In 1911 clubs were chartered in London and Manchester, England and in Dublin and Belfast, Ireland. To meet this extension of Rotary into other nations, the National Association of Rotary Clubs gave way, and the International Association of Rotary Clubs came into existence. In 1922, this name was shortened to Rotary International as we have it today.

ABC's Of Rotary

The History Of Rotary

The Motto And Emblem

Rotary's Purpose

Four-Way Test

The Rotary Foundation

Rotary International