A One Page History of Rotary
In 1905, 37 year old attorney
Paul Harris
changed the world
Paul
Harris gained his law degree in 1891. 1In his senior year, a
former graduate told his class that they should “Go to a small town for five
years make a fool of themselves, then go to the big city!” Paul decided to
hit the road for the entire world. He worked as a reporter for the San
Francisco Chronicle, 1891; manual labourer on a fruit ranch, then raisin
packing plant, teacher at the L.A. Business College in 1892. Denver,
Colorado, 1892: Actor in a stock company, reporter for the Rocky Mountain
News, cowboy, reporter for The Republican. Jacksonville, Florida: St. James
Hotel night clerk, travelling granite/marble salesman 1892/93, reporter on
the Washington Star, cattleman on a ship 1893, haymaker and cannery worker
1893, sub-foreman of the gang of cattlemen 1893, (where he wrote that, on
his first voyage, he experienced sub-human conditions); orange picker in
Florida 1893, back to Jacksonville selling marble granite. His territory
included the southern states, Cuba, the Bahamas and Europe. When he
announced that he was going to Chicago to practice law his employer said,
"Whatever the advantages of settling in Chicago may be, I am satisfied you
will make more money if you remain with me." To which Paul replied: "I am
sure you are right but I am not going to Chicago for the purpose of making
money; I am going to the purpose of living a life."
In 1896, he did go to Chicago to practice law. One evening, in the early
1900’s, Paul went with a professional friend to his suburban home. After
dinner, as they strolled through the neighbourhood, Paul’s friend introduced
him to tradesmen in their stores. This reminded Paul of his grandparent’s
home in New England. “Why not have a fellowship composed of businessmen
from different occupations, without restrictions of politics or religion?”
he thought.
2On February 23, 1905, Paul Harris had dinner with his closest
friend, Chicago coal dealer Silvester Schiele. Afterwards they walked over
the river to Room 711 of the Unity Building where they met their host,
Gustavus Loehr, a mining engineer; and another friend, Hiram Shorey, a
merchant tailor. Harris proposed that they form a club. No name was chosen
for the group. The second meeting was March 9th. Three other men, Harry
Ruggles, William Jenson, and A. L. White joined them. Ruggles was a printer,
and created the “name badge” version of the Rotary “wheel” and also started
singing in Rotary. In fact his singing kept the group from disbanding more
than once. Paul Harris later wrote: "The significant occurrence of the
second meeting was the introduction of Harry Ruggles, the printer. Harry was
destined to play an important part in the life of the Chicago club, for
through his suggestion of club singing his influence has been made felt by
the entire movement." Paul P. Harris, page 95 "The Founder of Rotary
1928. Two weeks later the group gathered at the office of Silvester Schiele,
in his coal yard at Twelfth and State Streets. Six of the previous seven
were present along with Charles Newton and Arthur B. Irwin.
How did Rotary get its name? Harris explains from "The Founder of Rotary"
page 96: "During the course of one of the early meetings, Paul suggested
several possible names for the new club. Among others—Rotary. It met with
general favour and was adopted forthwith. The significance of the name
becomes apparent on examination of the original plan of the club, which
provided for rotation in the place of meeting, in the chairmanship, and even
in membership which was to be continued for one year only." 2Who was the
first Rotary president? Silvester Schiele. The meeting was in Schiele's
office, hence, as a courtesy, he became the president. ""Silvester Schiele,
my most intimate Chicago friend, and one of the three who first met with me,
was made our first president, and has been a constant member. Gustavus Loehr
and Hiram Shorey were the other two but they failed to follow through. On
the other hand Harry Ruggles, Charley Newton, and others who were quickly
added to the group, with hearty zest joined in developing the project."
1:p231 When it came time for the meeting to be held at A. L. White's
place of business (at Englewood), the location was “inconvenient” and thus
was cause of the first Rotary meeting in a hotel. When did weekly meetings
begin? 6According to the general secretary in 1948, it was
Oakland #3 in 1909.
1Paul was very interested in starting Rotary in other cities. The
second Rotary club was founded by Homer Wood in San Francisco in 1908. 7Wood
then quickly organized Oakland #3, Seattle #4 and Los Angeles #5. In fact,
before the end of 1909, there were seven clubs, including New York City #6
and Boston #7. That's right, in 1908 and 1909, Homer Wood started four
clubs. In the rest of the United States there were two, and the San
Francisco club is credited, by some, with starting New York.
2The activity caused by San Francisco created the first major
conflict within the Rotary Club of Chicago. Too much of the meeting time was
being taken up with reports of "new clubs." Harris also had a vision of
“Around the World Rotary” which was also opposed by many of his fellow
Rotarians. It was not until he won the loyalty of the man who was to be
Rotary’s secretary from 1910 – 1942 that Rotary became organized and
international. That man was Chesley Perry, whom Paul called the “Builder of
Rotary.”
3&7 By August 1910 there were sixteen clubs and the National
Association of Rotary Clubs was organized and held its first convention that
year, in Chicago. At the 1911 Portland Convention, “Service, Not Self” was
introduced by Frank Collins of Minneapolis. It later became “Service Above
Self.” The slogan “He profits most who serves best,” was also read there. It
had been written by Arthur Sheldon and delivered by him at the first
convention the previous year in Chicago. Both were approved by RI in 1950.
Learn what Sheldon really meant by his well thought phrase. You can study
all of Rotary's conventions from 1910 on and learn about each of our
presidents from Paul Harris to the present as well as their clubs from our
website dedicated to presidents of Rotary. Another important event at the
1911 Portland convention was the platform brought forward by Seattle #4.
This platform, is still essential to the philosophy of Rotary today.
4When clubs were formed in Canada and Great Britain in 1912, the
name was changed to the International Association of Rotary Clubs, and was
later shortened to Rotary International in 1922. 5Paul Harris was the first
president of the National Association of Rotary Clubs, serving two terms. He
was named President Emeritus of the International Association in 1912 and
served until his death in 1947. 1Harris suffered a near fatal heart attack
in his final year as president of the National Association and required a
full year to recover. Yet, over the next 35 years, he and his wife Jean
Thomson Harris made numerous exhausting trips to nearly every continent,
visiting hundreds of cities, planting friendship trees and attending Rotary
conferences.
5As Rotary spanned the globe, branch offices were opened in
Europe, South America, South Asia, Southwest Pacific. In the UK British
Rotary had its own office. 6When Rotary International President Emeritus,
world traveller, author and prominent Chicago attorney Paul Harris passed
away on January 27, 1947, his dream had grown from one group of four to
6,000 clubs in 75 countries with 300,000 members brought together through
the service and fellowship of Rotary
4Two world wars changed the face of Rotary – parts of the Far
East and Eastern Europe were closed to Rotary. Eventually, clubs were
re-established in Japan, Germany, Poland and Hungary. In 1990 the first club
was opened in the former Soviet Union and China. In 1987, Rotary membership
was opened to women, and in 1989 the RI Council on Legislation standardized
all Rotary documents and rules.
On a parochial
note for us in Australia: In 1921, four Rotary Clubs were created in
Melbourne, Auckland, Wellington and Sydney and the Rotary Club of
Strathfield was chartered
in 1971 our charter President was Bill Boyce.
This year 2021 we celebrate 100 years of Rotary in Australia and the golden
jubilee of the Rotary Club of Strathfield
This
short history was produced by Rotary's Global History Fellowship. The original presentation has been edited
and added to by Raymond
McCluskie from the Rotary Club
of Strathfield
1My
Road To Rotary, Copyright Rotary International
2The
Golden Strand, Copyright Rotary Club of Chicago
3First
Men of Rotary, The Rotarian Magazine, copyright Rotary International
4Rotary
Club of Peoria 5Rotary
International
6My Road To Rotary –
Appendix, copyright A. Kroch and Son 7
Rotary Archives Department 8Seventy-Five
Years in San Francisco, copyright SF#2