History of Rotary
Paul P. Harris (1868-1947), a lawyer, was the founder of Rotary, the world’s first and most international service club. On 23 February 1905, Paul Harris formed the first club with three other businessmen: Silvester Schiele, a coal merchant; Gustavus Loehr, a mining engineer; and Hiram Shorey, a merchant tailor. Paul Harris named the new club "Rotary" because members met in rotation at their various places of business.
The second Rotary club was founded in San Francisco in 1908. In August 1910. When clubs were formed in Canada and Great Britain, the name was changed to the International Association of Rotary Clubs in 1912, and was later shortened to Rotary International in 1922. In 1932 the Four Way Test was created.
Two world wars changed the face of Rotary. Eastern Europe was closed to Rotary until 1989 when clubs were re-established in Poland and Hungary. In 1990 the first club was opened in the Soviet Union.
Today, Rotary has 1.2 million members, professional women and men, in 35,000+ Clubs in 200 countries and geographic areas.