About Us
Our History
We've been making history and bringing our world closer together for over 100 years. The first Rotary club was started in Chicago, Illinois. USA, in 1905 by an attorney named Paul Harris.
Harris wanted to bring together a group of professionals with different backgrounds and skills as a way to exchange ideas and form meaningful acquaintances. In August 1910, the 16 Rotary clubs then in the United States formed the National Association of Rotary Clubs, now Rotary international. In 1912, Rotary expanded to a few more countries, and less than a decade later, Rotary clubs had been established in Africa, Asia, Central America, Europe, Oceania, and South America. Rotaract began as a Rotary youth program in 1968. In 2019, Rotaract clubs were elevated from a program to a distinct membership type. Today, there are more than 36,000 Rotary clubs and 10,000 Rotaract clubs, and they are in almost every country in the world. For more information about Rotary's history, go to rotary.org/history.
Harris wanted to bring together a group of professionals with different backgrounds and skills as a way to exchange ideas and form meaningful acquaintances. In August 1910, the 16 Rotary clubs then in the United States formed the National Association of Rotary Clubs, now Rotary international. In 1912, Rotary expanded to a few more countries, and less than a decade later, Rotary clubs had been established in Africa, Asia, Central America, Europe, Oceania, and South America. Rotaract began as a Rotary youth program in 1968. In 2019, Rotaract clubs were elevated from a program to a distinct membership type. Today, there are more than 36,000 Rotary clubs and 10,000 Rotaract clubs, and they are in almost every country in the world. For more information about Rotary's history, go to rotary.org/history.
The first four Rotarians: Gustavus Loehr, Silvester Schiele, Hiram Shorey and Paul P. Harris, 1905-12.
Courtesy Carmel Rotary