1868 Rotary Founder Paul Percy Harris was born on 19 April in Racine, Wisconsin, USA.
1891 Harris gained his law degree, he then took five years to tour about the world working as a reporter, teacher, salesman. The experiences enabled him to get a clearer insight of his fellowmen and broadened his vision.
1986 Harris settled in Chicago and opened a law practice.
1900 After dinner at fellow attorney Bob Frank’s home, they walked around the neighborhood, Harris was impressed that the shopkeepers were all friends of Frank. He had not seen this kind of camaraderie among businessmen since moving to Chicago. This inspired him to consider the possibility of starting a club where men of different professions could gather in fellowship.
1905 Harris eventually persuaded several business associates to discuss the idea of forming an organization for local professionals. On 23 February, Harris (lawyer), Gustavus Loehr (mining engineer), Silvester Schiele (coal dealer), and Hiram Shorey (merchant tailor) gathered at Loehr’s office Room 711 in downtown Chicago for what would become known as the first Rotary club meeting.
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| The first 4 Rotarians L-R: Gustavus Loehr, Silvester Schiele, Hiram E. Shorey, Paul P. Harris |
Several weeks later, Schiele was elected the 1st president of “Rotary".
"This new club was called Rotary because in the early days the members met in rotation in their various places of business so that they might come to know one another better." – Paul Harris
1908 Arthur Sheldon of Chicago Club created the classification system and penned "He Profits Most Who Serves Best."
1910 15-17 August, 60 Rotarians held the first national convention in Chicago, where 16 clubs unified as National Association of Rotary Club (now Rotary International) Harris was elected as first president.
At the end of his second term as Rotary president, Harris resigned, citing ill health and the demands of his professional practice and personal life. He was elected president emeritus by convention action, a title he held until his death.
Mid 1920’s Harris became actively involved in Rotary again, serving as the public face of the organization. To promote membership and service, he attended conventions and visited clubs throughout the world, often accompanied by his wife, Jean.
1947 Paul P Harris died on 27 January in Chicago at age 78, after a prolonged illness. Before his death, he made it known that he preferred contributions to The Rotary Foundation in lieu of flowers. In the 18 months following his death, The Rotary Foundation received $1.3 million, which helped support the Foundation’s first program — scholarships for graduate study abroad.
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