Rotary Club of Yorktown, NY

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The History of Rotary

The Rotary Club of Yorktown was chartered in 1949. Rotary Club of Yorktown is in Rotary District #7230, which encompasses Westchester, Bronx, Manhattan, Staten Island, and Bermuda. Yorktown Rotary members dedicate countless hours and energy to help make Yorktown a better place for all.

The first Rotary Club in the world was organized in Chicago, Illinois, on February 23, 1905, by Paul P. Harris, a young lawyer. In a spirit of friendship and understanding, he gathered a group of four men, each of whom was engaged in a different form of service to the public. That basis of membership -- one individual for each business and profession in the community -- still exists in Rotary. At first, the members of the new club met in rotation at the various places of business of the members. Thus the name "Rotary" was adopted. The objectives of that first Rotary club focused primarily on fellowship, and secondarily on the welfare of each other. In 1907, however, when the new club led a campaign to install public "comfort stations" in Chicago's city hall -- its first service project -- the course of Rotary was firmly set. By 1911, Rotarians were using the unofficial slogans, "He Profits Most Who Serves Best" and"Service Above Self." They were eventually made official by convention action in 1950.

The second Rotary club was formed in 1908 in San Francisco, California. Across the Bay in Oakland, California, the third club was formed. Others followed in Seattle, Washington, Los Angeles, California, and New York City. By 1910, there were 16 clubs dotted across the United States. These clubs called the First Convention in August of that year, in Chicago, to organize "The National Association of Rotary Clubs." With the admission of the Rotary Club of Winnipeg, Canada, in 1911, Rotary became an international organization. At the 1912 Convention, the name was changed to the International Association of Rotary Clubs; in 1922, the present name, Rotary International, was adopted.