History
The Founding of Crookston Rotary
The Rotary club in Crookston was founded in February of 1922 originally as The Agassiz Rotary Club. It received its charter on March 1 of that year. Its organization was born through the efforts of Tom Moore and other members of the Grand Forks club, which was started in 1921. These men were the initial sponsors of the Rotary club in Crookston.
The late Hugh Torrance was the prime mover in promoting the formation of the Rotary club in Crookston, and he was the first president. Dick Roberts was the first secretary, and there were 20 charter members.
A Brief History of Rotary
The world's first service club, the Chicago, Illinois, Rotary Club, was formed on February 23, 1905, by Paul P. Harris, an attorney who wished to recapture in a professional club the same friendly spirit he had felt in the small towns of his youth. The name "Rotary" derived from the early practice of rotating meetings among members' offices. Rotary's popularity spread throughout the United States in the decade that followed; clubs were chartered from San Francisco to New York. By 1921, Rotary clubs had been formed on six continents, and the organization adopted the name Rotary International a year later.
As the dawn of the 21st century approached, Rotary worked to meet the changing needs of society, expanding its service effort to address such pressing issues as environmental degradation, illiteracy, world hunger, and children at risk. The organization admitted women for the first time (worldwide) in 1989 and claims more than 145,000 women in its ranks today. Following the collapse of the Berlin Wall and the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Rotary clubs were formed or reestablished throughout Central and Eastern Europe. Today, 1.2 million Rotarians belong to some 31,000 Rotary clubs in 166 countries.
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