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Article: Rotary Club of Baton Rouge marks 100th anniversary of Rotary International
- Article from:
- The Greater Baton Rouge Business Report
- Article date:
- March 15, 2005
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright Greater Baton Rouge Business Report Mar 15, 2005. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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During the summer of 1918, 34 prominent business and professional men of Baton Rouge gathered for dinner at the Istrouma Hotel on Third Street. In the midst of war and war-related shortages, these civicminded men were convening the first local Rotary Club meeting, joining an organization of service and fellowship that was growing rapidly throughout the country.
Charter members included Philip Connell, who was elected the first president, and Thomas D. Boyd, the president of Louisiana State University from 1896 to 1927. Today, the Baton Rouge Rotary Club has more than 500 members and is the seventh largest Rotary Club in the world.
"We have a strong heritage of volunteerism in Baton Rouge as ...