Brief histories of the "First 100" Clubs

Rotary Club of Lincoln 14

Rotary International District 5650

First Club in a Community of Less Than 50,000

---

Lincoln Rotary Club #14

LINCOLN, NEBRASKA

A Charter Club of Rotary International
Organized June 6, 1910
Chartered August 18, 1910

Organization   Lincoln Rotary is Lincoln’s oldest service organization.  It was the 14th Rotary Club founded and has published a weekly newsletter, The Propeller, since 1916.  Lincoln Rotary came into being as a direct result of the efforts of the St. Louis Rotary Club.  The St. Louis club president, who had business relations with F. C. “Dad” Phillips, came to Lincoln in late May, 1910 and received a promise from “Dad” Phillips that a Rotary Club would be organized in Lincoln.

On June 6, 1910 the selected group met in the Phillips Plumbing Shop and Lincoln Rotary Club #14 was born with F. C. Phillips as President.  

Club Extension   Lincoln Rotary was responsible for establishing most other early Rotary clubs in Nebraska.  Lincoln Rotary has sponsored eighteen (18) new Rotary clubs.  They are: Downtown Omaha Club #37, Kearney, York, Beatrice, Fremont, Hastings, Norfolk, Aurora, Falls City, Alliance, Chadron, Scottsbluff, Crete, Ashland, Humboldt, Lincoln Northeast, Lincoln South, and Lincoln Havelock.

Recognized by RGHF July of 2010 Rotary History Day Awards

District Governors   The club has furnished eleven District Governors beginning with O. J. Fee in 1916-17 and followed by Charles Strader, Verne Hedge, Charles Cadwallader, W. A. Robbins, Kenneth White, 1966-67; Robert W. Palme, 1970-71; John Wolter, 1985-86; Dan Drain, 1988-89; Charles Thone, 1996-97; and Arthur Knox, 1997-98.  Charles Cadwallader also served on the Board of Directors of Rotary International and in 1947 was nominated by Lincoln Rotary as a candidate for International President.

Renowned People    

One of Lincoln Rotary’s best known members was William Jennings Bryan.  He became an honorary member when he moved his residence to Florida.

General John J. Pershing was an honorary member and attended meetings in his honor on Dec. 30, 1919 and Dec. 21, 1929.

Read an article, about General Pershing, from The Rotarian (October 1918 issue) From Dr. Wolfgang Ziegler

 

 

Right, November 1921 photo from The Rotarian, posted by Dr. Wolfgang Ziegler

See the delegates to the first convention of Rotary in 1910, in Chicago when the National Association of Rotary Clubs was formed. Lincoln was a forming club and was there.

See our delegation at Rotary's 2nd convention in Portland, Oregon, USA in 1911. A rare, early Rotary Global History photo.

The Nebraska clubhistory Clubs

Rotary Club of Lincoln 14

Rotary Club of Omaha 37

Also see Fremont 500