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Brief histories of the "RotaryAfrica" Clubs

Rotary Club of Johannesburg, First Club of South Africa

Rotary International District 9300

1 July 1921

Read Paul Harris' Journal of his 1934 visit to Johannesburg

On 18th January, 1921 Edward C Fisher, a member of the Rotary Club of Pittsburgh, had lunch with five other men at the Johannesburg YMCA and the subject was Rotary. A week later they each brought a friend to lunch and enthusiastically decided to start a Rotary Club. On the 21st February a third lunch was held resulting in an Application for Membership carrying 45 signatures being sent to what was then known as the International Association of Rotary Clubs. On the 1st July 1921 the Rotary Club of Johannesburg was chartered.

It wasn’t long before the young Johannesburg Club began to spread the message of Rotary with Durban receiving it’s Charter in January 1925, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth in April with Pretoria and Pietermaritzburg in August. Seven Clubs existed in April 1926 when “Rusty” Rusterholz, Chairman of Johannesburg’s Extension Committee was appointed Acting District Governor of District 55 by Rotary International. He was elected as District Governor at a conference in Bloemfontein on the 14th October and was re-elected for a further term of office, 1927 – 28 at the first full District Conference in April 1927, held in Cape Town and attended by the representatives of all eight clubs.