Rufus F. Chapin

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The Treasurer of Rotary International 1912 - 1944

A banker, with great wit, who was Rotary's Treasured Treasurer for 32 years.

Rufus F. Chapin (left), International Treasurer, and Chesley R. Perry, International Secretary. (Feb 1917 The Rotarian Rufus was a banker. The name Rufus was happily and most naturally changed to “Rough-house” (Read what Harris wrote about Chapin) The treasurer's Auto-Biography Early Rotarians play a cruel practical joke on Rufus

Two old members of the Chicago Rotary Club "caught" at the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad station, enroute with Chicago Rotarians to visit the Rotary Club of Milwaukee:

D Rudman & W Ziegler

(Written by the International Treasurer, Rufus F. Chapin, in response to a, request, from the Managing Editor for a short biographical sketch)

In Chapin's usual humor, a tribute to Rotary's second president on the event of his marriage Paul Harris' "Rotary Room" at Comely Bank 1927, (l-r) Paul, Silvester Schiele, Bernard E. Arntzen and Rufus. (From "The Golden Strand" ROTARY/One) "Shingles and Shirts" is the latest from his fount of wit, and is one result of nearly six months' confinement at his home, ... In Memoriam: Rufus Chapin, Treasurer of Rotary 1912-1944

Paul Harris' tribute to.. his friend "Chape" The Old Guard is mentioned in this 1915 Rotarian Article Rotary's Dollar-a-Year man

(From the 1938 convention in San Francisco) As always the business of the Convention could be monotonous. Although we remember that Chesley Perry served as Secretary for 32 years, another Chicago Rotarian served for many years in an important position. Rufus F Chapin took care of Rotary finances for many years and was here told "You are re-elected Treasurer of Rotary International as usual".

Rufus Chapin is mentioned at the 1939 Convention when he shows his modesty.

Chapin was a Charter Trustee of the Rotary Endowment fund.

Read about his family background

In 1930, general secretary Ches Perry organized a committee to write the early history of Rotary. The first meetings were at the home of Rufus Chapin.

Rufus was known for his wit. At a convention, when it was asked that there be a unanimous vote for him as treasurer of RI for the coming year, he shouted no. After the laughter had subsided, he still got the last laugh by refusing to come on stage to accept the applause.

Earlier in his Rotary life, sometime after he took office as the president of the Rotary Club of Chicago, in June of 1918, he was asked to write an "autobiography" for The Rotarian. What he wrote, and our historian, Dr. Wolfgang Ziegler, in August of 2003, found was the following. Chapin's "Auto Biography" is about an "Automobile." READ THE "AUTO" BIOGRAPHY