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Peace & Friendship Monuments
Initiated by Rotary International

See below for special section on Rotary Peace Monuments from Wagga Wagga, NSW (Australia).
Click here for photos of many Rotary monuments (including a few peace monuments) compiled by RGHF member German Sintes Lluch, Rotary Club Mahon-Mo. Menorca (Spain).
Click here for website of Rotary International, Chicago, Illinois (USA).
Click here for webpage on Rotary peace & friendship monuments maintained by Rotary Global History Fellowship (RGHF), Pueblo, Colorado (USA).

Right click image to enlarge.
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2005 - "Comely Bank," Ridge Historic District, Chicago, Illinois (USA). House constructed in 1905. Residence of Rotary founder Paul P. Harris [1868-1947] from 1912 until his death in 1947. Grounds included an International Friendship Garden. Purchased by Paul & Jean Harris Home Foundation (PJHHF) and opened to the public in 2005.
June 19, 2005 - Japanese Stone Lantern, "Comely Bank," Chicago, Illinois (USA). From International Friendship Garden of Rotary founder Paul P. Harris [1868-1947]. Reinstalled by Paul & Jean Harris Home Foundation (PJHHF) and dedicated by businessman Yoshio Gotoh and a Japanese delegation.

1930's - Friendship Trees. A Rotary tradition perpetuated by Rotary founder Paul Harris. Among the cities in which he planted Friendship Trees during his travel are Berlin (Germany), Tallin (Latvia), Helsingfors (Finland), Gothenburg & Stockholm (Sweden), Bergen (Norway), Shanghai, (China), Tokyo (Japan), Brisbane, Canberra, Hobart, Launceston, Melbourne & Sydney (Australia), Auckland, Dunedin & Wellington (New Zealand), Mexico City (Mexico), Panama City (Panama), Bogotá (Colombia), Lima (Peru), Santiago & Valparaiso (Chile), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Montevideo (Uruguay), and Rio de Janeiro & Sao Paulo (Brazil). (Source "My Road To Rotary.") Photo shows Harris planting a Friendship Tree in Newcastle in 1935.

June 18, 1932 - Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park, Alberta (Canada) & Montana (USA). "Oldest international peace park [sic]." Established on the initiative of Rotary International. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995. Upper image is cover of Saturday Evening Post for August 5, 1961, showing a happy family on the international border. Click here for Wikipedia article. Entry #1210 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001).

2007 - Peace Exhibit, Goat Haunt Ranger Station, Glacier National Park (USA). At south end of Upper Waterton Lake. No road access! "Visitors can view a new International Peace Park exhibit at Goat Haunt. The exhibits explore the history of the Peace Park - the world's first - as well as the meanings of peace in the world." ["Celebrating 75 Years of Peace & Friendship," National Park Service, July 19, 2007].
2007? - Peace Exhibit, Waterton Lakes National Park (Canada). At north end of Upper Waterton Lake. Peace Exhibit exists according to Nigel & Antonia Young.


1936? - Rotary Peace Garden, International Friendship Gardens, US Highway 12, Michigan City, Indiana (USA). Photo shows Rotary International logo at left, peace pole in center. Photo by EWL.


August 1941 - Rotary Peace Memorial, Mount Evans, Colorado (USA). Sundial on summit of Mount Evans 14,264 feet (4,350 meters) above sea level. Can be reached by the highest paved road in North America. Marks convention in Denver attended only by Rotarians from USA, Canada, Mexico & Cuba (due to the difficulty of international travel durng WW-II). Click here for rededication on July 15, 2006.

1946? - Japanese Temple Bell, Atlanta, Georgia (USA). Cast in 1747 in Tokyo. Found in an Atlanta warehouse. Returned to Jodoji Temple by Rotary Clubs of Atlanta & Yokosuka in May 1961 during ceremony in Yokosuka (Japan). All information from Tuscaloosa News, May 30, 1961. Much more to know about this bell. Where is "Jodoji Temple"? Very likely a WW-II trophy (like other Japanese bells in Duluth, Topeka & Lexington, VA). Too bad it wasn't retained (as in Boston) to symbolize peace or friendshp.

1955 - Berkeley Rotary Peace Grove, Nimitz Way, Tilden Regional Park (via Inspiration Point), Berkeley, California (USA). "A project of the Berkeley Rotary Club which established the grove by planting one hundred Giant Sequoia seedlings close to the site of a former Nike missile base. Each year, one tree is dedicated to honor an individual or an organization that has made a significant contribution to international peace & understanding."
Peace Grove Honorees:
-1955 PAUL HARRIS - Founder of Rotary International.
-1956 DAG HAMMARSKJOLD - Secretary General of the UN
-1957 RAMON MAGSAYSAY - President, Republic of the Philippines
-1958 RALPH J. BUNCHE - UN Peace Negotiator
-1959 JOHN FOSTER DULLES - US Secretary of State
-1960 DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER - President of the USA
-1961 ALBERT SCHWEITZER - Humanitarian
-1962 ALBERT JOHN LUTHULI - President, African National Congress
-1963 ADLAI STEVENSON - US Ambassador to the UN
1964 U THANT - Secretary General of the UN
1965 SIR WINSTON CHURCHILL - Statesman
1966 POPE PAUL VI
1971 NORMAN E. BORLAUG - Humanitarian-Scientist
1973 RICHARD M. NIXON - President of the USA
1974 FREDERICK CARLTON WEYAND - General, US Army
1975 KNOWLES A. RYERSON - Educator-Horticulturist
1976 BERNICE W. BEHRENS - Director, Reception Center, US Department of State
1977 HENRY A. KISSINGER - US Secretary of State
1978 ANWAR SADAT - President, Arab Republic of Egypt
1979 BOB HOPE - Humanitarian-Entertainer
1980 DR. EDWARD TELLER - Physicist-Author
1981 KURT WALDHEIM - Secretary General of the UN
1982 STANLEY E. McCAFFREY - President of Rotary International 1981-1982
-1983 PHILIP C. HABIB - Special Rep of the President to the Middle East
-1984 POPE JOHN PAUL II
-1985 JEANE J. KIRKPATRICK - US Ambassador to the UN
-1986 GEORGE P. SHULTZ - US Secretary of State
-1987 VERNON WALTERS - US Ambassador to the UN
-1988 PAUL VOLCKER - Chairman Federal Reserve System
-1989 POLIO PLUS PROGRAM - Accepted for Rotary International by Cliff Dochterman
-1990 RONALD REAGAN - President of the USA & MIKHAIL GORBACHEV - President of the Soviet Union
-1991 GEORGE H.W. BUSH - President of the USA
-1992 MOTHER TERESA - Humanitarian
1993 JIMMY CARTER - President of the USA
1994 JOHAN JORGAN HOLST - Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs
1995 COLIN L. POWELL - General, US Army (Retired)
1997 RICHARD HOLBROOKE - Ambassador & Assistant Secretary of State
1998 REV. ARCHBISHOP DESMOND M. TUTU - South African Peace Leader
1999 KING HUSSEIN BIN TALAL - King of Jordan
2004 SHIRIN EBADI - Iranian Human Rights Lawyer
2005 CLIFF DOCHTERMAN & ROTARY INTL CENTERS FOR STUDIES IN PEACE & CONFLICT RESOLUTION. - Peace programs at six major universities
2006 DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS - Humanitarian work around the world
2007 THE VERY REV. DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. - Civil rights & social justice leader
2008 NELSON MANDELA - State President of South Africa
-2009 AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL - Defenders of human rights
-2011 DAW AUNG SAN SUU KYI - Human rights in Myanmar
-2013 HIS HOLINESS THE DALAI LAMA - Worldwide spiritual growth
2014 JUDY HEUMANN & ED ROBERTS - Rights for the disabled worldwide
2015 GEORGE JOHN MITCHELL, JR. - Peace in Northern Ireland
Before 1965 - Rotary Friendship Garden, Evanston, Illinois (USA).


May 9, 1966 - Statue of Peace ("New Leaves"), Hiroshima (Japan). By sculptor Katsuzo Entsuba. Built by Hiroshima South District Rotary Club. Inscribed with poem by Dr. Hideki Yukawa (first Nobel laureate from Japan): "O god of evil, do not come this way again. This place is reserved for those who pray for peace."


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1993 - Peace Monument, Bona Espero / Good Hope, Alto Paraiso de Goias (Brazil). 155 miles north of Brasilia. Inscribed Ke La Paco Regu La Mondon / May Peace Prevail on Earth (as on all Peace Poles). "Our Peace Monument which I built together with the children here in [Bona Espero] a large school-farm in Brazil in 1993 on invitation of Esperanto Peacemakers in Hiroshima. We are volunteers since 1974 in an Educational Esperanto Institution, where we protect & teach victimized children. We are all volunteers from different countries but without any communication problem, as we all, inclusive the children, use Esperanto. My wife Ursula (german) and me (italian) are also Rotarians, & at this moment I am the secretary of the Esperanto Rotarian Fellowship [Rotaria Amikaro De Esperanto (RADE)], present in all yearly R.I. Conventions. Rotarians from all over the world visit us for periods of volunteering in a wounderful wave of solidarity. We admire your very important challenge to do your part for a peaceful world! Congratulations! At your disposal for any future necessary information, Rotariamente, Giuseppe Grattapaglia" [by email 25Mar12]. Left photo courtesy of Giuseppe Grattapaglia.

1997 - Plaza of Peace & Friendship, Rotary Peace Park, Calle Iturbide, Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco (Mexico). Park, peace pole & plaque next to the main cathedral & city hall [El Palacio Municipal], according to Entry #1385 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001). Not found when area combed in December 2006. Image scanned from Bennett.

Date? - Rotary Mural, Culiacan, Sinaloa (Mexico). Depicts the fight against polio. Includes dove of peace & handshake of friendship.
1998 - International Peace Plaza, Rotary Park, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (Canada).


Date? - Monumento Rotario a la Paz, Matamoros (Mexico). Two hands with their thumbs forming a dove of peace.

Date? - Monumento Rotario a la Paz (Pau), Manresa (Spain). "Como Administradores de las Fiestas de la Luz de Manresa, el R.C Manresa-Bages ha inaugurado un Monumento a la Paz (Pau) en una de las entradas a la ciudad de Manresa y hará donación a la Ciudad de este Monumento Rotario que simboliza el espiritud de paz de toda la ciudad."
Date? - Rotary Peace Monument, where? (Spain).


November 11, 2001 - Ring of Peace, First United Methodist Church, Beech & 2nd Streets, Casper, Wyoming (USA). By Chris Navarro. "You may remember that Matthew Shepherd [1976-1998], a young gay man, was murdered by homophobes in Laramie, Wyoming, [the night of October 6-7,1998]. There's nothing in Laramie to commemorate him, but if you visit the website his parents created, they recommend you see a statue called the Ring of Peace in Casper, that's dedicated first to Matthew, and also to the victims of the Columbine shootings [and 9/11]... a nice idea, but it's just sad how run down and crappy it looks. It was possible for me to take a nice picture of it, but only if I was very careful to crop out almost all the surroundings."

2003 - Rotary International Peace Monument, Charles J. Clark Square, Windsor, Ontario (Canada). Erected by Rotary Club of Windsor-Roseland. Photo shows portion of the monument with Caesars Windsor (casino) in the immediate background and the Renaissance Center in Detroit, Michigan (USA), in the distance.

July 17, 2004 - Peace Pole, White Pines Park, Arnold, Calaveras County, California (USA). Replaces peace pole cut down in July 2003.

Date? - Rotary Peace Park, Vegreville, Alberta (Canada). Near the Ukrainian pysanka (giant Easter egg).
Date? - Rotary Peace Park, Downtown on Yukon River, Whitehorse, Yukon Territory (Canada).


2004 - Rotary Peace Park, Parksville, British Columbia (Canada).
2005. - Rotary International Peace Park, RIM Park, Waterloo, Ontario (Canada).

June 19, 2005 - Japanese Lantern, "Comely Bank," Ridge Historic District, Chicago, Illinois (USA). From International Friendship Garden of Rotary founder Paul P. Harris [1868-1947]. Reinstalled by Paul & Jean Harris Home Foundation (PJHHF) and dedicated by businessman Yoshio Gotoh and a Japanese delegation.


October 9, 2005 - "Japanese Belfry & Friendship Bell, Hulsey Woods, Birgingham Botanical Gardens (BBG), 2612 Lane Park Road, Birmingham, Alabama (USA). "A [Rotary] Centennial Twin Club project between the Rotary Club of Shades Valley, Alabama, [and] the Rotary Club of Osaka Central Japan. The objective of the project is to promote world peace, friendship & understanding through the exposure to an authentic Japanese bell housed in a traditional style Japanese belfry. The Rotary Club of Osaka Central donated the bell & designed the architectural plans for the belfry."


September 21, 2007 - Wellington Rotary Peace Park, Wellington, Florida (USA).


September 2010 - Statue of Sir Nicholas Winton, Railway Station, Maidenhead (England). "The 101-year-old Rotarian joined members of his club at the unveiling of a life-size statue in his honor. The bronze work by Maidenhead sculptor Lydia Karpinska shows Sir Nicholas sitting on a bench reading a book. The book depicts images of nearly 700 children - most of them Jewish – who he helped to flee from Prague (Czechoslovakia) to Britain on eight kindertransport trains between 13 March & 2 August 1939, ahead of the Nazi invasion. A ninth train with 250 children was due to depart on the day war was declared, 3 September 1939. None of those children survived."

Future - US/Mexico International Park Project, (USA & Mexico). Under discussion since 1935. Supported by Rotary International. Would join Big Bend National Park in the US with Maderas del Carmen and Cañon de Santa Elena protected areas in Mexico. Over 400 Rotarians from both countries helped to dedicate the project and encourage its completion when Past RI President Jim Lacy presided over a ceremony on Nov. 8, 1998, at Chamizal National Memorial.

Peace Monument Project of
Rotary Club of Wagga Wagga, NSW (Australia):

From website of the Rotary Club of Wagga Wagga, New South Wales (Austraia): "The concept of Rotary District D9700 Community Peace Cities/Towns was conceived in Wagga Wagga, NSW, Australia, by Rotarian Tony Quinlivan. The city became the first Peace Community on 23 February 1993 with the Community Peace Monument being unveiled by PRIP Royce Abbey and local Mayor Pat Brassil. Since then, 58 Peace Communities have been proclaimed in 17 countries around the globe."

From a May 1999 newsletter: "On February 23, 1993, the first peace monument was unveiled by Past World President Royce Abbey and the then Mayor Pat Brassil declared the City of Wagga Wagga the first Rotary Peace City in the world. There now are more than 20 peace counties, cities and towns in different countries in the world. Manila, in the Philippines, was the second Rotary Peace City to be declared on June 22, 1994, and the first outside Australia. Soon to follow were Port Washington, Wisconsin, U.S.A.; KBE and Ibaraki, Japan; East London, South Africa; Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.A.; Hiroshima, Japan; Cannes, France; the County and City of Los Angeles and the City of Montebello, California, U.S.A; Milledgeville and Baldwin County, Georgia, U.S.A; Windhoek, Namibia, Africa; Gifu City, Japan; Zamboanga City, Philippines; Parksville, British Columbia, Canada; Coolamon, N.S.W., Cities of Makati and Davao, Philippines, and Lockhart, N.S.W. Cities of Makati, Philippines, and Lockhart, N.S.W., were declared Rotary Peace Cities on February 23, 1999, and Davao City in the Philippines on February 26, 1999. The first Rotary Peace City Conference was held at East Los Angeles in June, 1996, organised and chaired by Past President Paul Warner of the Rotary Club of the East Los Angeles. Representatives came from Rotary Peace Cities around the world."

February 23, 1993 - Ivan Jack Drive, Wagga Wagga, New South Wales (Australia).
Date? - Quezon Memorial Circle, Quezon City (Philippines).
July 18, 1996 - Baldwin County Courthouse, Milledgeville, Georgia (USA).
1996 - East Los Angeles Community College, East Los Angeles, California (USA).
1998 - Valadolid (Spain).
Date? - American Memorial Park Saipan, (Northern Mariana Islands).
December 12, 2003 - Chandigahr, Punjab (India).

February 23, 2006 - Queen Sirikit Park, Pratumnak Hill, Pattaya (Thailand).


Date? - Peace City Monument, City Hall, Surigao (Philippines). "A symbol that Surigao is one of the peaceful city and one of the most livable city in the Philippines." From a letter by PP Geoffrey B.W.Little JP.PHF, RC North Sydney Sunrise D9680, Dean of the Ambassadorial Chair, Rotary District Peace Communities Programme (RDPCP), 19 Sep 2007: "Dear CP Don, You might be aware there is a wonderful Rotary Peace City Monument in front of City Hall in Surigao, just up the road from you. They declared along with Butuan a number of years back. Congratulations on your efforts and I hope to come and visit you in my capacity as the Dean of the Ambassadorial Chair of the Rotary Peace City Project aka the Rotary District Peace Communities Programme..."


May 31, 2014 - Rotary Peace Monument, Jubilee Library, Philipsburg, Sint Maarten (Netherlands Antilles). Inscribed "The Rotary Peace Monument was created by the Rotary Clubs on St. Maarten / Saint-Martin...as a commitment to promote world peace, empower our citizens to overcome violence and injustice, and bring peace, dignity and prosperity to our community." Information courtesy of Angela Letetia Gordon, President 2013-2014, Rotary Club of St. Martin Sunrise.

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