The history of the Chester Rotary Club goes back to the Saybrook Rotary Club which was the Hub Club serving the Towns of Westbrook, Saybrook, Essex, Deep River, and Chester. Each of these towns had a few members in the Saybrook Club, which met at the Pease House in Old Saybrook.

The Chester members, twenty-five years ago, were Stuart Joslyn (who served as President in 1945-46), Horace Bush (President in 1947-48), Harry Archambault and Stan Warner.

The Saybrook Club cleared the lines of communication between the leaders of the various towns and, contrary to Rotary's teaching, it resisted the development of the individual clubs in each town. Gradually, however, this feeling changed. Deep River and Essex formed individual clubs and they were soon followed by Chester.

It was on the Island of Sanibel, Florida, off the coast of Ft. Myers Beach, in January 1956 that Dave Lieberman and Robbie Collomore urged Harry Archambault to organize a Rotary Club in Chester. By the fall of 1956, Harry formed a committee with Stu, Bud and Stan to work up a list of prospective members. Meetings were held at the Cove Road Inn in November and it was agreed that a Rotary Club would be formed if the group were still together by January 1, 1957. And so it was that the group then became a provisional Rotary Club and shortly thereafter, it received its charter from Rotary International as a member club in District 798.

Charter night was held at the Ivoryton Hotel on April 10, 1957. There were about 400 people in attendance. Louis Thomas, who was serving as District Governor, presented the charter. Ted Wellman, who was president of the Saybrook Rotary Club, the sponsoring club, served as Master of Ceremonies and later became a member of the Chester Club.

Rotary Clubs are deeply involved in civic activities and from its inception Chester Rotarians have taken an active part in community service, International Service, Vocational Service as well as its own Club Service. All of these services have been reflected in the broad and varied list of speakers at rotary meetings: Business men,educators, lawyers, doctors, clergymen, members of the Armed Forces, holders of public office, writers, artists, craftsmen and foreign students. These speakers, both men and women, have brought to the meetings a sense of awareness and challenge of the problems, movements and forces affecting our current society, thereby enriching each Rotarian with a broader vision of community, national and international affairs.

From its earliest years, the Club has been a staunch supporter of various summer camperships for teenagers and nearly $4,000 has been contributed to these programs. An almost equal amount has been contributed to the Valley Y.M.C.A. including $1,350 for the building fund and $500 in 1975 for the flag pole in Westbrook.

Rotary has also been active in local projects designed to improve the town. The Club sponsored street poles and signs in the early 1960's. Some years later it undertook some research on old houses and supplied signs with names and dates. In 1981 individual rotarians volunteered their services in the painting of the three Chester flagpoles.

The Chester Rotary Club has been a vibrant organization which has done much for our community and this in turn has enriched our members for in the words of St. Francis "It is in giving that we receive". As our first President, Harry Archambault, put it at the tenth anniversary party in 1968