Page 2 - Eloquence 2017

Ralph C. Smedley
mimeographed and bound in paper covers. On October
25, 1928, Ralph obtained copyrights on his publications
(February 22, 1878 – Septem- and copyrighted the name Toastmasters Club all of which
ber 11, 1965) was the founder he later assigned to Toastmasters International.
of Toastmasters International,
an international speaking or- The new association needed a name and because of one
ganization with more than club in British Columbia, Canada, they chose to call it
345,000 members in 142 coun- Toastmasters International. There were about 30 clubs
tries and more than 15,900 in- when the association was formed in 1930, and in 1932
dividual clubs. Toastmasters International was incorporated as a Califor-
nia Non-profit corporation.
Smedley was born in Waverly,
Illinois, a city twenty miles
southwest of Springfield. He In addition to his job as Secretary of the YMCA, Smedley
remained in Illinois most of his was the Secretary and Bulletin Editor of the Santa
youth. After high school, he Ana Rotary Club and undertook the dual role of Editor
taught schools in the country- and Secretary of the new Toastmasters International. In
side before enrolling at Illinois Wesleyan Universi- 1936, he published his first article to give special recogni-
ty at Bloomington, Illinois. After his graduation in 1903, tion to General Henry Martyn Robert, the author
he started working at the local YMCA. of Robert's Rules of Order. His interest in General Robert
continued for the rest of his life and culminated in the
book The Great Peacemaker by Ralph C. Smedley pub-
As Educational Director of the "Y" he discovered there lished in 1955.
was a need for training in speech. He began to design a
club and struggled for a name. The General Secretary of He resigned as YMCA Secretary in 1941 to devote more
the "Y", George Sutton, suggested calling it a Toastmas- time to Toastmasters International. Through the war
ters club. The boys liked the name and the club was a years he operated the organization out of a small office.
success. At each club meeting, there was a rotation of When the war ended, a new Secretary, Ted Blanding,
duties with members taking turns at presiding and speak- replaced Smedley, who remained active as Educational
ing. Short speeches were evaluated by Ralph and the Director for the rest of his life and a permanent member
other older men, and the boys were invited to join in the of the Board of Directors. In 1950, Smedley wrote Beyond
evaluation to learn more. The club performed its intended Basic Training. At the Toastmasters International Con-
purpose as leadership and speech improved in the other vention at Atlanta, Georgia, August 18–20, 1960, Ralph
educational groups with which these young men were C. Smedley showed the model of the new Toastmasters
associated. International Headquarters, 2200 North Grand, Santa
Ana, California, (which was so occupied until June 1990)
The club only lasted a year after Ralph Smedley moved to the District 19 delegation.
to the YMCA at Rock Island, Illinois as General Secretary
in 1910. He organized a Toastmasters Club at the Rock In 1950, Illinois Wesleyan University recognized Smed-
Island "Y" which soon reached a membership of 75. ley's service to mankind by conferring the honorary de-
When Ralph Smedley left the Rock Island "Y", the Toast- gree of L.H.D. -- Litter arum Humaniorum or Doctor of
masters Club there also soon perished. Humane Letters. Santa Ana named a junior high
After he spent over two years with an architect working on school after him in 1955.
YMCA architecture he accepted the post of YMCA Secre-
tary at San Jose, California in September 1919, and soon
had a Toastmasters Club flourishing at his new YMCA. In 1956, Toastmasters itself gave Smedley the title of
Again the club lasted only a short time after he moved honorary president and lifetime board member. The San-
to Santa Ana, California in 1922. ta Ana Toastmasters Club renamed itself the Smedley
Number One Club in honor of its founder. A photograph
of Ralph Smedley and the original club charter are placed
A club was immediately organized and still exists as Club in an empty chair near the lectern to represent his contin-
No. 1 of Toastmasters International. He introduced the uing inspiration. This started at Club Number One and
Toastmasters Club idea and the first meeting was held at several other clubs around the world also chose to honor
the YMCA Building on October 22, 1924. Until then, the Ralph Smedley in this way.
Toastmasters Club was an educational arm of the YMCA.
In the autumn of 1925, J. Clark Chamberlain of Anaheim, In the summer of 1964, Smedley's health began to de-
California visited the Toastmasters Club and the following cline. He was confined to a medical facility and died on
winter, Ralph Smedley helped a group in Anaheim to form September 11, 1965.
a Toastmasters Club. It is still labeled as Club Number 2
in Toastmasters International. The Toastmasters Club
idea spread to Los Angeles, Long Beach, and other
southern California cities. Representatives of these clubs
met and organized an association.

In order to save the time consumed in replying too many
letters and inquiries, Ralph prepared a "Manual of Instruc-
tions" and "Ten Lessons In Public Speaking" which he

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