History Bulletin:

On the above date 15 men gathered in the office of Judge Wm. J. Boykin in the Stocks Building and accepted the invitation of Kiwanis International to organize the third Kiwanis Club in Alabama, the other two being Birmingham and Mobile. It was quite an honor for Gadsden to have been chosen the city in which a Kiwanis Club was to be organized. On the editorial page of the Gadsden Evening Journal, the people of Gadsden were congratulated for having received this honor. On Wednesday, July 2, 1919 the first regular meeting of this group was held at the Printup Hotel and they had invited all prospective members to be present. The meeting was held at nine o.clock in the evening and several members of the Birmingham Club were present as well as a large group of local men who were interested in learning more about the function of a Kiwanis Club. The next meeting was held on Wednesday, July 14th, 1919 at which time the required 50 members had been approved and that is the recorded date in the International records that the Kiwanis Club of Gadsden, AL was completed.

Regular meetings were held on each Wednesday and on December 10th, 1919; the Gadsden Club received its Charter from Kiwanis International. This was a gala affair, attended by all the City Fathers, Club members, guests and their wives. .Andy. Arrant presented the Charter to the Club.s first President, Wm. J. Boykin and T. Jeff Bailey welcomed the new club into Kiwanis International and wished it much happiness and success in the years to come.

The club did not continue holding its regular meeting at the Printup Hotel for long, because the ladies of the local churches immediately saw the chance to serve the Kiwanis Club and pick up a few dollars for their church work. The Club then voted to meet alternately weekly with the Methodist and Presbyterian ladies organizations. In doing this they chalked up one of their first projects that of giving aid to local organizations. The first real project that was taken on by the Club was that of helping to organize Boy Scout Troops in Etowah County. The Boy Scout movement was just at this time getting started in this County. From that time on the Kiwanis Club has never stopped working with the Scouts and many other worthwhile projects.

Gadsden boasted a population of 17,000 people, an occasional steamboat made a trip to our city from Rome, GA. Electric street cars were the main mode of travel from the Coosa River to the Southern Railroad.s passenger station in Attalla, and the old Etowah County Courthouse stood on the corner of 4th and Broad Streets. A few horse and buggy carriages were in use and a public watering trough for the animals was located in front of the Courthouse. Since those days, Gadsden has shown tremendous growth in all lines of progress and the Kiwanis Club of Gadsden likes to believe that it has contributed its share of the projects that have brought about the finer things that we now enjoy in our community. In the late twenties the Reich Hotel was built and the Club began meeting in its beautiful ball room.

The Reich Hotel continued to serve as the meeting place for the Kiwanis Club until 1978 when the hotel was converted into an apartment complex. The Kiwanis Club met at the Civic Center at the Gadsden Mall until February 1, 1990. At that time we moved to the Center for Cultural Arts, our present meeting place.


HISTORY OF KIWANIS CLUB OF GADSDEN PANCAKE DAY

Kiwanis Pancake Day was conceived at a Board of Directors meeting in November 1957 as a direct result of a magic show sponsored by the Club, which lost money instead of being a fundraiser.

In the early days of Pancake Day, we were able to have all materials donated in return for the advertising benefits. The first one was held on February 28, 1958 at 514 Broad Street. Total receipts for the day were $ 916. Tickets were $1.00 for adults and $.50 for children.

Over the years, the event was held in various downtown buildings and continued to grow until it was necessary to move to Gadsden Convention Hall where it is held on an annual basis, usually on the third Saturday in February.

We have served as many as 10,000 people in one day. Total receipts for the 45 years (through September 30, 2002) is $ 1,105,863

Kiwanis Pancake money was responsible for building The Kiwanis Pavilion and buying the train for Noccalula Falls Park. Pancake Day funds were also used to help co.sponsor "The Bridge" a highly successful drug abuse program. Other uses for funds include support of: Eagle Rock Ranch, The Gadsden Cultural Arts Foundation, Etowah Youth Symphony Orchestra, The Salvation Army, Boys and Girls Clubs of Etowah County, Gadsden Etowah.County YMCA Youth Programs, Greater Alabama Council Boy Scouts of America, American Red Cross, United Way of Etowah County, Reading is Fundamental Program, Junior Achievement, The Alabama Child Caring Foundation (health insurance of area children), Young Life, Gadsden - Etowah County Chamber of Commerce Extra Mile Award Program, area Little League Baseball Teams, college scholarships for area youth, sponsor annual 4.H Club awards program, annual Christmas shopping for area youths, provide Tylenol drops and elixir to the Etowah County Health Department, The Kiwanis International Foundation, Alabama District Kiwanis Foundation, plus many other worthwhile charities and projects.

In addition to Pancake Day, the Kiwanis Club of Gadsden has a year-round fundraiser; Kiwanis gumball machines located throughout Etowah County and selected Pepsi vending machines designated for Kiwanis Youth programs.

Pancake Day has become a civic social event for our community and a total involvement day for all our Members, Builders Club, Key Club and Circle K Members. Without the help of our Middle School, High School and College students, a feat of this magnitude would be almost impossible. This involvement has been good for our Club and rewarding for our community.

Thanks for your support of the Kiwanis Club of Gadsden and our annual Kiwanis Pancake Day fundraiser. The Club would also like to thank the area businesses that have helped sponsor Pancake Day by their generous donations and their purchase of Pancake Day Banners, Brochure Sponsorships and Place Mat Ads.