History

It is thought the idea for a Probus Club evolved from a meeting of the Vocational Services Committee of the Caterham Rotary club in July 1965 (Caterham is approx.18 miles South of London).

The committee made proposals and called a public meeting in February 1966. The proposals encompassed the idea of a monthly luncheon club to be chaired by the Rotary Club president and independent from the Rotary Club. The name Probus was chosen from a list of ideas as it had a root from Probity (uprightness, integrity, honesty) as well as having the connotation of being derived from a combination of Professional and Business.

The inaugural luncheon meeting of the first Probus Club anywhere in the world was held on Wednesday 2nd March, at the Valley Hotel, Caterham.The Probus idea caught on very quickly and soon Caterham Probus had a membership of over 100. Providing catering and activities for over 100 members created challenges so a limit to the membership was introduced.

News of the success of Caterham Probus Club spread quickly. Members of both the Rotary and Probus clubs were in in demand to speak at other Rotary clubs. New clubs began to spring up around the country.

Probus reached Derby in early 1976 when the Derby Rotary club invited a number of men to attend a meeting on 15th April at the Albion Restaurant to discuss the formation of a Probus Club in Derby. At this meeting there was unanimous approval for the idea and officers elected with authorisation to prepare draft Rules and Proposals.

Immediately following that meeting Louis McDonald and elected officers gathered for their first Derby Probus meeting on 15th April 1976 to start determining the Club Format, authorising a Speakers Officer, opening a Bank Account at the National Westminster Bank, Irongate, and producing the Club Rules. Also, they agreed the club should meet at 10:00am on Monday 3rd May 1976 for the club rules to be submitted.

Membership applications must have been flooding in because, on the 9thJune,1977 there was a committee meeting at which the formation of a second Probus Club in Derby was discussed. In view of this it was agreed to maintain the membership at 51 and propose to members that the name of the club be changed to “The Derby Probus Club”. This was duly ratified.

In 1979, there is comment that Derby City Probus Club had recently been formed and there had been confusion in the press regarding the two clubs.