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 On May 5th 2006 RGHF Chairman (2006)
Cal Thomson met up
with IPP of ROTARY/One Rob Knueppfer in East Lothian.
Rob
was across in Scotland playing golf at some of Scotland’s finest
golf courses and we met up at East Lothian’s most famous course,
Muirfield – home of many a British Open Golf Championship. We
then progressed to visit Edinburgh - Jean Harris' grave, her
birthplace in Cumberland St and of course, Comely Bank.
Rob at
Newington Cemetery
Rob
who had the honour to be ROTARY/One’s President in the
centennial year of 2004-05 is also Chairman of the Trustees of
the Paul and Jean Harris Home Foundation.
I am grateful to Rob for his powerpoint presentation from the
foundation, his club banner and a lovely box of mint chocolates
from the famous Marshall Fields store who I am told was an
eminent Scottish immigrant to Chicago.
Ironically enough, it was in Marshall Fields store where Jan
Harris' two brother worked after first emigrating to Alberta,
Canada. It was while working in Marshall Fields store that they
summoned Jean and the rest of the family to come to Chicago.
One interesting point is that though both the foundation and our
information as supplied by Edinburgh Rotary Club point out that
81 Comely Bank Avenue was Jean's childhood home, James Walsh's
biography of Paul Harris – The First Rotarian - tells us that it
was number 41. I would prefer to accept number 81as the correct
number as Walsh also gets the street of her birth wrong - he
claims (in his book) it is Cumbernauld Street (no such street)
when it is in actual fact, Cumberland Street. Walsh himself
admits in his list of sources that he received the Jean Harris
research second-hand.
 Calum and
Rob at 6 Cumberland Street
I mentioned to Rob, the idea of putting a plaque outside 81
Comely Bank Avenue as there is one at Cumberland Street – placed
there a few years back by the Rotary Club of St. Louis.
 Rob at
Comely Bank Avenue
Recognizing the Comely Bank address is perhaps of greater
significance to Rotary's history in my view. RGHF senior
historian Cal Thomson,
14 July 2006
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