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{{Short description|United States service club}}{{Infobox organization
| name                     = Ruritan
| image                    = Ruritan National logo.jpg
| image_size               =
| alt                      = Logo for Ruritan National, Inc.
| caption                  =
| abbreviation             =
| formation                = {{start date and age|1928|04|16}}
| full_name                = Ruritan National Inc.
| founders                 = Tom Downing and Jack Gwaltney
| founding_location        = [[Holland, Virginia]], US
| type                     = <!-- e.g. [[Governmental organization]], [[Non-governmental organization|NGO]], etc -->
| status                   = <!-- Organization's legal status and/or description (company, charity, foundation, etc) -->
| focus                    = Community service
| headquarters             = 5451 Lyons Road
| location_city            = [[Dublin, Virginia]]
| location_country         = United States
| region                   =
| services                 =
| membership               =
| membership_year          =
| leader_title             = Executive Director
| leader_name              = Sarah Kelly<ref name=contact/>
| leader_title2            =
| leader_name2             =
| leader_title3            =
| leader_name3             =
| leader_title4            =
| leader_name4             =
| board_of_directors       =
| key_people               =
| publication              = ''Ruritan Magazine''
| subsidiaries             =
| website                  = {{url|ruritan.org}}
}}
'''Ruritan National''' is a [[service club]] located in small towns and [[rural area]]s in the [[United States]]. It aims to achieve "Fellowship, Goodwill and Community Service". The local clubs are autonomous from the national organization. Many Ruritan clubs sponsor local clubs or chapters of [[4-H]], the [[National FFA Organization]], or a [[Boy Scouts of America]] troop.
== History ==
The first Ruritan Club, the Holland Ruritan Club, was founded on April 16, 1928 at the Hollland Hotel in [[Holland, Virginia]], now part of [[Suffolk, Virginia]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last=Tyler Jr. |first=Lyon G. |date=1958-04-14 |title=Ruritan National Designed for Small Rural Community |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/richmond-times-dispatch-ruritan-national/152503416/ |access-date=2024-08-02 |work=Richmond Times-Dispatch |pages=3 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite news |date=1931-01-11 |title=Offcial Ruritan Insignia Designed |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-virginian-pilot-offcial-ruritan-insi/152502471/ |access-date=2024-08-02 |work=The Virginian-Pilot |location=Norfolk, Virginia |pages=46 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite news |date=1958-05-26 |title=Monument is Dedicated by Ruritan National |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/richmond-times-dispatch-monument-is-dedi/152505306/ |access-date=2024-08-02 |work=Richmond Times-Dispatch |pages=4 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> Its founders, Thomas V. Downing and Jack Gwaltney, wanted to established a civic organization for rural communities.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":4" /><ref name=":6">{{Cite web |title=About Ruritan |url=http://www.ruritan.org/aboutus.php |access-date=2024-08-02 |website=Ruritan}}</ref> Its purpose was "to make the rural community a better place in which to live by bringing together farmers and business and professional men in a community in the interest of community service, fellowship, and goodwill."<ref name=":3">{{Cite news |date=1965-01-11 |title=Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker to Address 35th Ruritan National Convention in Pa. |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/suffolk-news-herald-capt-eddie-rickenba/152504643/ |access-date=2024-08-02 |work=Suffolk News-Herald |pages=2 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>
Ruritan was chartered on May 21, 1928; this is recognized by the group as its founding date.<ref name=":4" /><ref name="about" /> Along with Downing and Gwaltney, some of the charter members were W. E Beale, L. H. Gardner, J. D. Rawles, Hugh V. White, and H. L. Worrell Sr.<ref name=":4" />
Almost immediately, the club added chapters in nearby counties.<ref name=":2" /> It was known as the '''National Order of Ruritans''' by 1930.<ref name=":0" /> Dr. J. M. Bland of [[Boykins, Virginia]] was its first national president.<ref name=":4" /> It held its first annual convention on January 15, 1932, in [[Suffolk, Virginia]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |date=1932-01-16 |title=Ruritan Clubs Elect |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-roanoke-times-ruritan-clubs-elect/152502818/ |access-date=2024-08-02 |work=The Roanoke Times |pages=14 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> Ten clubs and 200 delegates attended the convention.<ref name=":1" /> In 1935, the club spread outside of Virginia with the founding of a chapter in [[Sunbury, North Carolina]].<ref name=":4" />
On May 25, 1958, a nine-foot-tall granite monument was dedicated in Holland, Virginia to commemorate the founding of Ruritan National.<ref name=":4" /> By 1958, Ruritan National had more than 700 clubs in seventeen states, with more than 24,000 members who were a mixture of farmers and businessmen.<ref name=":2" /> Its diverse areas of service were reflected by its standing committees of the era:<ref name=":2" />
* Welfare, Health, and Sanitation
* Recreation and Community Goodwill
* Agriculture and Farm Income
* Rural Church
* Rural Utilties
* Public Highways, Streets, and Buildings
* Education
* Industry and Business Methods
* Home and Home Beautification
* Conservation and Forestry
* Youth
* Safety
On January 17, 1965, the Ruritan held its 35th national convention in [[Philadelphia]] with [[List of World War I aces credited with 20 or more victories|World War I ace]] [[Eddie Rickenbacker]] as the keynote speaker.<ref name=":3" /> That year, it was the sixth largest civic club in the United States with more than 1,000 clubs in nineteen states.<ref name=":3" />
In 2024, Ruritan National has over 23,000 members in more than 900 local clubs.<ref name=":6" /> Its national headquarters is located in Dublin, Virginia.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Contact Us |url=http://www.ruritan.org/contactus.php |access-date=2024-08-02 |website=Ruritan National, Inc.}}</ref> Its publication is the ''Ruritan Magazine''.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ruritan Magazine |url=http://www.ruritan.org/dsp_lib_bycat0.php?lib_cat_id=8 |access-date=2024-08-02 |website=Ruritan National, Inc.}}</ref>
== Symbols ==
The club's name was suggested by Daisy Nurney, a reporter for ''[[The Virginian-Pilot]]''.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":6" /> The name Ruritan was created from the Latin words for country (''run'') and small town (''tan'').<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":6" /> Its motto is "Fellowship, Community Service, and Goodwill".<ref name=":2" />
In 1930, the club selected its official insignia, a round gold pin with the words Ruritan and National in black, surrounding a black circle with the words ''Rus'' and ''Urbs'' that encircle the letter "R" in gold.<ref name=":0" />
== Activities ==
Ruritan Clubs meet monthly.<ref name=":2" /> Unlike most community service organizations, Ruritan rarely has national programs, instead setting priorities based on the needs of its local communities.<ref name=":6" /> Many clubs provide and supervise community recreational centers, sponsor Little League and other athletic programs, build community parks and sports pitches, sponsor anti-litter campaigns, help the sick and needy, and provide a wide range of other activities to help improve their communities.<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":5">{{Cite news |last=Grizzard |first=Taylor L. |date=1958-04-28 |title=Chesterfield Ruritan Club Was First of Seven in Country |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/richmond-times-dispatch-chesterfield-rur/152508517/ |access-date=2024-08-02 |work=Richmond Times-Dispatch |pages=3 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> Many Ruritan clubs sponsor local clubs or chapters of [[4-H]], the [[National FFA Organization]], or a troop of the [[Boy Scouts of America]] or [[Girl Scouts of the USA]].<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":5" />
== Organization ==
The Ruritan organization is made up of Ruritan Clubs. Club officers consist of a president, vice-president, secretary, treasurer, immediate past president, and 1st-, 2nd- and 3rd-year directors.<ref name=":7">{{Cite book |url=http://www.ruritan.org/library/92.pdf |title=Ruritan Member Handbook |publisher=Ruritan National |location=Dublin, Virginia |pages=4 and 10}}</ref> Clubs are organized into zones, overseen by a zone governor, and zones are organized into districts.<ref name=":7" />
== Notable members ==
Following is a list of some notable Ruritans.
* [[E. Almer Ames Jr.]], [[Virginia Senate]]
* [[Howard P. Anderson]], [[Virginia Senate]] and [[Virginia House of Delegates]]
* [[John B. Boatwright]], [[Virginia House of Delegates]]
* [[Andrew J. Boyle]], [[United States Army]] [[Lieutenant general (United States)|lieutenant general]]
* [[Earle M. Brown]], [[Virginia House of Delegates]]
* [[Stuart B. Carter]], [[Virginia Senate]] and [[Virginia House of Delegates]]
* [[Myron Dossett]], [[Kentucky House of Representatives]]
* [[Mills Godwin]], [[Governor of Virginia]], [[Lieutenant Governor of Virginia]], [[Virginia Senate]] and [[Virginia House of Delegates]]<ref>{{Cite news |date=1958-05-26 |title=Ruritan Praises Small Towns |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-richmond-news-leader-ruritan-praises/152508118/ |access-date=2024-08-02 |work=The Richmond News Leader |pages=4 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>
* [[Elmon T. Gray]], [[Senate of Virginia]] and [[lumberman]]
* [[Garland Gray]], [[Virginia Senate]]
* [[Major M. Hillard]], [[Virginia Senate]], [[Virginia House of Delegates]], and [[Circuit court|Circuit Court]] judge
* [[Edd Houck]], [[Senate of Virginia]]
* [[Jimmy Matlock]], [[Tennessee House of Representatives]]
* [[Gerald McCormick]], [[Tennessee House of Representatives]]
* [[Tony P. Moore]], [[North Carolina General Assembly]]
* [[Blake T. Newton]], [[Senate of Virginia]]
* [[Doug Overbey]], [[United States Attorney]] for the [[United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee|Eastern District of Tennessee]], [[Tennessee House of Representatives]], and faculty of [[University of Tennessee College of Law]]
* [[Harold H. Purcell]], [[Virginia Senate]], [[Virginia House of Delegates]], and [[Circuit court|Circuit Court]] judge
* [[Harold B. Singleton]], [[Virginia House of Delegates]] and [[Circuit court|Circuit Court]] judge
* [[Robert Whitehead (Virginia politician)|Robert Whitehead]], [[Virginia House of Delegates]]
* [[J. J. Williams Jr.|J. J. Williams Jr]]., [[Virginia House of Delegates]] and member of the [[Federal Home Loan Bank Board]]
== References ==
{{reflist|refs=
<ref name=about>{{cite web |title=About Ruritan |website=Ruritan National, Inc. |url=http://www.ruritan.org/aboutus.php |access-date=5 January 2018 }}</ref>
<ref name=contact>{{cite web |title=Contact Us |website=Ruritan National, Inc. |url=http://www.ruritan.org/contactus.php |access-date=5 January 2018 }}</ref>
}}
== External links ==
* {{official website|http://www.ruritan.org}}
* [http://www.ruritan.org/svc_area0.php State Listing of Ruritan Clubs]
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:1928 establishments in Virginia]]
[[Category:Service organizations based in the United States]]
[[Category:Rural society in the United States]]
[[Category:Organizations established in 1928]]