History of Toastmasters International

The first club was formed in October, 1924 when a group of men assembled by founder Dr. Ralph C. Smedley met in Santa Ana, California to form a club "to afford practice and training in the art of public speaking and presiding over meetings and to promote sociability and good fellowship among its members".

This was the beginning of Toastmasters.

A year later a second club was started in Anaheim, California followed by a third in Los Angeles. By 1930 it was apparent that a federation was necessary to coordinate activities of the clubs and to provide standard methods. In 1932 the organization became a non-profit corporation under the laws of the state of California. Growth was slow during the early years, but the number of clubs increased steadily. The first formal communication program "Basic Training" was introduced in 1942. As the years passed, the communication and the leadership program has been expanded and updated several times to keep it in line with current member requirements. Membership in Toastmasters International increased rapidly after the end of World War II, and in 1946 the number of Toastmasters clubs had approached 1,500. Continued growth has resulted in over 8,000 clubs throughout the world today.