The Round Table Club of Eugene, Oregon was founded on November 20, 1912 for "the social and intellectual enjoyment of its members." Implicitly, the Club was also intended to serve as a town-gown organization, providing a forum in which citizens and members of the University of Oregon could share friendship and the opportunity for intellectual growth.  

 

The Club Constitution limits the number of members to encourage the best forum for conversation.

 

The Club meets eight times a year for a social hour, a dinner, and a presentation prepared by one of the members. Over the years, the presentations have ranged from Eric Allen's speech on the history of newspapers in 1913 to Wayne Morse's analysis of the Vietnam War in the 1960s and Martha Bayless' 2009 discussion of "What's the Difference Between a Duck?"
 

When the Club began in 1912 the enrollment of the University of Oregon was a mere 862, the faculty numbered 45, and the population of Eugene was 12,000. In the years that have passed, Eugene and the University have grown and changed in countless ways. But the Round Table has been remarkably stable, preserving the town-gown character and pursuing the same intellectual and social goals. 

 

The Round Table has become one of Eugene's core organizations, helping to define and preserve the culture of our community. Click here for more on the history of the Round Table.

 

The club celebrated its 100th anniversary with a black-tie-optional gala dinner at the Giustina Ballroom of the Ford Alumni Center at the University of Oregon on Tuesday, November 13, 2012, with retired Oregon Attorney General Hardy Myers speaking on the topic, "The Round Table Club of Eugene: Into the Second Century."  Click here to see a 30-minute video describing the club's first 100 years.

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Peregrinations of the Round Table Club

 

Reported by David Meredith on Oct. 8, 2024

 

In October of 1912 the first electric train into Eugene arrived at the corner of 5th and Willamette. A month later, in Villard Hall on campus, ten men who would found the Round Table Club gathered. Tonight these two historical moments converge as Round Table meets for the first time inside the Oregon Electric Railway depot, begging the question “How many moves did it take to get us here?” I found the answer perusing Round Table archives at the University of Oregon library.

 

Our first move, in January of 1913, was to the First Congregational Church at the corner of 13 th and Ferry. The very next month we moved to the Osburn Hotel at the corner of 8 th and Pearl, where we remained for 34 years.

 

In 1947 we moved to the Faculty Club in what had been the home of Prof. George Collier at the corner of 13 th and University.

 

In 1971 we moved to the Black Angus restaurant at the corner of Frankling Boulevard and Walnut on the west bank of the Willamette River.

 

In 1975 we moved to the Valley River Inn on the east bank of the Willamette River.

 

In 1985 the Valley River Inn could not reserve all of our dates so we moved to the Hilton Hotel at 6 th and Willamette.

 

In 1986 things got patched up and we returned to the Valley River Inn.

 

In 1988 we moved to the Town Club atop the Key Bank building at the corner 10th and Oak. It was here that women were finally admitted to the Round Table, in 1996!

 

In 2007 the Town Club closed its doors, so we returned to the Hilton Hotel.
(The Eugene Hilton was later rebranded as The Graduate. Let’s not count it as a move.)

 

Tonight we make our tenth move, of just one block, from The Graduate to the southernmost depot of the Oregon Electric Railway which had formed in Portland to serve the Willamette Valley.

 

By the way, the Old Spaghetti Factory serving us dinner tonight also began in Portland. It is now a chain of 24 restaurants. It’s first location was at the corner of SW 2nd and Pine. But no longer can you get there from Eugene on an electric train. Instead, walk one block north to catch a diesel-powered Amtrack to Portland’s Union Station and from there walk fifteen blocks south. Your destination is on the left.