(Deceased: 31 December, 1926)

Albert S. Adams was born in Mobile, Alabama, in 1879. He received his early education in Mobile and moved to Atlanta in 1899. He first became associated with B. M. Grant in the real estate field and later joined Alvin Cates and formed the firm of which he was President at the time of his death, the A. S. Adams-Cates Company.

He served Rotary International as President (in 1919-20), First Vice-President, and as a member of various committees. He was a member of the Rotary Club of Atlanta and served as President of that Club.

Joseph A. Caulder's

Recollections of

ALBERT S. ADAMS

Dear, kind, loving Bert Adams of Atlanta, Georgia. Bert was our 9th President 1919-1920. He succeeded John Poole and preceeded Pete Snedecor. He was a real southern gentleman and his beautiful wife Hortense was a real southern gentlewoman. I missed his convention in Atlantic City in June 1920 even though as President of my Moose Jaw Club I was entitled to go with expenses paid. I was too busy selling ice cream so I let our Club Secretary, Harry Burleson, go in my place. Harry never forgot dropping in to a boardwalk beer parlour and paying 75¢ for a beer and $1.00 for cover charge. It was a swanky place so Harry asked for no change out of his $2.00 bill!! He visited Washington and was driven around that beautiful city by Mrs. George Harris.

In 1920 our 19th District Conference was held at Calgary, Alberta, and Bert was the Board representative and of course President of the International Association of Rotary Clubs. Hortense was with him, also two of his children. It was in March and Calgary had snow. The children had never seen snow before so filled their coat pockets and told their mother they were going to take it home with them. We had a great conference; in fact, it had to be great with Bert Adams there.

At a later convention, likely Los Angeles, 1922, Bert was at a large table chatting with a couple of friends and waiting for dinner. Others came along and Bert asked them to sit down. The waiter brought Bert the check and it was for $127.00. Bert paid it with a smile but likely decided to be careful in the future about sitting at a round table that held 20 or 25. Those were the days when the International Association was not rich or flush about even the President's expenses, and in most cases the Presidents paid their own way. They, of course, did not cover the world as they do today. In 1921-22 there were only 25 Governors and only Cuba and England besides United States and Canada in the Rotary fold.

At one of the conventions, I believe Los Angeles, Bert received a wire telling him that Hortense had given him a pair of twins. Bert was going around with his chest out when a pal went to the rostrum and said, "That only goes to show what a good woman can do even with darn poor help."

Bert passed away at an early age on December 31st, 1926.