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The Society Turns 60

Timeline: 1946 - 2006

1946 — October 30th, the Society is officially incorporated in New York City. The cost of incorporation is $43.70.

  • The Dow Jones high for the year is 212.
  • The cost of a first-class stamp is 3 cents.
  • Winston Churchill makes his "Iron Curtain" speech.

1948 — The Chicago Chapter is formed in January, making it the Society's first chapter. The San Francisco chapter is formed in September — it's now known as the Northern California chapter.


  • The Berlin airlift begins; it will end in May 1949.
  • Harry S. Truman, despite what some newspapers claim, defeats Thomas E. Dewey for the presidency.

1951 — The Los Angeles and Pittsburgh Chapters are founded in February, followed by the Detroit Chapter in May, and finally the New York Chapter in November. (That's correct: Despite the fact that the Society was created in New York, the city's members didn't get around to founding their own chapter until the Society was in existence for five years.)

1952 — Creation of permanent National Office, located in New York.


  • Herman Wouk publishes The Caine Mutiny.
  • Gene Kelly's American in Paris wins the Academy Award for Best Picture.
  • The Yankees win the World Series in 7 games over the Brooklyn Dodgers.

1954 — First woman admitted to the Society. The Ohio Chapter is formed.


  • U.S. Supreme Court (in Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka) unanimously bans racial segregation in public schools.
  • The World Series is broadcast in color for the first time.

1956 — The Lone Star State joins the roll call of chapters with Dallas and Houston each forming a chapter.

1957 — Society membership reaches 1,000.


  • The Soviet Union launches Sputnik I.
  • Average life expectancy in the United States is 69.5 years.

1959 — The St. Louis Chapter is founded.

1964 — The Pacific Northwest Chapter is formed.

1965 — The Middle Atlantic region forms its own chapter.

1970 — One of the largest geographic regions in the Society forms its own chapter: the Southeastern Chapter.

1972 — Society Membership reaches 2,000.


  • President Nixon travels to Communist China.
  • Time Inc. begins transmission of HBO, a pay-cable television service.
  • The Godfather, starring Marlon Brando, has its premiere.

1976 — The Society holds its first annual meeting with the SEC and the New York Stock Exchange.


  • The United States of America celebrates its 200th birthday.
  • Israeli commandos free hostages at Entebbe airport.
  • Alex Haley releases Roots.

1980 — A banner year for chapters as the Eastern New England, Fairfield-Westchester, Hartford, OKI Tri-State, Phoenix, Rocky Mountain (formerly known as the Colorado chapter) and Twin Cities all are created.

1981 — The chapter-forming trend continued with Kansas City, Milwaukee and Oklahoma all starting up.

1981 — The San Diego Chapter is created.

1988 — Society membership reaches 3,000. The New Orleans Chapter is formed.


  • Cost of a first-class stamp goes from 22 cents to 25.
  • Average life expectancy in the United States is 74.9 years.

1996 — The Society launches its website. By January 1997, it will have 1,250 visitors a month.


  • President Clinton appoints Madeleine Albright as the first woman Secretary of State.
  • Jazz great Ella Fitzgerald dies.

1998 — Recognizing the important roles of its members in corporate governance, the Society adds a tag-line to its logo and stationery: "promoting excellence in corporate governance."

1999 — Society reaches 4,000 members. (Our Website averages 4,000 visitors a month in the autumn of 1998.)


  • President Clinton is acquitted by the Senate (after being impeached by the House of Representatives in 1998).
  • The world's population reaches 6 billion.

2002 — Sarbanes-Oxley passes. The Society continues to support members as they grapple with increasing compliance duties.


  • Enron Chairman Kenneth Lay resigns.
  • Spider-Man spins his web at the movies, cashing in for more than $400 million.

2003 — In July, the Securities Law Committee inaugurates a relationship with the Public Company Affairs Oversight Board (PCAOB).

With corporate governance taking center stage more and more, the Society's board begins serious consideration of a name change at its November meeting, looking to make the point that our members are the corporate governance experts.

2004 — After extensive focus groups and member polls, the Society decides to change its name, effective January 2005, to the "Society of Corporate Secretaries and Governance Professionals."


  • Dedication of the National World War II Memorial takes place in Washington, DC.
  • After living with "the Curse" for 86 years, the Boston Red Sox win the World Series.

2005 — January 1: The Society changes its name. A new sign is "hung" on the office door, and the redesigned website is launched.

In autumn, the board of directors holds a retreat in Chicago, launching initiatives to revise the Society's bylaws, to create a new committee (the Listings Standards Committee), and to launch a new media campaign that will take hold in 2006-2007.


  • Pope John Paul II dies; more than 4 million people travel to the Vatican to mourn him.
  • The marriage of Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles takes place, after being briefly postponed due to the Pope's death.

2006 — Happy 60th!


Click here to see the Slide Show.


Society of Corporate Secretaries and Governance Professionals
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212-681-2000 - Fax 212-681-2005

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