The Idaho Press Club has been active in some form since the late 1930’s. The present Idaho Press Club was incorporated as I.P.C. Inc. in 1965, after operating unincorporated for some years.
Allen Derr’s article, originally published in IPC’s Communicator Fall 2001 issue shares great details about the club’s early aspirations, storied guests and hard work to assist Idaho’s working press.
This article on the inception of the Idaho Press Club was written by founding member Allen Derr:
Idaho Press Club has a rich history that should be preserved
By Allen Derr
A dusty, scrolled wooden board, found under a reporter’s desk, bears the still-clear signatures of Dwight D. Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Nelson Rockefeller, William Shirer and others.
It’s the Idaho Press Club’s Roll of Distinguished Visitors, and it’s time that it, like many other bits of this club’s distinguished history, be pulled together and preserved in a place where they are accessible to all.
It might come as a surprise to the original founder so the club that such things are not simply displayed in the permanent clubhouse of the Idaho Press Club, a place where members would socialize, entertain prominent guests, and tip a cup or tow. A clubhouse was among the eventual plan when Idaho Press Club, Inc. was incorporated in 1936, and at some points in our club’s history we did indeed have a clubhouse.
By Allen Derr
