WATERTOWN, New York (WWNY) - The Watertown Noon Rotary Club wants peace to prevail around the world.

The club held a dedication ceremony on Wednesday in Thompson Park for a new Peace Pole, which asks for peace on earth.

Peace Poles started in 1954 in Japan after an atomic bomb hit Hiroshima. The pole is next to the Rotary pavilion in the park.

“When I learned about it, I thought that we that live in the North Country really live in an area that exemplifies peace on earth and it would be such a good element to add to the community,” said Tom Deuson, past-president of the Watertown Noon Rotary.

Deuson says there are 250,000 Peace Poles in 180 countries around the world, with 2,500 of them in the United States.

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