Chapter Houses!
 

LXAAlum PMed me about an interesting fact about the CSU Old Chapter House.

Thought it would make a good Thread!:)

Do You Know of Chapter Houses with cymbols that are permanet, walls, floors or out side structure?

U. Ark. Badge on entry Floor.

Take it away and add to the list!:D

Well, last year the 6-foot Coat Of Arms Georgetown had had
since the 1960's or earlier was stolen and never returned...
rumor had it the KA's stole it and it wound up in a bonfire
at a KA party...but since they're all "Fine Southern Gentlemen",
I'm sure that's not true!

Anyway, I painted a new one for ....and the actives BOLTED
it into a concrete wall with about a dozen large bolts around
the frame.....does that count??

HA HA!

OKAY KEV, almost!!!!!:D

Ark. In the floor Badge.

Rose-Huleman, paintings on the walls of LXA and TKN C Of A on walls.

Engravings on the exterior or enlaid.

Any others, know there are more, but cannot remember them

LXAAlum, help me out here!!!!!:)

Oh, say Letters at Ok. U and U. Neb. in stone on the outsides above door way entrance.

Permanent type things or secretive that are there for Posteriterior! Short Long Day!

Chapter Houses
 

I had heard that the chapter houses at Oklahoma and Rhode Island had secret ritual rooms. I even heard that secret room at the house at Rhode Island was so hidden that when the chapter was rebuilding its membership they rented out their house to a sorority and they never found it. It used to be the govenor's mansion I believe.

Gamma Zeta at Umass Amherst just had some painted cross and crescents on our front door and in the basement. We always hung up our class paddles though, but I don't think that counts as being a part of the building.

Lets see...
Letters in the foyer, mounted Cross & Crescent above foyer fire place, mounted wooden CoA in chapter room, mounted Delta Pi above front entrance, and in the front room a stitched (with some gold no less) CoA from 1927 when the chapter was chartered... alot of the other historical mounted stuff bought it during a fire in the mid-80s that took out the fron room (sitting room) and chapter/meeting room...

Oops... forgot - Family Tree bricks in the foundation down in the basement

Oh, forgot about these:

Our chapter occupied a house on Main St. 1950-71, the only
one we ever owned (all Greeks forced to move into on-campus
house-dorms in 1971). In the basement were "famous"
cartoons/paintings of high zeta officers on the walls.

The brothers thought these so "treasured" they made
nice framed copies in 1971 to hang in the "new" house.

What's amazing is that the "old" house has been owned/
occupied by several families over the past 24 years,
but have never removed the paintings....they are still
there!

Here's an addr. for an old photo with three of them
in the background (the young man standing is now
a wealthy thorough-bred horse breeder and member of
the college's board of trustees). The characters are
from left-to-right High Alpha, High Phi, and High Tau.


http://einstein.georgetowncollege.ed...otos/60s40.jpg

One of the members of the family that currently owns the
home is now an active member and High Phi at Gtown....
his mom LOVES IT when all the 50's/60's alums come
over during Homecoming to visit the "old place"
(never done from 1971-2000).

Here's a link of what the house looks like on the outside

http://einstein.georgetowncollege.ed...ist/MainSt.jpg

The paintings aren't "permanent" I guess, and the chapter
no longer owns the house, but the paintings might
fall in this category anyway.

Kevin

Kev. What a treat to see these Pictures.

Looks like a neat House. Shame LXA doesnt still own it!

Foyer
 

Good day!

Zeta-Upsilon has a well crafted "Cross and Cresent", in ceramic tile, laid in the floor of our foyer. Right now, our Chapter House is an LCAP property being leased to STG for three years. They have simply put an area rug over it for the time being!

Anybody know of a Chapter House "purification" rite we can use when we come back in the Spring of 2006 and reoccupy the place in the Summer of 2007?

Yours in ZAX,

Mike Raymond, ZU-Zeta

Hi Doc,

For the unofficial "purification right" I would suggest:

10-15 kegs

3-4 sororities

dark lighting

loud music

OK OK!!! I'M JUST KIDDING!!!

It may not be a real purification right, but it would sure as heck be some fun to kick off the opening!

In all seriousness, do you know if STG has a specific religious persuasion?

I think for a real purification right, you should probably bring in a priets or pastor to bless the house since Lambda Chi is a Christian fraternity.

Other than that, I would suggest a unique chapter ritual. We used to have some great symbolic ceremonies at Gamma Zeta that really stressed unity. Just give me a PM and I can give you some suggestions.

Oklahoma has cross & crecents carved into the keystones above windows & doors on the first floor of their house.

Last spring (2004) Jason Lenox took me by Zeta Zeta at Penn State. They've got a cast metal Coat of Arms over their fireplace. I don't know how old it is, but it's the old (pre ThKN) coat of arms.

Then, outside, they've got a stone patio containing stones engraved with other chapter designations and well-wishes. These were sent to them by the other Zetas on the occasion of the building of their chapter house in the 1920s.

Unfortunately, these seem to be the only link between the present and the past at our oldest continuously operating chapter. We didn't see a paddle, composite, plaque, or "class project" anywhere in the house. And we went through it from the third floor to the basement.

SDSU used to have a Crucicrescent inlaid on the cafeteria floor - very nice! Also, a Delta Pi behind a beer sign (considering that chapter, very fitting!)

Colorado State had a wonderful crest (not the complete coat of arms, but more chapter specific) woven into the chapter room carpet, as well as a hidden Ritual Equipment room (you'd never know it was there, unless you knew where to look - at one time, this was used as the bathroom for a house mother). Also, in every closet in the house, if you knew where to look, the past members had their names and zeta numbers written down - sad to know that tradition will be lost.

Colorado State's original chapter house, now the SigEps, has, to this day (as far as I know) an inlaid delta, as well as a beautiful Delta Pi hidden in a stairway.

One thing very unique about the current UNC (Northern Colorado) chapter house - apparently this house has had several add-ons/additions over time - and there are stairs EVERYWHERE in the house - it can be very confusing - DeltAlum used to be the Chapter Advisor for the DTD's up here that occupied the same house a few years back - you can easily get lost in the house, or out of breath, or both.

Ahhh...memories. Colorado State had a cement casting of the pre-TKN COA as well - used to be in one of the earlier houses (pre-1939, I think)...and was slated to be used as a base on the outside BBQ. Thankfully it was never put there, it remained in the chapter room for many years - after the chapter closed, I think the High Pi at the time kept it along with all other chapter belongings for recolonizing time.

Yes Ottor's assessment is correct the PSU chapter house is bizarre because they are the LONGEST CONTINUOUS chapter in the world of LCA, but the have only a hand ful of composites and no class gifts or much LCA gear anywhere in that house. They do have an incredible chapter library, however it has that look of nobody being in it for 20 years.

Now the bizarre thing is they have about 100+ members now and the house is over filled to capacity with undergrad members and is a kick ass fraternity at PSU, but that "look" you would expect to find is just not there.

The New Shippensburg House has an inlaid Tile cross and crescent in the atrium that was put in last summer by a friend of mine that has a tile business, there is also a ceramic coat of arms in the TV room that was donated to us by the LHU chapter of LCA which is now defunct, Ottor himself installed that piece of 1970's craftsmanship.

Pictures can be seen at www.phitauzeta.org

Lenoxxx