Other GLOs mentioned in your founding?

[WhiteDaisy128]

Delta Gamma was founded by three young women/girls (ages 14-17, I believe) at the Lewis School for Girls. There were no other GLOs involved in our founding.

HOWEVER, our survival and move out of the south most definitely has to do with another Greek. George Banta, a Phi Delta Theta, was initiated into Delta Gamma so he could expand the Fraternity to Indiana. He established a chapter in Indiana - the first women he initiated was Lillian Vawter, his fiancee'.

[nyapbp]

There were no men or other organizations involved in Pi Beta Phi's founding in 1867. The 12 young women wanted an organization like that of the men. They called the organization, I.C. Sorosis. Pi Beta Phi was the secret motto. By the fall of 1868, a second chapter had been formed at Iowa Wesleyan College and a third quickly followed. Although the name change officially took place in 1888, many chapters used the Greek letters prior to that. In fact, the first issue of the magazine, published in 1885, stated that the magazine was "an organ of Pi Beta Phi".

I am always interested to read what the other organization's history say about our history. I remember one that stated that it was founded as a literary society (which it wasn't). The last time I was in Monmouth, I did some searching in the school newspaper from the 1860s and 1870s. There was a column for the literary societies and I.C. was not in that column, but news about it did appear in the fraternity section.

I loved reading the article about the Alpha Xis and Sigma Nu that was linked to in a previous post. I chuckled when the chapter at Lombard was referred to as a local. The Pi Phi chapter at Lombard was our fifth chapter, founded in 1872. By the time Alpha Xi was founded in 1893, Pi Phi had established more than 30 chapters.

Some of the alumnae from the 1860s, 1870s and 1880s were quite upset when the organization changed its name. Luckily, since the Greek letters had been a part of our founding, there was no discussion as to what the name ought to be. However, there was a movement, albeit small, to have the nickname be "Beta Pi" instead of "Pi Phi."

[AOII Angel]

Beta Pi? That's interesting.

[Sen's Revenge]

Alpha Phi Alpha mentions a lot of organizations in our history, it just depends on which document you're reading.

When it comes to the founding:

Our founders did their best to locate other black fraternities to join rather than founding their own (!) and they found one lead, Pi Gamma Omicron in Ohio. When they checked it out, they found out there was a mistake and either the org never really existed or had already dissolved.

We also mention the all white fraternities that several of the founders had been waiters to when they were undergraduates. While explicit *help* was not given (we didn't need any for what Alpha was destined to be), it has been said that they were generally supportive.

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by naraht

Delta Sigma Theta - mention Alpha Kappa Alpha (I didn't say it was a friendly mention)

Most importantly, the official website for Delta (and http://www.deltasigmatheta.org/history.htm) and AKA make no mention of one another.

Yes, we sometimes mention one another in chants/strolls/steps (one of my favorite being "...so your president walked out and founded DELTA SIGMA THETA!!) and individual members jab sometimes. Many of us continue to lovingly joke sometimes but have begun to appreciate and support one another. Darn, I'm maturing, booooooooo.... There are different recollections of why things happened as they did 1908-1913. The fact remains that Delta is the better sorority. Okay, I'm not maturing, at least I'm no liar.

There are also recollections that mention Coleman Love (Delta Founder Edna Brown Coleman and Omega founder Frank Coleman) and any assistance Omega Psi Phi may have given our Founders. That is also not mentioned in official reports of Delta and Omega history. It is not even acknowledged by all Deltas and Omegas. It can be regional, campus-based, generational, and based on individual preferences. The world doesn't end because everyone doesn't acknowledge Coleman Love. I am only amused when older Deltas and older Omegas scoff and get angry over the idea. Those of us who acknowledge Coleman Love got that account of history from people who pledged decades before us. These much older members passed down history from one generation to the next (if books and official historical accounts were difficult to access, since some of us pledged either before the Internet existed or before it was so pervasive). LOL. Don't scoff now just because some of you have "outgrown" the idea or never heard of the idea.

[elicampbell]

Carter Ashton Jenkens was a member of Chi Phi at Rutgers. He transferred to Richmond College where he helped found Sigma Phi Epsilon.

[pshsx1]

Originally Posted by elicampbell

Carter Ashton Jenkens was a member of Chi Phi at Rutgers. He transferred to Richmond College where he helped found Sigma Phi Epsilon.

^This. CAJ is our first founder and actually pioneered the idea of the Fraternity and what it would stand for. He initially wanted to bring a chapter of Chi Phi to Richmond College (now University of Richmond) in 1900 but Chi Phi refused his proposal because Richmond College only had 200-300 students and five already active fraternities: Kappa Alpha Order had come there in 1870, Phi Kappa Sigma in 1873, Phi Gamma Delta in 1890, Pi Kappa Alpha in 1891, and Kappa Sigma in 1898.

Plus, Phi Delta Theta, Sigma Chi, and Sigma Alpha Epsilon also had established chapters there which had expired.

According to our text:

Sigma Phi Epsilon was founded because 12 young collegians hungered for a campus fellowship based on Judeo-Christian ideals that neither the college community nor the fraternity system at the time could offer.

So, ultimately, Sigma Phi Epsilon was founded in response to Chi Phi's rejection of their colony proposal and in response to the other five already existing on campus.

--------

ETA: Local fun fact: The local sorority at Lawrence Tech, Chi Omega Rho was founded in 1978 by Sigma Phi Epsilon Girls of the Golden Heart. When SigEp HQ ruled that female auxiliary groups were no longer allowed, some of the girls got together and founded their own local sorority, Chi Omega Rho. Although there are no Ritual similarities, a lot of internal traditions and structure overlap.

[Gusteau]

Originally Posted by elicampbell

Carter Ashton Jenkens was a member of Chi Phi at Rutgers. He transferred to Richmond College where he helped found Sigma Phi Epsilon.

One of Delta Chi's Founders, Monroe Marsh Sweetland, was a member of the Delta Tau Delta Chapter at Cornell. Since Delta Chi was founded as professional fraternity many of our early members held dual membership including two very famous alumni initiates: Benjamin Harrison and William Jennings Bryan.

That being said, Delta Chi was operating as a social fraternity, albeit one for law students, from the beginning. Our 1912 vote to become single membership was the first step in becoming a general, social fraternity and highlighted the fact that many of our chapters were already A)refusing to initiate men in other organizations, B)operating as social ground on their campuses, and C)breaking the rules by initiating men who were not law students or legacies who had a course of study exemption.

[33girl]

The other three groups in the Farmville Four (KD, ZTA and Tri Sigma) are mentioned in Alpha Sigma Alpha's history, since the 5 founders were all bid by different groups, but turned down the bids because they all wanted to be sisters together.

Also, one of the founders of Tri Delta (Sarah Ida Shaw Martin) was at one time president of ASA and helped us reorganize. This was when ASA was specifically a sorority for women in schools of education (whether it be a normal school or within a larger university's school of education). In other words, she wasn't "double dipping" Panhellenically - it would be kind of like if today a KKG was also national president of Alpha Psi Omega.

[badgeguy]

Phi Kappa Psi founder CPT Moore left Jefferson College and went to Union College where he joined Delta Phi. He is listed in both groups directories. But, that may not be the point of this thread....

Kappa Alpha Society, along with all the early groups were originally based on the concepts of Phi Beta Kappa, which itself was based on the earlier FHC society at W&M...

Many if the groups founded prior to the civil war all had ties to the older literary societies which existed on campuses.....most of the literary societies died out or just became loose debating societies at many schools. (This is just a brief, skimming the surface of this topic)
Fraternities and sororities founded after the civil war seem to have closer ties to Masonic and other fraternal orders rather than the old literary society base.....

When it comes down to it in the most basic sense, all groups are somewhat connected to each other becuase there were always some founder who had connections to somebody who was connected to another group, or founders were rivals of other groups at their schools......in all my years of research I have yet to truly find any group that was completely autonomous without ANY connections to some other group.

My $.02 worth.

BG

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by badgeguy

When it comes down to it in the most basic sense, all groups are somewhat connected to each other becuase there were always some founder who had connections to somebody who was connected to another group, or founders were rivals of other groups at their schools......in all my years of research I have yet to truly find any group that was completely autonomous without ANY connections to some other group.

Sinfonia, perhaps? I have never heard of any connection, formal or informal, with any other collegiate fraternity, beyond general knowledge of the existence of other, general fraternities. There were, so far as I recall, no other fraternities at the New England Conservatory at the time of our founding. I've never seen any reference to Father Mills belonging to any other fraternity, and the nature of the Conservatory at that time would suggest that most if not all of the faculty were probably educated somewhere other than a liberal arts college or university, which is where general fraternities would have been found. Many would have been educated or trained in Europe.

The Zeta Chapter of Alpha Chi Omega was chartered at NEC almost 3 years before Sinfonia's founding, but I can't recall ever seeing any reference to that in any Sinfonia history, nor have I ever seen anything to suggest that Father Mills or anyone else was trying to provide an Alpha Chi Omega-like experience for men at NEC. What history I have read would seem to suggest a different impetus for founding the Sinfonia Club, which soon became the Sinfonia Fraternity.

That said, there are historical snippets to suggest some influence of European student groups -- the (unverifiable) story that NEC president George Chadwick suggested the name "Sinfonia" after an organization to which he had belonged while a student in Leipzig (the "Symphonia Club") comes to mind. And I do know that when the Fraternity was still young (10+ years), people involved in the Greek movement, like George Banta and Emily Butterfield, were influential, but that would have been after founding.

But otherwise, I don't see anything in our history suggesting a connection with any other GLO.

[badgeguy]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

Sinfonia, perhaps? I have never heard of any connection, formal or informal, with any other collegiate fraternity, beyond general knowledge of the existence of other, general fraternities. There were, so far as I recall, no other fraternities at the New England Conservatory at the time of our founding. I've never seen any reference to Father Mills belonging to any other fraternity, and the nature of the Conservatory at that time would suggest that most if not all of the faculty were probably educated somewhere other than a liberal arts college or university, which is where general fraternities would have been found. Many would have been educated or trained in Europe.

The Zeta Chapter of Alpha Chi Omega was chartered at NEC almost 3 years before Sinfonia's founding, but I can't recall ever seeing any reference to that in any Sinfonia history, nor have I ever seen anything to suggest that Father Mills or anyone else was trying to provide an Alpha Chi Omega-like experience for men at NEC. What history I have read would seem to suggest a different impetus for founding the Sinfonia Club, which soon became the Sinfonia Fraternity.

That said, there are historical snippets to suggest some influence of European student groups -- the (unverifiable) story that NEC president George Chadwick suggested the name "Sinfonia" after an organization to which he had belonged while a student in Leipzig (the "Symphonia Club") comes to mind. And I do know that when the Fraternity was still young (10+ years), people involved in the Greek movement, like George Banta and Emily Butterfield, were influential, but that would have been after founding.

But otherwise, I don't see anything in our history suggesting a connection with any other GLO.

I guess what I was more referring to, and didnt say this adequately was that any "fraternity or sorority" be it a local or what have you, may have come up with an idea of starting a new club or group, of which the reasons for doing so may be unique, like Sinfonia, but the organization of such groups by its members were almost always influenced by some other knowledge or direct connection to another group.

The history of Sinfonia is like any other group in that students got together for fraternal reasons, or for extra curricular reasons, or for religious reasons and after some time be it short or long, they come up with an idea of creating a new "fraternity" (or sorority) and as they sit down in their first meetings to develop how the new organization will operate, be it open or secret, someone within the group certainly has knowledge or a connection to how to write rituals, constitutions, and whatnot.

I was just trying to be all inclusive in the "general idea" of fraternal group at all schools because each groups story is basically the same.

In looking into Father Mills history, he may have had knowledge with fraternities as he lived in Delaware, Ohio home of Ohio Wesleyan University where he met his wife Clara. OWU had LOTS of fraaternities and literary societies.

He saw a need to get the music students to do something other than studying music all the time and prayer meeting was his answer. I would love to know if there are any records left behind from those early meetings, maybe one or two of the students at the time knew any AXO's at the school and saw how that group operated and there may be a connection to them.......

Anyway, good point though about Symphony club in Europe being an connection, because there are several national groups that make reference to being connected to the European fraternities and student groups.

And theoretically yes, locals may not have a direct connection to other fraternities per se, but even locals when being formed will often use the knowledge of the greek letter systems from other schools, or even their own school as a model.

BG

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by badgeguy

I guess what I was more referring to, and didnt say this adequately was that any "fraternity or sorority" be it a local or what have you, may have come up with an idea of starting a new club or group, of which the reasons for doing so may be unique, like Sinfonia, but the organization of such groups by its members were almost always influenced by some other knowledge or direct connection to another group.

Obviously, there's likely to be knowledge of other groups, whether collegiate, Masonic or whatever. I think that's a given.

"Direct connection" is a whole 'nother matter, though, and that's what I think this thread is asking about -- instances of where one GLO will acknowledge the role that one or more other specific GLOs had in the reason for or circumstances of their founding. In Sinfonia's case, I'll readily admit that Father Mills and others had a general knowledge of other fraternities and how they worked. Early use of (and resistance to) the Greek letters illustrates that. But I don't think there's any evidence of any "direct connection" to any other group.

[DrPhil]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

"Direct connection" is a whole 'nother matter, though, and that's what I think this thread is asking about -- instances of where one GLO will acknowledge the role that one or more other specific GLOs had in the reason for or circumstances of their founding.

Correct.

This dialogue brings an excellent point about what constitutes a "direct connection."

[misscherrypie]

Originally Posted by badgeguy

When it comes down to it in the most basic sense, all groups are somewhat connected to each other becuase there were always some founder who had connections to somebody who was connected to another group, or founders were rivals of other groups at their schools......in all my years of research I have yet to truly find any group that was completely autonomous without ANY connections to some other group.

My $.02 worth.

BG

I know that Beta Sigma Phi was originally a book club under a different name, and became Beta Sigma Phi in 1931. I don't know if any of our founders were members of other GLOs, but I wouldn't be surprised.

Also, isn't it theoretically possible for a local to form without any connection to ANY other group?