Why was your org started?

[douthit]

Phi Sigma Kappa was founded on March 15, 1873 by six men on the campus of Massachusetts Agricultural College (now UMass-Amerherst).

Our fraternity was founded on the principles of Brotherhood, Scholarship, and Character.

To OnePlus: Your fraternity system isn't all piss and vinegar, our Alpha chapter is there, and from what I've heard it is doing quite well! Does your IFC make light of the fact that a national fraternity was founded on your campus?

[Optimist Prime]

I think I told this before, but its worth saying again so no one has to dig for it. Theta Chi was founded to get rid of hazing and to make the Alma Mater (Norwich at founded, but whatever chapter) a better place for all students.

[theta sig agd]

I know some of my sisters have probably already posted our history but, in short, there was a need for another womens group on the Syracuse campus and we were formed with the intent of becoming national!!

Yeah!!

[SigPhiSunshine]

I'm not too sure exactly why Sigma Nu Phi was formed, I'm sure i can go through our record and find something, but I do know we were the first sorority at EMU, and I'm sure one of the reasons was to create a sorority at EMU, i *think* the only other GLO on campus was the Arm of Honor ( local fraternity) but don't quote me on that.

[AlphaSigOU]

THE FOUNDING OF ALPHA SIGMA PHI

Alpha Sigma Phi Fraternity was founded at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, on December 6, 1845 by three students: Louis Manigault (pronounced Man-e-go) (1828-1899) of Charleston, South Carolina, Stephen Ormsby Rhea (1825-1873) of Louisiana, and Horace Spangler Weiser (1827-1875) of York, Pennsylvania. Alpha Sigma Phi was originally founded as a sophomore class society for Yale students.

In 1845, the undergraduate atmosphere at Yale University was markedly different from colleges and universities today: the academics were strict, and the lectures of the professors and academics provided no opportunity for class discussion. Extracurricular activities were not fostered by the college, and student class societies provided the the outlet for student energies and interests.

Manigault was very much interested in the class society system at Yale and noted the class fraternities provided experience for their members and prepared them for competion in literary contests. At that time there was only one sophomore class society, known as Kappa Sigma Theta, which had a reputation for displaying an attitude of superiority towards non-fraternity members, even though they were their fellow classmates. Manigault revealed a plan to his friend Rhea a plan for founding another sophomore class society, in direct competition with Kappa Sigma Theta. Rhea felt at first that such an undertaking would be next to impossible, given Kappa Sigma Theta's prominence. Both finally agreed to help organize such a new society, and with Manigault's approval enlisted the help of Weiser and the three became the founders of a fraternity that now counts its members in the thousands.

The first official meeting was held in Manigault's room on Chapel Street on December 6, 1845. Between then and June 28, 1846, when the Fraternity was publicly announced, the three founders wrote the constitution and ritual, and designed the Fraternity's Badge. On June 24, 1846, the first pledge class was initiated into the Mystic Circle of Alpha Sigma Phi. The new society was welcomed by the junior class societies at Yale because it gave them a greater selection of candidates for membership. It was also cordially received by the members of the potential sophomore class, who now had a choice between two societies. But it also aroused anxiety and fear among the members of Kappa Sigma Theta.

EARLY DAYS AT YALE

The rivalry between Alpha Sigma Phi and Kappa Sigma Theta was extremely competitive and bitter, extending even to their publications. Kappa Sigma Theta's The Yale Banger in its November, 1846 issue, attacked Alpha Sigma Phi. The Fraternity retaliated with the publication of The Yale Tomahawk the following year. This rivalry between the two papers continued until 1852, when the Yale faculty expelled the editor and the contributors of the Tomahawk for violating an order from the faculty to cease publication. The rivalry between Alpha Sigma Phi and Kappa Sigma Theta continued until 1858, when Kappa Sigma Theta was suppressed by the Yale faculty.

During the 1850's many fraternities began to expand their influence in establishing chapters at other colleges. A charter was granted to Amherst College in 1847 and a committee appointed to install the chapter, but conditions were not conducive to fraternities at Amherst, and the charter was returned. To this day, there still remains confusion about the naming of Alpha Sigma Phi's early chapters. Some records indicate that the Amherst chapter was named Beta, while a fragmentary document in the Yale University library indicated that Beta Chapter was chartered in 1850 at Harvard University (Alpha being the mother chapter at Yale) and that Gamma was chartered at Princeton in 1854. When the Amherst chapter was restored, it was designated Delta Chapter, though for some unknown reason the Delta designation was also given in 1860 to Marietta College in Marietta, Ohio. That same year, the Amherst Delta chapter folded.

DELTA BETA XI

During the Civil War, the mother chapter at Yale was rent by internal dissension and then actually disappeared. Less attention was paid to the literary aspects of the society, and more to social activities, especially after Alpha Sigma Phi became the sole sophomore class society at Yale in 1858. In 1864, the Alpha Sigma Phi members pledged to Delta Kappa Epsilon, at the time a junior class society (it was the custom at Yale and many other colleges and universities at that time for men to belong to more than one fraternity) atempted to turn the control over to Alpha Sigma Phi over to Delta Kappa Epsilon. This was thwarted by the Alpha Sig members pledged to the two other junior class societies, Alpha Delta Phi and Psi Upsilon. A conflict ensued, and to prevent violence and end disorder, the faculty at Yale suppressed Alpha Sigma Phi and forbade the initiation of the 1864 pledge class.

The traditions of Alpha Sigma Phi, however, did not die there, as two new sophomore societies, Delta Beta Xi and Phi Theta Psi, each claiming to be the legitimate descendant of Alpha Sigma Phi, were founded. Of the two societies, Delta Beta Xi had clear title as the legitimate successor to Alpha Sigma Phi, changing almost nothing in the objectives of the Fraternity, preserving the motto, signs and insignia which it altered only by substituting the Greek letters Delta Beta Xi where Alpha Sigma Phi appeared. At the same time, Louis Manigault reestablished his ties to his brothers in Alpha Sigma Phi. He was aware of Delta Beta Xi and considered it to be the continuation of the Fraternity; he ws not aware that Delta Chapter at Marietta existed. Delta Beta Xi continued until 1875, when it was abolished by the Yale faculty for violating an 1864 agreement regarding alcoholic beverages. Delta Beta Xi continues today as the highest award for service to Alpha Sigma Phi Fraternity.

MARIETTA KEEPS THE FRATERNITY ALIVE

For all practical purposes Delta at Marietta College was a local fraternity after 1864, and it kept alive the traditions, customs, ideals and ritual of the Fraternity. It attempted to to charter chapters at several colleges universities, all without success. The chapter was kept alive by its emphasis on scholarship and by the support of its local alumni and the Cincinnati alumni chapter though at one time Delta considered petitioning a national fraternity since the mother chapter at Yale was inactive. In 1882, a "Sig Bust" by the Cincinnati alumni assured the perpetuation of Delta Chapter. The events that transpired during the Sig Bust so impressed the undergraduates that the petition to join another fraternity was withdrawn. To show their appreciation, the members of Delta formally recognized the Cincinatti alumni chapter with an engrossed charter. During the next several decades, the alumni chapter held meetings at various times and places and extended membership to Yale and Amherst members, and also assisted in pledging and initiating a class in 1901 when there were no active members in the Marietta campus.

REBIRTH AT YALE

In December of 1906, four students, all members of the Yale Masonic Club, were playing cards in the room shared by Robert L. Ervin and Benjamin F. Crenshaw. Visiting them was Arthur S. Ely and Edwin Morey Waterbury. Talk turned to the old Yale fraternity system, which was unique in that there had been fraternities for the freshmen, sophomore junior and senior classes, so it was not unusual for one man to often belong to four fraternities (a practice unheard of today, as virtually all social fraternities, including Alpha Sigma Phi, prohibit membership in another social fraternity). In 1906, only the junior and senior societies were still in existence. The four men concluded that the Yale system over-emphasized class and department loyalty at the expense of developing a strong university spirit.

Waterbury suggested that the four give thought to establishing a new fraternity or petitioning a national fraternity for a chapter at Yale, one that would be an all-class society. He informed the four of finding in the Yale library records of the societies that once existed at Yale University and told them about one of the most active, interesting and famous of these dormant societies -- Alpha Sigma Phi. Waterbury was aware of the existence of Delta Chapter at Marietta. He then suggested that efforts be made to reestablishing Alpha Sigma Phi at Yale. Other men were recruited, including Frederick H. Waldron and Wayne Montgomery Musgrave. Ervin, who knew some of the alumni members of Delta in his home state of Ohio, was asked to send the frist letter to Marietta. While they waited for an answer, additional were added to the movement. Unknown to the members of the revived Alpha movement, Reverend Mr. Evans, a member of Delta then filling a pastorate in Connecticut, came to New Haven and made discreet inquiries about the proposed membership of the revived Alpha Chapter. Pleased with the information he obtained, he recommended to Delta Chapter that the new Alpha be welcomed into the Mystic Circle.

Through letters, arrangements were made for the New Haven group to send a delegation to Marietta to be initiated into Alpha Sigma Phi. The Yale group then voted to send the first six men who had been identified with the reorganization: Crenshaw, Ely, Ervin, Musgrave, Waldron and Waterbury. With the exception of Ervin, who was unable to go at the last moment, the five men, boarded a train for Marietta on March 27, 1907. Arriving at mid-day the next day, they were met by a delegation of Delta undergraduate and graduate brothers. The men were initiated into Alpha Sigma Phi, taught how to perform the rituals, and instructed on Chapter organization and management. Returning to New Haven, one of the first things the group did after obtaining the required equipment for performing the ritual was to welcome Ervin into the Mystic Circle, since he had missed out on the Marietta trip. This first initiation took place in Musgrave's suite at the New Haven YMCA. The new Alpha Chapter leased the Lenox Hall in York Square, the former meeting place of the Yale Masonic Club. It was there that the remaining men became members of the new Alpha Chapter.

THE SECOND FOUNDERS

Edwin Morey Waterbury did much more than rediscover and help rekindle the spark of Alpha Sigma Phi; he played a major role in creating the creating the Fraternity organization that was to become the major force in the American Greek-letter fraternity system. Waterbury resurrected the Black Lantern Processional. On the night of March 27, 1908, Alpha Chapter at Yale signaled a new life with the traditional march. Waterbury became Grand Secretary and Grand Corresponding Secretary from 1907 to 1913. In the spring of 1909, he revived The Tomahawk which he continued to edit until 1913. His newspaper firm continued to print and publish each issue of the magazine for over 30 years. Waterbury died in December 1952, soon after writing: "I am afraid that I will have to be disappointed once more in my cherished desire to attend at least one more national convention before I shuffle off this mortal coil."

Wayne Montgomery Musgrave was an honors graduate of New York University, Yale and Harvard. He provided the organizational spark that fanned Alpha Sigma Phi into national prominence. He was twice HSP (President) of Alpha Chapter and served as Grand Junior President (GJP) of the Fraternity from 1907 until 1923. Realizing that fraternities had a poor image, he authored the Fraternity's Principles of Conduct. He also put together the Fraternity's expansion policy which said in part that the petitioners should have scholarship above the average in their institution. Under his leadership, he guided the Fraternity's expansion efforts -- twenty chapters were added to the Fraternity while he was Grand Junior President. In 1923, Musgrave was elected Grand Junior President Emeritus. He continued his interest in Alpha Sigma Phi, even writing a major history of the Fraternity. He entered Omega Chapter on July 22, 1941. His headstone is marked with the letters Alpha Sigma Phi.

EXPANSION

By the end of 1908 there were three new chapters of Alpha Sigma Phi -- Zeta at Ohio State, Eta at the University of Illinois and Theta at the University of Michigan. Beta at Harvard was revived at Harvard through the efforts of Brother Musgrave while he was completing graduate studies there. In 1913, the designation of the chapter chartered at Massachusetts Agriculture College (now the University of Massachusetts) at Amherst became a problem as it was not a continuation of the pre-Civil War Amherst chapter, nor was it located on the same campus. But, on the basis that the former chapter at Amherst was designated Gamma, that chapter was given the designation. World War I, despite an immense mobilitation, did not interrupt the flow of college enrollments. Alpha Sigma Phi was able to add a few more chapters during this period.

In the 1920's Alpha Sigma Phi expanded further, adding a new chapter every year for the next ten years. The crash of the stock market in 1929, followed by the Great Depression halted the expansion process. In 1937, the Fraternity reorganized, creating a Grand Council of nine members elected by the convention. The Grand Council was vested with broad powers, including the power to establish new chapters and alumni councils. In 1939, Phi Pi Phi Fraternity, founded at Northwestern University in 1915 merged with Alpha Sigma Phi. All members of Phi Pi Phi were given full rights and privileges as members of the Fraternity.

CONSOLIDATION

After World War II, Alpha Sigma Phi continued its growth. On December 6, 1845, the Fraternity celebrated the one hundredth anniversary of its founding with rallies in various cities and a national rally in New York presided by Grand Senior President Willbur Cramblet. On September 6, 1946 Alpha Kappa Pi Fraternity consolidated with Alpha Sigma Phi, adding the thirty-six chapters of Alpha Kappa Pi into the Mystic Circle of Alpha Sigma Phi.

Alpha Kappa Pi was founded in 1926 at Wagner College, Staten Island, New York (now Alpha Sigma Chapter), though its Alpha Chapter was established at Newark College of Engineering (now Alpha Rho Chapter at the New Jersey Institute of Technology). The Reverend Albert H. Wilson, a member of Sigma Nu Fraternity, was their fraternity advisor until the consolidation with Alpha Sigma Phi.

Unlike the merger with Phi Pi Phi in 1939, the consolidation with Alpha Kappa Pi brought about many changes to Alpha Sigma Phi. The constitution, bylaws and ritual were changed, and the Alpha Kappa Pi Badge became the Pledge Pin of the Fraternity The Sister Pin of Alpha Kappa Pi was adopted as the official sister pin by replacing the Greek letters Alpha Kappa Pi with Alpha Sigma Phi.. All chapters of Alpha Kappa Pi were added, including a considerable number that were never reactivated after World War II.

Also in 1946, the Fraternity moved its headquarters from New York City to 24 West William Street in Delaware, Ohio, where it provided services to the membership for fifty years until the Fraternity moved its headquarters to Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1996.

In 1965, Alpha Gamma Upsilon Fraternity merged with Alpha Sigma Phi. Alpha Gamma Upsilon was founded at Anthony Wayne Institute in Fort Wayne, Indiana, in 1922, the merger adding five new chapters to The Old Gal.

THE FRATERNITY TODAY

Alpha Sigma Phi continues to be one of America's premier college fraternities, and in 1995 it celebrated its sesquicentennial (the one hundred fiftieth) anniversary of its founding. New chapters continue to be added to the rolls, and chapters that once were dormant are being reactivated. New growth has resulted for Alpha Sigma Phi. And she continues, through her members, to seek new directions, new achievements and to continue to pass down the timeless values, purposes and objectives that were first stated in 1845.

[RUASTgrrl]

the National history was already posted, but as for my chapter we were founded as a local Lambda Sigma Pi in the 20's I think. there were 2 other locals on campus that had affiliated with national GLOs, Tri-Sig in 1929, and ASA in 1941. During that time LSPi started looking to affiliate with a national sorority, and AST was chose.

[KSUViolet06]

Tri Sigma was founded by a young group of students at an all female teacher's college- now Longwood Univ. They wanted a secret club that focused on friendship primarily. They couldn't find what they were looking for, and started their own.

The Kappa Phi Club was founded in Jan. 1916 @ the Univ. of Kansas, by a Methodist minister's wife- Harriet Thompson. She wanted a place for women to bond in a non secret environment, while focusing on worship, fellowship and primarily, service.

[PhoenixAzul]

augh! i wanna share my chapters story so bad because it's super super cool, but alas...

[Jill1228]

subscribing...interesting stories

[kk_bama]

I don't believe the Syracuse Triad has been mentioned..

Alpha Phi- 1872
Gamma Phi Beta- 1874
Alpha Gamma Delta- 1904

I'm also going to post up Gamma Phi's history. Just give me a minute.

[kk_bama]

In a society where women were discouraged from entering college due to their "insufficient brainpower" and "delicate health," four women from Syracuse University came together to form a society they named Gamma Phi Beta. Now, 130 years later, we celebrate the vision and dedication of those women and all that have come since then, who have built Gamma Phi Beta into one of the largest and most well-respected sororities in the world.

Founders

Helen Mary Dodge was born September 26, 1850 in Verona, New York. She was a member of the second freshman class at Syracuse University, took the classical course and graduated in 1876. A talented musician and member of the Daughters of the American Revolution and other organizations, Helen’s chief interest was the mission work sponsored by her church. She married the Reverend J. V. Ferguson, who preceded her in death. Helen died October 21, 1937, leaving a substantial bequest to Syracuse University for scholarships for members of Gamma Phi Beta.

Frances E. Haven was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan on May 27, 1854, while her father was teaching at the University of Michigan. When he became president of Northwestern University, Frances entered with the first group of women students. After he was named chancellor of Syracuse University, she transferred there and graduated in 1877. Her diploma, signed by her father, is displayed in Gamma Phi Beta International Headquarters. Frances married Charles M. Moss in 1878 and moved with him to the University of Illinois where she was instrumental in establishing Omicron Chapter. She died June 16, 1937.

Eunice Adeline Curtis was born on December 22, 1854 in Moravia, New York. She graduated from Syracuse University in 1878 with a bachelor’s degree in music. She married Frank Curtis and they had one son, Edward. Adeline was the soprano soloist at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Syracuse for 33 years. She died January 14, 1923.

Mary Alice Bingham was born in Watertown, New York on August 30, 1856. She graduated from Syracuse University in 1878 with a degree in art. In 1883, she married M. E. Willoughby, who died in 1913. They had two children, a son Francis and a daughter Ernestine. Mary Willoughby and Helen Ferguson were the only Founders who were able to continue their close association after their college years, as both lived in Utica, New York. Mary died on January 14, 1916.

kk_gphib_01 adds: I can add that the four women met in the office of Dr. Brown, a professor at Syracuse, and the women chose to honor Dr. Brown with the sorority colors of brown and mode. Also, I believe Helen M. Dodge was offered a bid into Alpha Phi as a freshman but declined, forming Gamma Phi Beta two years later.

[honeychile]

To add to naupi's comments on Alpha Delta Pi, from our not-yet-updated-but-supposedly-will-be-soon website:

"Founded May 15 in 1851 at Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia, Alpha Delta Pi holds the distinction of being the first secret society for women and the mother of today’s sorority system. Alpha Delta Pi was founded on the principles of scholarship, leadership, service to others and sisterhood. These principles still guide the policies and programs of the sorority today."


In my New Member book (which isn't at hand, unfortunately), there are some wonderful phrases that aren't in the latest NM books, such as Eugenia Tucker Fitzgerald (our Founder) finding the number of students not taking their studies seriously "painfully shocking" (bear in mind that Wesleyan College was the first college for women, and had only been available for about 15 years).


Edited for confusing my sisters!

[ambición6]

::Copying and pasting as well::

The 13 Noble Founders of Alpha Psi Lambda

Los Primeros

Diane Acevedo
Juan Casimiro
Carolyn Christian
James Cordero
Tammy Harris
Clara Isern
Marisol Lugo
Yolanda Natal
Saddy Rivera
Nancy Romo
Annette Saldivar
Annette Seda
Juan Vera

Important Dates in Alpha Psi Lambda history.

In Columbus, Ohio, in May of 1984 a group of undergraduate students led by Dr. Josue Cruz, Assistant Vice Provost to the Office of Minority Affairs, set out to research the country for other Greek lettered organizations and learn how to begin a Latino/a fraternity at the Ohio State University.

On March 10, 1985 at The Ohio State University, thirteen men and women were officially initiated into Alpha Psi Lambda. These individuals set the foundation for what is now the nation's first and largest co-ed Latino fraternity.

May 18, 1984

Several students attedning a Hispanic leadership retreat noted a need for Latino organizations at The Ohio State University. An exploratory group, led by Dr. Josue Cruz, Assistant Vice Provost to the Office of Minority Affairs, was formed to research possible fraternities and sororities. After reviewing their findings, the group decided to start a new Latino Greek organization.

February 11, 1985

Alpha Psi Lambda was established at The Ohio State University.

March 10, 1985

Thirteen individuals were officially initiated as the founders of Alpha Psi Lambda.

September 25, 1992

Alpha Psi Lambda was officially recognized as a National organization.

Today

Alpha Psi Lambda has grown to include sixteen chapters with over 1300 members. It is the nation's first and largest co-ed Latino fraternity.

CHAPTER HISTORY

In the Fall of 2000, a group of students at Loyola University Chicago began looking into the Greek system in search of organizations that would uphold their values, goals, and ideals. Each of these students wanted an organization that would not only help them to grow and mature as people, but that would also improve and add to the Loyola community. However, the existing sororities and fraternities on campus did not fit these qualities and the group of students found themselves at a loss. They decided instead to bring to Loyola an organization that would meet everyone's needs. That organization was Alpha Psi Lambda - the first coed Latina/o-interest fraternity in the nation.

The students first contacted Jaime González, then president of Gamma Chapter, to receive guidance on forming an interest group. He directed the students to contact Alfonso Martinez, Director of Expansion. Upon contacting Alfonso Martinez, the students were dismayed to learn that they would have to wait a semester to begin the chartering process, as majority were first-semester freshmen.

At the beginning of the Spring 2001 semester, the interested group met again on January 17, 2001 to begin the chartering process. At that meeting, the official letter of interest was signed and sent to Alfonso Martinez. Eleven interested individuals signed the letter. Soon thereafter the students were recognized as an official interest group of Alpha Psi Lambda and Gamma Chapter at Northern Illinois University was designated the parent chapter for the Loyola interest group.

On February 25, 2001, ten individuals from Loyola University Chicago became official Associate Members of Alpha Psi Lambda - National, Incorporated at Gamma Chapter. They joined together as a line to bring about the dream of establishing a chapter of Alpha Psi Lambda at Loyola.

After many struggles and hardships, the line finally saw the GOLD and WHITE. On May 6, 2001 at 3:51:20 AM, seven individuals were inducted into the Familia as the official founders of Alpha Psi Lambda - Xi Chapter. These seven founders known as "Los Inmortales" were Sandra "Soñadora" Carmona, Vanessa "Excentrica" Olivo, Claudia "Dinamica" Olivo, DeAnna "Fortaleza" Foster, Marco "El Retador" Rodriguez, Liliana "Ambición" Huerta and Steve "El Deseado" Valenzuela.

[g41965]

DU was founded in opposition to the Kappa Alpha Society and the Sigma Phi Society which had expanded to Williams College in 1832, DU was known as the equitable society and was formed on November 4, 1834.
DU was founded as an anti secret society as well, the Anti- Masonic party was also founded in the early 1830's ,some connection may exist between the anti masonic movement and DU.
In 1881, at the request of the Michigan Chapter, DU moved from an anti secret to a non secret position, As part of our non secret heritage, initiations are open to actives pledges and invited guests.

Delta Upsilon-Nothing Secret

[goldendelta]

Wow...I can't believe nobody posted Tri Delta's history.

Here's Tri Delta (copy & pasted)

Prologue:
In the late 19th century, a woman's place in society was very different from what it is today. Women were not permitted to vote, and few women were found in the workplace. In the frontier states of the mid-west, women began to attend the formerly all-male universities, but they were not welcomed by their male classmates. Because of this cool reception, it was natural for women students to join together in small groups for friendship and support. At first these groups were limited to their individual campuses, but as they developed they imitated the existing men's fraternities, and the various groups spread from one school to another.
By 1885 (when Sarah Ida Shaw entered Boston University), there were six of these "ladies' societies" with enough chapters to be called national organizations: Pi Beta Phi (founded 1867), Kappa Alpha Theta (founded 1870), Kappa Kappa Gamma (founded 1870), Alpha Phi (founded 1872), Delta Gamma (founded 1873) and Gamma Phi Beta (founded 1874). Other groups existed at that time but had only one chapter. They included: Alpha Chi Omega, Sigma Kappa and the societies which would later become Alpha Delta Pi and Phi Mu.
Expansion of these groups into conservative New England was slow. The first to come was Kappa Kappa Gamma to Boston University in 1882, followed by Alpha Phi (also at Boston) in 1883. A chapter of Kappa Alpha Theta opened at Vermont in 1883.

The Founding:
Although there were three women's groups represented at Boston University in 1888 (Kappa Kappa Gamma, Gamma Phi Beta and Alpha Phi), Sarah Ida Shaw saw a need for a group which would be different from the others. She said to her friend, Eleanor Dorcas Pond, "Let us found a society that shall be kind alike to all and think more of a girl's inner self and character than of her personal appearance."
So the two young women began the work of creating a new national fraternity. Later Sarah wrote, "...The two enthusiastic friends were unaware of the fact that there was something stupendous about the task they had set hands, heads and hearts to accomplish. They were working for a principle, and it never occurred to them that there could be such a thing as failure. Earnestness of purpose,energy and enthusiasm had brought them both success in college and why should not these same qualities bring assurance of good fortune to the new venture."
Not only did they found a fraternity, but at the same time they wrote the rituals and constitution, and designed the emblems. The choosing of the name was a joint decision. Eleanor suggested a triple letter and Sarah chose the letter and worked on the Greek mottos and passwords. Inspiration for these came from a variety of sources: Egyptian lore, Hindu mysticism, Greek and astronomy, reflecting the wide and various interests of Sarah Ida Shaw.
Never before had a sorority been founded so completely and with such depth of meaning from the very beginning, and the actual day of founding is beautifully described in Sarah's words. "At last, all was finished on Tuesday...November 27, 1888, but there was one more meeting of the two friends on the following afternoon before they separated for the Thanksgiving recess, at the top of the college building in what was then the Philological Library. It was there that the two girls embraced each other and said 'Tri Delta is founded'...It is not strange that the hearts of these sponsors were full of emotion as together they went out of the college building, for each felt there were added reasons why her Thanksgiving should be a very happy one. When they came to the parting of the ways at the historic Boston Common, Miss Pond said, 'We can make the girls we initiate promise secrecy, but what shall hold us two?' So there in the shadow of the old Park Street Church, with a bright new moon and three brilliant stars nearby...the two faithful friends clasped hands and said, 'In the presence of these myriads of witnesses, I swear eternal loyalty and fealty to Delta Delta Delta.'"

Alpha Chapter:
After vacation they began the task of building the chapter. Senior Florence Isabelle Stewart, a high school friend of Eleanor's, soon consented to join. Isabel Morgan Breed, another senior, was at first reluctant to join. She was deeply religious and felt fraternities were fundamentally wrong. When the girls convinced her that the aims of the society had strong Christian ideals and asked her to be the chaplain, she consented to join.
Three girls from the junior class, five sophomores and six freshman were then chosen. Since there was such a short time before the Christmas holiday, initiation was postponed until January. The history of Alpha Chapter describes that initiation: "At the opening of the college term, on Friday, January 15, 1889, the new fraternity pins were received, and in Prof. Browne's room in the college building on Somerset Street, the other seniors, Belle Breed and Flora Stewart were initiated."...followed later in the day by the juniors. The remaining 11 were initiated in the evening, bringing the chapter total to 18. "The first initiation service was quite elaborate...After the initiation we had a sumptuous banquet...followed by toasts and the shouting of our call."
The appearance of a new sorority startled the other "society people," who probably expected a weakling organization. The new chapter of Gamma Phi Beta had only 15 members, so they hastily initiated three more. But the Tri Deltas were determined to stay ahead of their rivals, and on March 7 initiated three more of their own, bringing their total to 21.
At 12 Somerset Street on Beacon Hill, Delta Delta Delta was not only created but was developed and expanded by the wise, successful and strong leadership of its two founders, as well as the early members of Alpha Chapter. Sarah Ida Shaw and Eleanor Dorcas Pond from the beginnings of Alpha Chapter included their two senior classmates, Isabel Morgan Breed and Florence Isabelle Stewart, as "founders." Therefore, the Fraternity has always recognized the four seniors as Founders of Delta Delta Delta.