My thanks to Christopher Walters, a fraternity history enthusiast and a member of Phi Mu Alpha, for writing this blog post.
In 1879 a revolution occurred in the fraternity world. It was in March of that year when a little booklet, Greek Letter Societies, was published by Albert P. Jacobs, a member of Psi Upsilon. It was the first book of its kind published since the founding of Greek-letter organizations on American college campuses in the 1700s. This small booklet was a directory to the then known organizations, from Kappa Alpha to Zeta Psi. A few months later, another publication surfaced; it had the same purpose – to be a directory to the known groups – but this one was different. This new publication was American College Fraternities: A Descriptive Analysis of the Society System in the Colleges of the United States, with a Detailed Account of Each Fraternity written by Beta Theta Pi member William Raimond Baird.
Baird’s book would change the face of the Greek-letter system in America. For the first time there was a concerted effort to bring together in one resource a complete listing of all collegiate organizations located on American college and university campuses. This book, which would become a highly sought after publication, would be republished in 20 editions.
From 1879 to 1991, this book which later became known as the Baird’s Manual of American College Fraternities, was, in essence, the Bible of the Greek letter system. Every chapter or lodge wanted one, every library had one, and many members would reference this manual to learn of other groups.
Baird’s Manual of American College Fraternities, was, in essence, the Bible of the Greek letter system. Every chapter or lodge wanted one, every library had one, and many members would reference this manual to learn of other groups.
Baird, a member of Beta Theta Pi, was one of the leading historians of the college fraternity system. People sought him out to help establish chapters of their own fraternity at a particular school. They contacted him to have their new fraternity listed in the next edition hoping this would benefit their new group by letting prospective members learn of their group upon entering college. The fraternity world would soon have a “boom in the industry.” Thousands upon thousands of local groups were being established yearly.
Groups were coming and going faster than the Baird’s Manual could keep up. Hardworking and diligent, Baird tried to get every group listed, but there were dozens of groups that he just couldn’t get in. Many colleges were somewhat obscure or unknown to the author even if he wanted to include them. Baird did his best as long as he could. At the time of his death he had published almost ten volumes of his work. There were ten editions of a directory that included all groups from locals to literary societies, to high school groups, and of course college societies, and even a section on class or secret societies (it was especially hard to obtain information about these groups). After the death of Baird, the book continued to be published under the direction of the National Interfraternity Council. The editions were compiled and edited by some of the leading men in the fraternity world, such as Thomas Arkle Clark of Alpha Tau Omega, Francis Shepardson of Beta Theta Pi, and others. The book maintained its form as Baird had created it until the 1940 edition.
In 1940, the book was apparently becoming too bulky with trying to classify all the various groups, so a slimmed down book was published. The 1940 edition was the first edition to exclude the listing of local fraternities and sororities. This section which was one of the best sections in the older editions seems to have been the first off the chopping block. The next section to go in later editions was the listing of class and secret societies and literary societies. By the 1963 edition, the entire book was devoted to listing just the National organizations, professional and honorary organizations, and known defunct groups. The last edition to be published was 1991. To those who are familiar with the entire collection of the Baird’s Manuals, this edition, while useful for research purposes, was a much watered down version of what Baird himself had intended.
Many people have been waiting for the 21st edition to be published, but to their sadness no plans as of yet are in the works to have any more published. The NIC and Baird’s Foundation which holds the rights to the publication have said on occasion that they still have copies of the 1991 edition.
Since the advent of the internet, there have been many websites which contain listing of various groups, and many groups have developed their own websites. Imagine if William Baird had access to the internet. He had the passion, and the connections to get his book published, but he lacked the means to acquire complete information at a moment’s notice. An on-line version of Baird’s vision would be like having a library of information at ones fingertips 24/7. People wanting to learn a little about which groups are still active, which groups are defunct, or even where to turn to get more information. Currently most information on many groups can only be found in libraries spread out all across the continent, or in private archives. Many items of interest can be seen on many online auctions site, or in local flea markets or antique shops. I (Christopher Walters) personally have about 6,000 pictures of pins or badges from many groups to which I do not know which school the organization belonged. If this online archive was available, finding out about such groups would be much easier than trying to book a flight to visit some distant college library and searching through their yearbooks. The internet can be a very useful tool, but only if the information is available. There is a need and demand for a new work and new tools to help people find out about their past.
As a side note, if you or someone you know belonged to a high school or prep school fraternity or sorority, I would love to hear from you. I am currently trying to collect as much information as I can about these particular groups.
My Dear Sisson
For more information about William Raimond Baird, please see Fran’s other previous posts
https://www.franbecque.com/2012/06/17/my-dear-sisson-wrote-wm-raimond-baird-on-jan-1-1898/
© Fran Becque www.fraternityhistory.com
