June 28 is the founding date of two fraternities. Sigma Chi was founded in 1855 at Miami University in Miami, Ohio. It is one of the Miami Triad. Sigma Tau Gamma was founded in 1920 at Central Missouri State Teachers College, now the University of Central Missouri, in Warrensburg, Missouri.
Milton “Milt” Caniff joined Sigma Chi in 1930 while a student at Ohio State University. In addition to his Steve Canyon and Terry and the Pirates comic strips, he occasionally provided illustrations for his fraternity’s publications. There were often mentions of Sigma Chi in his comic strips.
The Sigma Chi founders at the founding as done by Caniff.
This wonderful film was produced in the 1930s. In 1937, Caniff was named a Significant Sig. He was in the second class of Significant Sigs. In the 1935 inaugural class of Significant Sigs was John T. McCutcheon, Purdue 1889, the artist to whom Caniff refers in the video clip.
A tidbit from the September 1922 Banta’s Greek Exchange
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Sigma Tau Gamma is celebrating its 98th birthday today and I suspect there will be some celebrating going on at the organization’s Grand Conclave in Phoenix.
Earlier this year, the fraternity had an open house at its new headquarters in Indianapolis, Indiana. Its previous headquarters had been in Warrensburg, Missouri, where the fraternity was founded. The former Lambda Chi Alpha HQ has been wonderfully renovated and the historic exhibits are well done. Kudos to the staff, especially Jose Contreras and Jill Carrel, for the tremendous efforts in presenting Sig Tau’s history.
Sigma Tau Gammas Founders Fireplace, where the charter was signed.
Document cases in the Sig Tau Archives. Kudos to Jose Contreras for tracking these down.
