P.E.O., a “philanthropic organization where women celebrate the advancement of women; educate women though scholarships, grants, awards, loans and stewardship of Cottey College; and motivate women to achieve their highest aspirations” was founded as a collegiate organization on January 21, 1869. The seven founders – Franc Roads [Elliott], Hattie Briggs [Bousquet], Mary Allen [Stafford], Alice Coffin, Ella Stewart, Alice Bird [Babb] and Suela Pearson [Penfield] – were students at Iowa Wesleyan University, one of the oldest institutions of higher education west of the Mississippi River.
Although it began as a collegiate organization, in 1902 it became a community-based one. The collegiate chapter at Iowa Wesleyan became Alpha Xi Delta’s second chapter. P.E.O. chapters spread across the country from its Midwestern roots.
Lucinda Laura “Lulu” Corkhill was one of the first initiates of the chapter at Iowa Wesleyan even though she had yet to enroll at the school. She was 14 at the time. Lulu went on to play a major role in the establishment of the Illinois State Chapter of P.E.O. There is a post about Lulu available on the top of this page.
Her husband Hemmerle, “H.B.” was a Chicago businessman. (I’ve seen him listed as a Rev., but I am not sure of that. Lulu’s father was a clergyman, so maybe that is where that started.) H.B. is the original “B.I.L.” and he gave that title to the husbands of the women who wore the P.E.O. star. It is pronounced B-I-L, not “bill.”
In 1855, the J.W. Williams Company was founded. It made pianos and organs. In 1884, it became J.W. Williams and Sons. In 1889, it became the Williams Piano and Organ Company. In 1922, Hemmerle B. Williams was listed as the President of the company which was located at 14 West Washington Street in Chicago. The pianos were advertised in publications for ministers. They were touted as, “Honest Instruments for Honest People at Honest Prices.”
The home in which the Williams lived at 1940 Sheridan Road is now a part of Northwestern University.
© Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com, 2016. All Rights Reserved. If you enjoyedthis post, please sign up for updates. Also follow me on twitter @GLOHistory and Pinterest www.pinterest.com/glohistory/
