The Panama Pacific International Exposition and GLO Conventions 1915

Posted on July 15, 2015 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

From February 20-December 4, 1915, the Panama-Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco, California, was the place to be. While the Exposition celebrated the completion of the Panama Canal, it also showcased the city’s recovery from the 1906 earthquake. A goodly number of Greek-Letter Organizations held events in conjunction with it. 

It is important to remember that in 1915, the majority of GLO chapters and membership was east of the Rocky Mountains. Travel to San Francisco was largely by train, although some of the attendees may have traveled on ships through the Panama Canal. In any event, getting there took considerably longer than the half a day of air travel an east coaster would encounter in getting from New York City to San Francisco today. 

A book published to encourage attendance at the Exposition included the events listed below. I suspect there may have been a few others organizations who did not get their plans in place until after the book was printed.

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Omega Upsilon Phi Fraternity, San Francisco, June 25 and 26, 1915. H. Brooker Mills, M.D., Senior Grand Master, Philadelphia, Pa., T. Carroll Davis, M.D., Grand Scribe, 2408 W. Allegheny Ave., Philadelphia, Pa.

Alpha Omicron Pi, Berkeley, June 29 to July 3 inclusive, 1915. Miss Anna E. Many, Grand Secretary 1325 Henry Clay Ave., New Orleans, La.

Phi Sigma Fraternity, San Francisco, July 1, 2, and 3, 1915. R.P. Baker, Supreme President, 1160 Bay St., Alameda, Cal. J.R. Hermann, Chairman Committee on Arrangements, 120 Folsom St., San Francisco.

Sigma Phi Upsilon Fraternity, Grand Chapter, Berkeley, July 1 to 5 inclusive, 1915. Robert L. Patterson, President, 2187 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley, Cal. Virgil Price, Secretary, 2021 24th Ave., Oakland, Cal.

Alpha Chi Omega Sorority, Special Meeting, San Francisco, in week of July 5, 1915. Mrs. Alta Allen Loud, National President, Albion, Mich. Mrs. Courter, President of San Francisco Alumnae Club, 138 Cabrillo St., San Francisco.

Pi Beta Phi, Berkeley, July 5-10, 1915, Miss Amy Onken, Grand Secretary, Chapin, Il.

Gamma Eta Kappa Fraternity, San Francisco, July 7 to 10 inclusive, 1915. Sumner I. Benedict, Secretary, 31 Union Square, New York City.

Theta Delta Chi, San Francisco, July 10 to 13 inclusive, 1915. Seward G. Spoor, President, 149 Broadway, New York City. Walter S. Mallory, Secretary, Paxinosa Ave., Easton, Pa.

Sigma Kappa, Berkeley, Cal., July 12 to 16 inclusive, 1915. Mrs. Ethel Hayward Weston, Grand Secretary, Oldtown, Me.

Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity, San Francisco, July 12 to 17 inclusive, 1915. James Anderson Hawes, General Secretary, 30 Broad St., New York City, John Hubert Mee, Local Secretary, Merchants Exchange Bldg., San Francisco.

Phi Lambda Epsilon, San Francisco, July 14, 15, and 16, 1915. Howard H. Fassett, Chairman, Conclave Committee, 2217 19th Ave., Oakland, Cal.

Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity, San Francisco, July, 15, 16, and 17, 1915. E.R.W. Gunn, Grand Secretary, Oxford, Ga.

Alpha Xi Delta Sorority, Berkeley, Jul 19 to 23 inclusive, 1915. Miss Lena G. Baldwin, Secretary, Elmira, NY.

Kappa Sigma Fraternity, San Francisco July 21 22 and 23 1915 Herbert M Martin Worthy Grand Scribe Danville Va

Alpha Delta Pi Sorority, Berkeley, July 27 to 31 inclusive, 1915. Miss Ethel Thayer, Secretary, 463 Blue Hill Ave., Grove Hall, Mass.

Delta Delta Delta Sorority, Asilomar Monterey Co., Cal. July 31 to August 5 inclusive, 1915. Mrs. Alfred McCray, National Secretary, No. 11 Parkview Apts., Dayton, Ohio.

Delta Gamma Sorority, Berkeley, August 2 to 7 inclusive, 1915. Miss M. Agnes Burton, Secretary, 27 Brainard St., Detroit, Mich.

Pi Kappa Alpha Fraternity, Oakland, August 3 to 6 inclusive, 1915. Paul Tulane Atkinson, Grand Secretary, Box 211, Hampden Sidney, Va.

Sigma Chi Fraternity, Berkeley, Cal. August 4, 5, and 6, 1915. Newman Miller, Grand Consul, 606 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill. Frederick C. Grabner, Executive Secretary, 606 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill.

Kappa Alpha Pi National Fraternity, San Francisco, August 4 to 8 inclusive, 1915. W.N. Armel, Grand Corresponding Secretary, 4419 Cullora Ave., Chicago, Ill. R.H. Schultz, Grand Master, 337 County Bldg., Chicago, Ill.

Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity, San Francisco, August 5, 6, and 7, 1915. Edgar A. Jonas, Supreme Justice, Fort Dearborn Bldg., Chicago Ill. C.C. Roads, Supreme Recorder, Williamson Bldg., Cleveland, Ohio. 

Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority, Grand Council Meeting, Berkeley, August 5 to 10 inclusive, 1915. Miss Eva Powell, Grand President, 2703 Dwight Way, Berkeley, Cal.

Sigma Phi Society, Berkeley, August 6 and 7, 1915. Philip J. Ross, Permanent Secretary, 66 Broadway, New York City.

Sorority Editors Conference, Berkeley, August 11, 1915. Miss R. Louise Fitch, Chairman, Euclid Apartments, Berkeley, Cal.

National Panhellenic Congress (now National Panhellenic Conference), Berkeley, August 11 to 14 inclusive, 1915. Mrs. E.M. Parmelee, Chairman, 7318 North Ashland Blvd., Chicago, Ill., Miss Lena G. Baldwin, Secretary, 670 Euclid Ave., Elmira, NY.

Phi Chi Fraternity, San Francisco, August 11 to 14 inclusive, 1915. F.P. McCann Jr., President, 1010 Kohl Bldg., San Francisco, Burr Moulthrop, Secretary, 1109 Flood Bldg., San Francisco.

Phi Delta Chi, San Francisco, August 12, 13, and 14, 1915. Wm. T. Gaessler, General Secretary, Agricultural Experiment Station, Iowa State College, Ames, Iowa.

Phi Chi Medical Fraternity, San Francisco, August 12 to 14 inclusive, 1915. Dunning S. Wilson, Grand Secretary, 119 West Oak Street, Louisville, Ky.

Alpha Delta Sigma Fraternity, San Francisco, August 16 and 17, 1915. Mortimer D. Williams, President, 141 Milk St., Boston, Mass., C. Chester Caywood, Secretary, 1231 New York Ave. N.W., Washington, DC.

Phi Delta Kappa, Oakland, August 18 to 21 inclusive, 1915. J. Harold Williams, President, Department of Education, Stanford University, Cal. James R. Young, Secretary, School of Education, University of Chicago, Chicago Ill.

Delta Tau Delta Fraternity, San Francisco, August 19, 20, and 21, 1915. Henry T. Bruck, Secretary, Box 445, Dayton, Ohio.

Sigma Phi Epsilon Fraternity, Special Reunion, Berkeley, August 23 to 28 inclusive, 1915. John C. Griffin, Grand President, 215 Montague St., Brooklyn, NY. W.L. Phillips, Grand Secretary, 602 Times Dispatch Bldg., Richmond Va.

Chi Psi Fraternity, San Francisco, August 25 to 28 inclusive, 1915. Edward Cassius Swift, President, Ottawa Ill., Harold G. Aron, Secretary, 50 Pine St., New York City, Perry Evans, Chairman Committee on Arrangements, Mills Bldg., San Francisco.

Delta Chi Fraternity, San Francisco, August 25 to 28 inclusive, 1915. W.W. Bride, Secretary, Union Savings Bank Bldg., Washington, DC.

Phi Kappa Sigma, San Francisco or Berkeley, August 26, 27, and 28, 1915. Richard M. Philler, Secretary, 133 S. 4th St., Philadelphia, Pa.

Gamma Phi Beta Sorority, Asilomar, August 26 to 29 inclusive, 1915. Mrs. O.Y. Hansen, President, 53 Arthur St., Yonkers N.Y., Miss Emma F. Lowd, Secretary, 52 Irving Place, New York City.

Alpha Tau Omega, San Francisco, August 27 and 28, 1915. Claud T. Reno, Secretary, 323-324 Commonwealth Bldg., Allentown, Pa.

Psi Omega Fraternity, San Francisco, August 30, 1915. Dr. E.H. Sting, Secretary, Tiffin, Ohio, Dr. Edwin P. James, Deputy Councilor, Security Bank Building, Oakland, Cal.

Acacia Fraternity, San Francisco, August 30, 31, and September 1, 1915. Harry E. Kilmer, Grand Secretary, Centerville, Mo., G.D. Ream, Chairman, 1915 Conclave Committee, 2634 Bancroft Way, Berkeley, Cal.

Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity, San Francisco, August 30 to September 4 inclusive, 1915. Harry B. Wassell, Secretary, 1411 Commonwealth Bldg., Pittsburg, Pa. C.C. Chambers, Field Secretary, 1411 Commonwealth Bldg., Pittsburg, Pa. M.E. Van Dine, Chairman Committee on Arrangements, Kohl Bldg., San Francisco.

Delta Sigma Delta Fraternity Supreme Chapter, San Francisco, August 30 to September 9 inclusive, 1915. Dr. Burton Lee Thorpe, Supreme Grand Master, 3605 Lindell Blvd., St. Louis, Mo., Dr. R. Hamill D. Swing, Supreme Scribe, 1623 Walnut St., Philadelphia, Pa.

Beta Theta Pi, Oakland, August 31 to September 3, inclusive 1915, Francis H. Sisson, President, 527 Fifth Ave., New York City, Francis W. Shepardson, General Secretary, 5558 Kimbark Ave., Chicago, Ill., James L. Gavin, General Treasurer, 1012 Hume Mansur Bldg., Indianapolis, Ind.

Phi Delta Theta Reunion, San Francisco, August, 1915. George G.D. Kierulff, Alumni Commissioner, Foxcroft Bldg., 68 Post St., San Francisco.

Alpha Sigma Phi, San Francisco, September 1, 1915, Berkeley, September 2, 3, and 4, 1915. Wayne M. Musgrave, Grand Junior President, 51 Chambers St., New York City.

Alpha Delta Phi Fraternity, San Francisco and Berkeley, September 2, 3, and 4, 1915. Carl R. Ganter, Secretary, 136 W. 44th St., New York City.

Psi Upsilon, Berkeley, September 2, 3, and 4, 1915. George S. Coleman, Secretary, Tribune Bldg., New York City.

Phi Sigma Kappa, San Francisco, September 6, 1915. Wm. A. Mclntyre, President, 21 W. Spring St., Ardmore, Pa., John Adams Lowe, Secretary, Williams College Library, Williamstown, Mass., Gustav de Bretteville, Chairman, Committee on Arrangements, Claus Spreckels Bldg., San Francisco.

Alpha Chi Sigma, Berkeley, September 6, 7, and 8, 1915. Harry A. Curtis, Grand Master Alchemist, Boulder, Colo.

Kappa Alpha Fraternity, D.R. Neal Province, South San Francisco, September 7, 8, and 9, 1915. Dr. L.D. Mead, Province Commander, Butler Bldg., San Francisco, R.G. Thompson, Province Secretary, Flood Bldg., San Francisco.

Theta Tau, Berkeley, September 8, 9, and 10, 1915. Erich J. Schrader, Grand Regent, Rockland via Yerington, Nevada.

Zeta Psi Fraternity of North America, San Francisco, September 10 and 11, 1915. Fritz H. Nymeyer, Traveling Secretary, 110 W. 40th St., New York City, Edwin R. Jackson, Chairman, 1915 Convention Committee, 237 First St., San Francisco.

Theta Xi Fraternity, San Francisco, September 18, 1915. H.T. Wreaks, Secretary, 80 Madison Lane, New York City.

Tau Beta Pi, Berkeley, September 1915. R.C. Mathews, Secretary, Executive Council, Knoxville, Tenn.

Theta Chi Fraternity Coast Reunion, San Francisco, November 12, 1915. A.C. Pickett, President of Local Chapter, 2415 Prospect St., Berkeley, Cal. E. Wesson Clark, National Secretary, 101 Milk St., Boston, Mass.

In addition, Rotary International and the P.E.O. Sisterhood also held meetings.

P.E.O. Sisterhood Special Meeting, San Francisco, October 26, 1915. Mrs Martha Horne Nance, President of Chapter AM, San Francisco, 512 Falcon Ave., San Francisco.

International Association of Rotary Clubs, San Francisco, July 19 to 23 inclusive, 1915. Frank L. Mulholland, President, 1411 Nicholas Bldg., Toledo, Ohio, Chesley R. Perry, Secretary, 910 Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill. 

Grace Goodhue Coolidge (center) with University of Vermont Pi Beta Phis at the 1915 convention in Berkeley, CA. This picture was taken at the Exposition.

Grace Goodhue Coolidge (center) with University of Vermont Pi Beta Phis at the 1915 convention in Berkeley, CA. This picture was taken at the Exposition.

© Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com, 2015. All rights reserved.  If  you enjoyed this post, please sign up for updates. Also follow me on twitter @GLOHistory and Pinterest www.pinterest.com/glohistory/

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Sorority Women Wearing Crowns – Miss USA and Miss America

Posted on July 13, 2015 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

Congratulations to Olivia Jordan, Miss Oklahoma USA, an Alpha Phi (Boston University), who was recently crowned Miss USA 2015!! She joins this group of sorority women who have worn the Miss USA crown:

Miss Universe, Miss USA 1956 – Carol Morris, Kappa Alpha Theta, Miss Iowa USA (second Miss USA to win Miss Universe)

Miss USA 1958 – Eurlyne Howell (later Arlene Howell), Zeta Tau Alpha, Miss Louisiana USA

Miss Universe, Miss USA 1967 – Sylvia Hitchcock, Chi Omega, Miss Alabama USA

Miss Universe, Miss USA 1980 – Shawn Weatherly, Delta Delta Delta, Miss South Carolina USA

Miss USA 1982 – Terri Utley [Amos-Britt], Alpha Sigma Tau, Miss Arkansas USA

Miss USA 1988 – Courtney Gibbs, Pi Beta Phi, Miss Texas USA

Miss USA 1991 – Kelli McCarty, Gamma Phi Beta, Miss Kansas USA

Miss USA 1994 – Frances Louise “Lu” Parker, Alpha Delta Pi, Miss South Carolina USA

Miss USA 1996 – Ali Landry, Kappa Delta, Miss Louisiana USA

Miss USA 2003 – Susie Castillo, Kappa Delta, Miss Massachusetts USA

Miss USA 2008 – Crystle Stewart, Delta Sigma Theta, Miss Texas USA

Miss USA 2015 – Olivia Jordan, Alpha Phi, Miss Oklahoma USA

Miss USA 2016, Deshauna Barber, Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc., Miss District of Columbia

***

The sorority women who will compete for the Miss America 2016 title on September 13 are:

Miss Alabama, Meg McGuffin, Phi Mu, Auburn University

Miss Arkansas, Loren McDaniel, Kappa Delta, University of Arkansas

Miss California, Bree Morse, Delta Gamma, California State University – Long Beach

Miss Florida, Mary Katherine Fechtel, Kappa Delta, University of Florida

Miss Kansas, Hannah Wagner, Alpha Phi, Wichita State University

Miss Louisiana, April Nelson, Alpha Phi, Oklahoma City University

Miss Mississippi, Hannah Roberts, Kappa Delta, University of Southern Mississippi

Miss Nebraska, Alyssa Howell, Pi Beta Phi, Creighton University

Miss Nevada, Katherine Kelley, Alpha Chi Omega, University of Alabama

Miss New Mexico, Marissa Livingson, Pi Beta Phi, University of New Mexico

Miss New York, Jamie Lynn Macchia, Alpha Omicron Pi, Wagner College

Miss Ohio, Sarah Hider, Chi Omega, Ohio University

Miss Oklahoma, Georgia Frazier, Alpha Chi Omega, University of Oklahoma

Miss Rhode Island, Alexandra Curtis, Kappa Kappa Gamma, Syracuse University

Miss Tennessee, Hannah Robison, Alpha Omicron Pi, University of Tennessee at Martin

Miss Texas, Shannon Sanderford, Chi Omega, University of Oklahoma

Miss Wyoming, Mikaela Shaw, Chi Omega, University of Wyoming

Additionally, Chelsea Malone, Miss West Virginia, is a member of Alpha Phi Omega, a service fraternity.

Since 1921, when the Miss America pageant began, a number of sorority women have worn the Miss America crown. One even crowned a chapter sister as her successor. In 1960, outgoing Miss America Mary Ann Mobley crowned Lynda Lee Mead. Both were initiated into the Tau Chapter of Chi Omega at the University of Mississippi.

According to A History of Delta Gamma (7th edition), Miss America 1969 Judi Ford, “returned to school at the end of her reign to be pledged and initiated by the Iota chapter at the University of Illinois.”

Among the Miss Americas who belong to sororities/women’s fraternities are:

Miss America 1922 and 1923 (the only woman to serve twice), Mary Catherine Campbell (Townley), Pi Beta Phi (Ohio State University), Miss Ohio

Miss America 1943, Jean Bartel, Kappa Kappa Gamma (University California – Los Angeles), Miss California

Miss America 1947, Barbara Jo Walker (Hummel), Alpha Gamma Delta (Memphis State University), Miss Tennessee

Miss America 1953, Neva Jane Langley, Alpha Delta Pi (Florida Southern College), Miss Georgia

1954, Evelyn Ay, Delta Gamma (University of Pennsylvania), Miss Pennsylvania – This was the first Miss America competition to be televised.

Miss America 1958, Marilyn Van Derbur, Pi Beta Phi (University of Colorado), Miss Colorado

Miss America 1959, Mary Ann Mobley, Chi Omega (University of Mississippi), Miss Mississippi

Miss America 1960, Lynda Lee Mead, Chi Omega (University of Mississippi), Miss Mississippi

Miss America 1963, Jacquelyn Mayer, Pi Beta Phi (Northwestern University), Miss Ohio

Miss America 1964, Donna Axum, Delta Delta Delta (University of Arkansas), Miss Arkansas

Miss America 1967, Jane Anne Jayroe, Alpha Chi Omega (Oklahoma City University), Miss Oklahoma

Miss America 1969, Judith Anne Ford, Delta Gamma (University of Illinois), Miss Illinois

Miss America 1971, Phyllis Ann George, Zeta Tau Alpha (University of Texas), Miss Texas

Miss America 1972, Laurie Lea Schaefer, Alpha Xi Delta (Ohio University), Miss Ohio

Miss America 1983, Debra Maffett, Kappa Delta (Sam Houston State University), Miss California

Miss America 1984, Suzette Charles, Alpha Kappa Alpha (Honorary Member), Miss New Jersey

Miss America 1986, Susan Akin, Pi Beta Phi (University of Mississippi), Miss Mississippi

Miss America 1989, Gretchen Carlson, Kappa Kappa Gamma (Stanford University), Miss Minnesota

Miss America 1990, Debbye Turner, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Miss Missouri

Miss America 1991, Marjorie Judith Vincent, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Miss Illinois

Miss America 1993, Leanza Cornett, Delta Delta Delta (Jacksonville University), Miss Florida

Miss America 1994, Kimberly Clarice Aiken, Delta Sigma Theta (New York City-wide chapter), Miss South Carolina

Miss America 1995, Heather Whitestone, Alpha Omicron Pi pledge (Jacksonville State University), Miss Alabama (Her busy pageant schedule prevented her from having time to commit to the sorority.  She was not initiated.  She spoke at an Alpha Omicron Pi convention and said she enjoyed her short sorority experience.)

Miss America 2004, Ericka Dunlap, Delta Sigma Theta (University of Central Florida), Miss Florida

Miss America 2005, Deidre Downs, Alpha Chi Omega (University of Virginia), Miss Alabama

Miss America 2013, Mallory Hytes Hagan, Pi Beta Phi (Auburn University), Miss New York

Miss America 2014, Nina Davuluri, Sigma Kappa, (Michigan State University, affiliated at University of Michigan), Miss New York

At least two other Miss Americas were once member of NPC groups, but are no longer members in good standing. Another fun tidbit is that National Panhellenic Conference Chairman, Chi Omega Elizabeth Dyer, served as a Miss America judge in 1964.

 

© Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com, 2015. All rights reserved.  If  you enjoyed this post, please sign up for updates. Also follow me on twitter @GLOHistory and Pinterest www.pinterest.com/glohistory/

 

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Alpha-Gal and Me

Posted on July 11, 2015 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

While attending the 2015 Pi Beta Phi Convention at the Chicago Hilton, I had the experience of taking my first ride in an ambulance on a stretcher. The reason? I went into anaphylactic shock in front of the bank of elevators on the third floor. An allergic reaction hit me as I was setting up the historical display. My Pi Phi Headquarters staff friends were there and handled my medical emergency with their usual competence and caring. I am grateful for their efforts.

It wasn’t the first time I’ve had an allergic reaction, but it was the first time it happened in public. Luckily, I had a post-convention appointment scheduled with an allergist. The last time I had a reaction was just before our Disney trip in December and my offspring made me promise that I would try to get to the bottom of my allergy situation. They reminded me, en masse, that I had yet to take care of it.

I reviewed the meal I ate at the Officer’s dinner before the attack – a salad, chicken, and vegetables. I thought I might be allergic to something on the vegetables, so I spent the rest of convention avoiding vegetables and salads. My go-to food became a turkey sandwich, which, as it turns out, is a fairly safe food for me.

After filling out the myriad of forms and medical history, the allergist walked in and said “alpha-gal.” I kept thinking to myself, “What in the world is he saying?” After we talked for a bit, he explained it to me and shared with me information about the alpha-gal allergy. A blood test confirmed his suspicion.

So why am I writing about something called alpha-gal? It’s a public service. Not much is known about it, and in connecting with a few alpha-gal facebook groups, I realize that there are people who have been searching for a cause for their allergic reactions. It was first identified in 2009, although it has been around for a lot longer than that. A friend of a friend said,  “I was my allergist’s first confirmed case in Carbondale 2.5 years ago.” My allergist, who is also her allergist, told me I was about his 200th case in southern Illinois.

The allergy has its beginning in a bite from a Lone Star tick. Frankly, I don’t remember being bitten by that specific tick five or six years ago, before these episodes began, but I have been bitten by ticks. I am not a fan of insects, so I do not keep track of these kinds of things.

A Lone Star tick

A Lone Star tick

The allergic reaction is also different than most food allergies which happen immediately after eating a particular food (i.e. peanuts, shellfish, etc.). An alpha-gal allergy typically happens four to eight hours after ingesting or coming into contact with a mammalian product (beef, pork, lamb, goat, venison, etc.). 

In talking with the doctor, I remembered that after my daughter and I arrived in Chicago at 1:30  p.m., we took a cab from Union Station to the Hilton, checked in, and unpacked a bit. Then we headed to lunch at Shake Shack (“100% all-natural Angus beef. No hormones and no antibiotics ever”), one of her favorite places to eat when she lived in NYC. It was about a mile and a half walk. By the time we ate, it had to have been about 3:00 p.m. The burger is what likely caused the reaction, not the chicken and vegetables I had later that evening.

Alpha-gal is an antibody acquired from the bite of a tick. It is a food-related allergy associated with a carbohydrate, rather than a protein. Alpha-gal allergies are a reaction to Galactose-alpha-1,3-galactose; the body is overloaded with immunoglobulin E antibodies on contact with the carbohydrate.

The symptoms include whole body itching (the first symptom I get is in my ears), extreme gastrointestinal distress, hives, and/or anaphylaxis as well as respiratory issues. I urge anyone who has had these symptoms to find an allergist who has worked with alpha-gal patients.

Does anyone else find it ironic that I would be afflicted with a condition with the world “alpha” in it? A Pi Phi staffer recounted that the medics kept asking me questions as I drifted in an out of consciousness. I was able to answer the “When was Pi Beta Phi founded?” question, but when the medic asked who founded the organization I said, “There were 12 Founders and I am not naming them for you,” and promptly faded out. I laughed when told about this particular exchange. 

But alpha-gal really isn’t a laughing matter. If this post helps one person find a proper diagnosis, it was worth taking time away from the regularly scheduled Greek-Letter Organization programming.

© Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com, 2014. All rights reserved. If  you enjoyed this post, please sign up for updates. Also follow me on twitter @GLOHistory and Pinterest www.pinterest.com/glohistory/

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GLO History on the Twitterverse

Posted on July 10, 2015 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

Getting collegiate GLO members hooked on history is an important part in getting them to be life long loyal members. Understanding that the organization spans generations and is greater than one chapter on one campus is heady stuff for a college student whose world has basically revolved around him/her for his/her entire life. Becoming a member of a GLO entails responsibilities and obligations, many of which will be quite new to some of the members.

Zeta Tau Alpha’s National Leadership Conference “Striving for Greatness” is underway in Indianapolis. A tour of ZTA’s Headquarters was part of the activities. The ZTA Archivist, Patti Cords Levitte, put together some wonderful displays for the participants to view while touring the building.

Part of the ZTA Founders' display.

The ZTA Founders’ display

Mentioning Zeta Tau Alpha reminds me of a delightful ZTA who works in Pi Beta Phi’s HQ. She’s a George Mason University alumna. I’ve already shown her the letter signed by ZTA National President Dr. May Agness Hopkins that we have in the Pi Beta Phi Archives. Gabbie recently experienced her first Pi Phi Convention and here’s a tweet from that experience. She also writes a blog. It’s at http://www.gabriellerimmaudo.com/.

Jun 28

So cool to see ‘s banner tonight at convention. All about that love!

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A new facebook page, This Day in DEKE History, has debuted. It is at https://www.facebook.com/TDIDEKEH

July 9, 1956
Dick Clark (Phi Gamma-Syracuse University) became the full time host on a show later renamed American Bandstand. American Bandstand was first aired nationally on August 5, 1957. On that day, Brother Clark interviewed Elvis Presley. American Bandstand was a major success, running daily Monday through Friday until 1963, and then weekly on Saturdays until 1987.

This Day in Deke History's photo.

The DKE facebook page joins some of my favorite and most enlightening twitter feeds for learning more about GLO History:

@PhiPsiArchives,

Jul 2

New Jersey Gov. Woodrow Wilson, Virginia Alpha 1879, nominated 7/2/1912 as Democratic Party candidate for President.

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@ChiOArchives,

Jul 3Chattanooga, TN

The badge of 2013-15 Jean Mrasek & the NPC Delegate badge

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@PiPhiHistorian (me!),

Mar 2

On the badge Grace Goodhue Coolidge wore as a student at the University of Vermont

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and @PhiGamArchives.

May 18

5/18/1893 First Pig Dinner held at the University of California; today it is an international tradition.

History also appears on GLO’s HQ twitter feeds:

May 15

What was campus like for our Founders? Here’s in 1874. at .

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May 8

In 2009, Anh Cao made history as the First Vietnamese-American to serve in Congress in 2009 – 2011.

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May 16

One of the most awesome Triangle gavels ever made. Great job VCU!

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Jun 23

Theta archive received 1922-1923 image of from 2 members!

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Jul 2

Happy Birthday, Brother Thurgood Marshall [Nu, ’26]!

 

Jun 21

21JUN2001: Brother US Merchant Marine WWII Vet John “Carroll” O’Connor passed away

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Jun 19
Famous Beta Fri: James K. Patterson, Hanover 1856, is the longest serving univ. president in U.S. history (Kentucky).
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Jun 6

After parachuting into France on , Beta Eta/‘s Ben Vandervoort continued to lead despite a broken ankle.

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Jun 4

to 1939 when Alpha Delta Theta made the surprise announcement at Congress they were merging w !

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Jun 23

This June marks the 90th Anniversary of THE ANCHOR, our National Magazine! Learn more here:

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May 21

May 26

Significant Sig John Wayne, SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA 1929, would have turned 108 today. All honor to his name.

May 26

… Celebrating with this look into the archives

***

Congratulations to:

Summer Priester, an Alpha Delta Pi, was recently crowned Miss United States (not to be confused with Miss USA).

13h13 hours ago

I am so in love with this!!! Extremely blessed & proud to be a part of AΔΠ and to have the support of my sisters!!

and Andreia Gibau, Alpha Sigma Alpha, the new Miss Teen United States.

12h12 hours ago

Follow the journey of the new Miss Teen United States, AΣA Andreia Gibau, Gamma Phi Chapter!

Andreia

Andreia Gibau

© Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com, 2014. All rights reserved. If  you enjoyed this post, please sign up for updates. Also follow me on twitter @GLOHistory and Pinterest www.pinterest.com/glohistory/

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The All But “Truth About Greek Life”

Posted on July 8, 2015 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

That it is summer means that the recruitment chairs for fraternity and sorority chapters as well as the chairs for the corresponding college/university coordinating councils (Panhellenic, Interfraternity, Multi-Cultural, PanHellenic, etc.) are hard at work spreading news on social media. This summer a new graphic has joined my old nemesis, the poster entitled “The truth about Greek life.”  The new graphic features a red cup but also includes many of the erroneous “facts.” 

In the 1970’s, Wilson Heller, who wrote the Fraternity Insider newsletters, was railing about the “all but 2 U.S. Presidents” stat touted on the poster and in the red cup graphic below. Heller was calling the statistic inaccurate in the 1970s and he was correct. The statistic hasn’t been valid since the 1960s, and, even then, Heller took offense because some of those Presidents were honorary members. More than 40 years later, that stat is still being touted as true, when it is patently false. If you’ve read this blog for any length of time, you know it’s one of my pet peeves. (See http://wp.me/p20I1i-Vb and http://wp.me/p20I1i-11G)

Another untruth used on recruitment tools is  “Both female U.S. Supreme Court Justices are Greek.” News flash, folks, it’s 2015 and four women have served as U.S. Supreme Court Justices. Only one, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Alpha Epsilon Phi, is a member of a National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) organization. Although there are rumors to the contrary, Sandra Day O’Connor is not a sorority woman. She attended Stanford University when there were no NPC chapters on campus. (A few of my archivist friends and I share common experiences searching for Sandra Day O’Connor connections, in pre-internet days, to our organization because our alumnae were absolutely certain she was a member of our respective organizations. It was funny when we all compared notes on this!) (A friend added this point of information. “This poster bothers me, too. Supreme Court Justices – at the federal level – are NOT ELECTED. Jeez… maybe a civics lesson is needed in new member education as well.”) (Edited 10/27/2020 – Amy Coney Barrett is an initiate of the Kappa Delta chapter at Rhodes College.)

Another incorrect “fact” is that the first American woman in space was a sorority woman. Sally Ride was not, but there have been many others who are. See http://wp.me/p20I1i-le for that list.

Fraternity and sorority life has so much to offer and I consider myself a cheerleader for the experience (and if you doubt me, read the other 600+ posts on here), but I cringe when I see these claims. The truth is much more effective and compelling than these outdated, specious statistics.

While some of these

While some of these “facts” are true, others clearly are not.

It really should be called the

It really should be called the “Not So Truth”

Using incorrect information is shooting ourselves in the foot. If your college/university council wants to use these items in social media, please alert the person who posted the information that these “facts” are not true. Let’s put this false advertising to rest.

Fraternity Stats At A Glance (from the North-American Interfraternity Conference website)

  • Total Undergraduate Fraternity Membership: 372,090*
  • Number of Men Initiated in 2013-2014: 98,561*
  • 6136 Chapters on roughly 800 campuses*
  • Community Service Hours: 3.8 million hours*
  • Philanthropic Dollars Raised: $20.3 million*
  • All-Fraternity GPA: 2.912 versus All-Male GPA: 2.892^
  • Greeks in 112th US Congress: 42 Senators (42%), 101 Congressmen (23%)
  • Greeks in 113th US Congress: 39 Senators (39%), 106 Congressmen (24%)
  • 50% of the Top 10 Fortune 500 CEOs are fraternity men; 15% of Fortune 100 CEOs are Greek
  • 44% of all US Presidents have been members of a social fraternity
  • 31% of all US Supreme Court Justices have been fraternity alumni
(*) Compiled from Member Fraternities in the NIC Standards Compliance Report for the 2013-2014 Academic Year

(^) Compiled from campuses submitting the NIC Academic Report form for the 2012-2013 Academic Year

National Panhellenic Conference statistics from 2013-14

• 575 College Panhellenics

• 672 total campuses with NPC chapter(s)

• 977,567 hours donated to community service efforts

• $5,793,394.84 raised for philanthropies

© Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com, 2014. All rights reserved. If  you enjoyed this post, please sign up for updates. Also follow me on twitter @GLOHistory and Pinterest www.pinterest.com/glohistory/

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Grace and Calvin Coolidge, Baseball, and the Two O’Haras

Posted on July 6, 2015 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

On Friday, July 3, 2015 another president made his debut in the fourth-inning mascot race during the Washington Nationals baseball game. It happened to take place on the evening before his birthday. The new guy just happened to win the race although there may have been some elbows thrown. Joining George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abe Lincoln, William Howard Taft (Psi Upsilon), and Teddy Roosevelt (Delta Kappa Epsilon), was Calvin Coolidge (Phi Gamma Delta).

washington-nationals-calvin-coolidge-racing-president

Frankly, it is my opinion that the mascot looks nothing like President Coolidge. A friend sent me the link to a Boston NPR’s station article discussing the Coolidge mascot which suggested that perhaps the wrong Coolidge had been chosen (http://bitly.com/1C6RXHU).

President Coolidge throwing out the first pitch while his wife looks on.

President Coolidge throwing out the first pitch while his wife looks on.

Grace Goodhue Coolidge (Pi Beta Phi) absolutely loved baseball. Coolidge scholar David Pietrusza wrote, “Known for decades as ‘The First Lady of Baseball,’ she was a fixture at Opening Days, the World Series, ordinary games at Fenway (and in her era there were many ‘ordinary’ games at said park), and camped in front of her radio at home – tuned to any game within broadcast range.” Although televisions were starting to become readily available in the 1950s, she preferred a radio and didn’t care much for television; that was a sentiment she shared often with a group of Pi Beta Phi friends who formed a Round Robin letter in 1915. The letters continued until the members of the group passed away.

While at the University of Vermont, Grace Goodhue served as her chapter’s Corresponding Secretary. In a chapter letter published in the July 1901 Arrow of Pi Beta Phi, she wrote about a baseball game between UVM and Syracuse University, ” During the last week there has been a tennis tournament here with Dartmouth, in which we won, and if our baseball had only been a little more successful we should be feeling in pretty good spirits. We wish to say to our Syracuse sisters that it is now our turn to offer congratulations to them and we do so most heartily, but with a rather forced smile.” Typically, chapter letters of this era did not contain news about sporting events.

According to Pietrusza, in the 1950s Grace wrote to one of her friends, “I venture to say that not one of you cares a hoot about baseball but to me it is my very life.” I think the quote is from one of her Round Robin letters, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. Here are some other quotes from the Robin letters as they pertain to baseball. 

I listen to the broadcasts of the baseball games and do not feel that I am wasting time because I work on the needlepoint seats for the childrens’ dining room chairs at the same time. I have been hoping that the World Series games would be played in Boston this fall between the Red Sox and the Braves but the Sox are not doing very well. I am tuned in now to a night game between the Dodgers and the Cardinals in St. Louis. (June 3, 1948)

The base ball season is in full swing. Mrs. Adams, Doctor Collins and I drove to Boston Friday, saw a game that night and one Saturday afternoon between the Braves and the Giants and drove home after the Saturday game. The Braves are on the top of the National League at the moment. I am hopeful of a World Series between the Braves and the Red Sox. (May 2, 1949)

The baseball season will be in full swing in the middle of this month and, you know me, I shall be listening to the broadcasts of the games when not actually present. I am going to a pre-season game in Springfield next Thursday when the Red Sox play the Springfield Cubs, a farm team for the Chicago Cubs. (April 7, 1951)

***

 On June 3, Kelli O’Hara, the Gamma Phi Beta who is starring in the King and I and winner of a Tony Award for her preformance in the show, sent a video twitter message to Kelley O’Hara, the Stanford University Kappa Kappa Gamma who played on the U.S. Olympic Soccer Team and the winning World Cup Soccer Team. To view the message see

Jul 3

this is to you from me:).

Congratulations to the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team!

© Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com, 2015. All Rights Reserved. If  you enjoyed this post, please sign up for updates. Also follow me on twitter @GLOHistory and Pinterest www.pinterest.com/glohistory/

Posted in Delta Kappa Epsilon, First Ladies, Fran Favorite, Gamma Phi Beta, Grace Coolidge, Kappa Kappa Gamma, Phi Gamma Delta, Pi Beta Phi, Presidents, Psi Upsilon, Stanford University, The Arrow of Pi Beta Phi, University of Vermont | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Grace and Calvin Coolidge, Baseball, and the Two O’Haras

On the 4th – Calvin Coolidge, Charles Dawes, and Lou Gehrig – Fraternity Men All!

Posted on July 4, 2015 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

Last week, while I was at the Pi Beta Phi Convention, one of the first things past Grand President Sarah Ruth “Sis” Mullis said to me, after she gave me one of her patented Sis hugs, was “Frances (and she’s one of the few people who can call me Frances), if there is the slightest opportunity for you to write about Grace Coolidge, you will find it and run with it!” I laughed and I agreed with her, especially since my blog post that day included information about Grace Coolidge’s trip to the 1915 Pi Phi Convention. It is almost impossible for me to talk about the 30th President of the United States without mentioning his charming and graceful wife.

John Calvin Coolidge. Jr. was born on July 4, 1872 in Plymouth Notch, Vermont. He attended Amherst College in Massachusetts where he became a member of Phi Gamma Delta. After graduation, while working as a lawyer in nearby Northampton, he met Grace Goodhue, a Pi Beta Phi who had recently graduated from the University of Vermont. She was working at the Clarke School for the Deaf. They married in the Goodhue family home in Burlington, Vermont. Although they spent their married life living in Massachusetts with a side trip to Washington, D.C., Vermont seemed to be always in their hearts.

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About a month ago, I found a signed Charles Dawes book while I was sorting books for the Friends of the Carbondale Public Library book sale. I have been meaning to write about Dawes, who served as Coolidge’s Vice President from 1925-29.

dawes book

The inscription looks like "Swayer (or Swager) Shesby (or Shesly). I have been unable to find anything. This book was later given to a law library and then discarded by the library. Any information on the former of the book would be much appreciated.

A book inscribed by Dawes to J. Swagar Sherley, a U.S. Representative from Kentucky. This book was later given to a law library and then discarded by the library.

Dawes was a member of the Marietta College chapter of Delta Upsilon. Last week, while at convention at the Chicago Hilton, the answer to the question “Who was the hotel’s first registered guest?” gave me another nudge.

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I had to ride the elevator for a while to get a picture of this screen showing the answer. The Chicago Hilton was known then known as the Stevens Hotel.

Dawes, a banker and politician, served as Comptroller of the Currency and the first Director of the Bureau of the Budget. After his retirement from politics, he served as Ambassador to the United Kingdom. He won a Nobel Peace Prize for his work on World War I reparations, the Dawes Plan. He is the only Vice-President who can claim a Nobel Prize and a #1 pop song.

In 1911, while serving as a Chicago bank president, Dawes wrote a composition, Melody in A Major. A friend took the sheet music to a publisher; Dawes was surprised one day to see his face on sheet music in a music store. The tune, often called Dawes’ Melody, was popular (listen to it played on a piano roll).

In 1951, Carl Sigman added lyrics to it changing the name to It’s All in the Game. In the fall of 1958, Tommy Edward’s recording spent six weeks as the American Billboard’s #1 hit. Since then it has remained a pop standard. It played prominently in the film Rocket Boys. 

***

July 4, 1939 was “Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day” at Yankee Stadium. On that day, baseball great Lou Gehrig, Phi Delta Theta, became the first major league baseball player to have his number retired. There are still people who were at Yankee Stadium that day, but those who would remember his words are in their 90s. Gehrig’s nickname, the Iron Horse, came from his prowess on the field. He played in 2130 consecutive games, a record which took decades to break.

In the last half of the 1938 season, things seemed a bit off for him. He collapsed at spring training in 1939, and at his wife’s urging he found himself at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. After six days of testing, on his 36th birthday, June 19, he received the grim diagnosis. He had Amyotrophic Lateral  Sclerosis (ALS), a disease where motor function slowly fades away while the mind remains sharp. He died June 2, 1941. Today, ALS is better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

Phi Delta Theta has a partnership with the ALS Association. Chapters raise funds for the Association and each chapter is encouraged to connect with the local ALS Association chapters to assist area residents suffering from the disease.

Lou_Gehrig_fundraiser247

Each year since 1955, the fraternity presents the Lou Gehrig Memorial Award to the MLB player who exemplifies Gehrig’s spirit and character. The plaque is located at the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, NY.

Seventy-six years ago today, in front of a packed house at Yankee Stadium, Gehrig gave his farewell speech. He did it without notes and spoke from the heart. You can see parts of his speech and all the MLB first-basemen reciting it with him. It’s at http://foxs.pt/1lCkcPG. If you prefer to read the words, here they are.

For the past two weeks you have been reading about the bad break I got. Yet today, I consider myself the luckiest man on the face of the earth. I have been in ballparks for seventeen years and have never received anything but kindness and encouragement from you fans.

When you look around, wouldn’t you it consider it a privilege to associate yourself with such as fine looking a man as is standing in uniform today.

Look at these grand men. Which of you wouldn’t consider it the highlight of his career just to associate with them for even one day?

Sure, I’m lucky. Who wouldn’t consider it an honor to have known Jacob Ruppert; also the builder of baseball’s greatest empire, Ed Barrow; to have spent six years with that wonderful little fellow Miller Huggins; then to have spent the next nine years with that outstanding leader, that smart student of psychology—the best manager in baseball today—Joe McCarthy! Sure I am lucky.

When the New York Giants, a team you would give your right arm to beat, and vice versa, sends you a gift— that’s something. When everybody down to the groundskeepers and those boys in white coats remember you with trophies—that’s something.

When you have a wonderful mother-in-law who takes sides with you in squabbles with her own daughter, that’s something. When you have a father and a mother who work all their lives so that you can have an education and build your body, it’s a blessing! When you have a wife who has been a tower of strength and shown more courage than you dreamed existed, that’s the finest I know.

So I close in saying that I might have been given a bad break; but I have an awful lot to live for!”

***

To read more about President Coolidge’s life as a Phi Gamma Delta member.

To read more about his lovely wife, Grace Goodhue Coolidge, a charter member of the Vermont Beta Chapter of Pi Beta Phi.

© Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com, 2015. All Rights Reserved. If  you enjoyed this post, please sign up for updates. Also follow me on twitter @GLOHistory and Pinterest www.pinterest.com/glohistory/

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Convention Reflections on Canada Day!

Posted on July 1, 2015 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

The 70th Biennial Convention of Pi Beta Phi has come and gone. How wonderful to see old friends, make new ones, and miss the ones who could not be there. Past Pi Beta Phi Grand Presidents Carolyn Lichtenberg and Beth Beatty were paid tribute during Sunday’s Memorial Service. Their legacy daughters were in attendance and spoke about their mothers. That was followed by the initiation of four alumnae members including Ellen Swain, the Archivist at the Student Life and Culture Archives at the University of Illinois. The convention festivities were wrapped up with a post convention trip to Holt House, the home in Monmouth, Illinois, where Pi Beta Phi was founded on April 28, 1867. I had the honor of being stationed in the Founders’ Room and seeing the emotions on the faces of the members who were in the room for the very first time. It is an experience I will never forget. As I boarded the train this morning, a DePauw University Phi Delta Theta member who was in line behind me in line was kind enough to help me get all my heavy bags on the train.

In the Founders' Room at Holt House. Astute viewers will spot the back of former Grand President Sis Mullis head in the center of the picture closest to the bed.

In the Founders’ Room at Holt House. Astute viewers will spot the back of former Grand President Sis Mullis in the center of the picture closest to the bed.

Today is Canada Day, the national day of Canada. Greek-letter organizations (GLOs) have been a part of Canadian higher education since 1879. Zeta Psi became the first fraternity in Canada when its chapter at the University of Toronto was chartered on March 27, 1879. Zeta Psi’s Grand Chapter met in 1877 and it was agreed that the fraternity should venture into Canada. The Xi Chapter at the University of Michigan was given the task of founding a chapter at the University of Toronto. It was a challenging task given what travel and communications were like in the 1870s, but the Michigan Zeta Psi’s were successful. The chapter designation, Theta Xi, honored the efforts of the Michigan chapter by incorporating the “Xi” into its name.

The chapter remained the sole fraternity on the University of Toronto campus until the 1890s when they were joined by Kappa Alpha Society, Alpha Delta Phi, Phi Kappa Sigma, Delta Kappa Epsilon, Delta Upsilon, and Delta Chi. The first National Panhellenic Conference (NPC) women’s organization at the University of Toronto was Kappa Alpha Theta. According to Theta’s 1956 history, We Who Wear Kites,  “A letter from M.R Robertson of the University of Toronto explained that ‘one of the Zetas’ had given the seven girls of a local group ‘information about society matters and also your address.’ After favorable action by the Convention in 1887, Anna Louis Benham of Iota (Cornell University) was sent to Toronto to initiate the seven.”

The Sigma Chapter was chartered in 1887 giving Theta the distinction of being the first women’s fraternity in Canada. The faculty had a strong feeling against the Greek-letter organizations and the seven women who were initiated kept their membership a secret. By 1899, the chapter became dormant.  In 1905, Sigma Chapter was revived. It was was soon followed by Alpha Phi in 1906 and Pi Beta Phi in 1908.

In 1883, McGill University’s fraternity system came to life when Zeta Psi chartered a second Canadian chapter.  Again, as in the case of the University of Toronto, Zeta Psi was the only sole fraternity there in the 1880s. In the 1890s, it was joined by Alpha Phi Delta, Delta Upsilon, and Kappa Alpha Society. In 1922, Delta Phi Epsilon became the first NPC group to establish a chapter at McGill.

Today, there have been more than 150 chapters of North-American Interfraternity Conference (NIC) men’s fraternities and more than 75 NPC organization chapters at Canadian institutions. About three-quarters of those chapters are currently active. There are also many local fraternities and sororities.

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© Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com, 2015. All Rights Reserved. If  you enjoyed this post, please sign up for updates. Also follow me on twitter @GLOHistory and Pinterest www.pinterest.com/glohistory/

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Happy 160th Sigma Chi and 95th Sigma Tau Gamma

Posted on June 29, 2015 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

Convention Brain is a malady that is hard to explain to those who have never been at a fraternity or sorority convention. It is my excuse for being a day late with Founders’ Day greetings for Sigma Chi and Sigma Tau Gamma. Sigma Chi was founded on June 28, 1855 and Sigma Tau Gamma on June 28, 1920.

Sigma Chi was founded at Miami University in Miami, Ohio. It is one of the Miami Triad. Sigma Tau Gamma was founded at Central Missouri State Teachers College, now the University of Central Missouri, in Warrenton, Missouri. Warrenton is where the fraternity headquarters is located. 

With general session starting in less than an hour, I offer this old favorite.

Garland “Jake” Stahl was perhaps the most famous of the University of Illinois’ early athletes. He was the captain of the 1902 Illini football team as well as a star on the baseball team. A member of the Kappa Kappa Chapter of Sigma Chi, his nickname “Jake” was given to him by a chapter member.

At Homecoming 1922, shortly after his death, the chapter’s alumni reminisced about their departed brother. One told the story of his nickname, “Garland Stahl came over from Elkhart (Illinois), and he was as green a country boy as they make ‘em. In his freshman year he joined the Sigma Chi Fraternity, and as he played the cornet, he was immediately made a member of the house orchestra. One night a special feature at the house was to be an orchestra program, but when the time came to begin, Stahl was nowhere to be found. The fellows searched the house and finally found him hiding away on the second floor. They dragged him down and asked him what the trouble was. ‘Aw, I ain’t got no lip,’ said Stahl, and he started to walk away, when Jack Allen, 1902, one of the musicians, stopped him with, ‘Come on, ya darn old hay jake, and play anyway.’ Stahl played, but from that time on everyone who had heard the affair called him ‘Jake’ until it just grew into his name.” (The Sigma Chi Quarterly, November 1922, 42(1), p. 62).

At a home game with Michigan in 1903, Stahl hit  a game-winning homer “so hard and so high that it struck amid the upper limbs of a tree almost down to the football field.” The soft maple tree became known as the “Jake Stahl Tree” until the late 1940s when it was cut down because of advanced decay.

In 1903, after graduating, Stahl joined the Boston Red Sox as a first baseman. Later he was transferred to Washington, Chicago, New York and then back to Washington as player- manager. He went back to the Red Sox as manager.

In 1906, he married Jennie Mahan, a classmate and a member of the Delta Chapter of Kappa Alpha Theta at the University of Illinois. Her father was founder and president of the Washington Park National Bank in Chicago. In the off-season, Stahl worked for the bank. Later he became the bank’s president but his health failed. The family moved to the West Coast in an unsuccessful effort to regain his health. He died on September 18, 1922. At his interment in Chicago, his Sigma Chi chapter placed on his grave a large white cross of Sigma Chi roses. Stahl had been a loyal Kappa Kappa alumnus, donating generously to the building fund and giving the chapter a Victrola.

Garland "Jake" Stahl

Garland “Jake” Stahl

 

© Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com, 2015. All Rights Reserved. If  you enjoyed this post, please sign up for updates. Also follow me on twitter @GLOHistory and Pinterest www.pinterest.com/glohistory/

 

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Convention Bound, Choo Choo! #reachingnewheights

Posted on June 25, 2015 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

As I pack for the Pi Beta Phi Convention in Chicago, I can’t help but think back on a convention which took place 100 years ago. In 1915, Berkeley, California was the site of Pi Phi’s first west coast convention. (A good many other Greek-letter organizations also met there that year. It was a popular spot because of the Pan-American Exposition. I’ll get to a post about that someday.)

One of my favorite Pi Phis, Grace Goodhue Coolidge, attended that 1915 convention. At the 1901 Syracuse Convention, she served as the University of Vermont chapter’s delegate. After her marriage to a Northampton, Massachusetts, lawyer, Vermont native Calvin Coolidge, a Phi Gamma Delta, she helped found of the Western Massachusetts Alumnae Club of Pi Beta Phi. She was elected Province Vice-President and it was in that capacity that she attended the 1915 Convention.

The Round Robin letter began after the convention and Grace and more than a dozen of her Pi Phi friends sent a Round Robin letter from 1915 until their deaths. During the White House years, one of the Robin letters was confiscated by the security detail until the First Lady explained the reasoning behind the seemingly group of random letters.

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