Today is the date upon which Pi Beta Phi was founded. Twelve young women who were attending Monmouth College in Monmouth, Illinois, established it on April 28, 1867.
The staircase the Pi Beta Phi founders climbed while on their way to the founding of the organization at Holt House in Monmouth, Illinois.
Monmouth College opened on September 3, 1856, and was incorporated about six months later on February 17, 1857. Included in the 1869-70 Monmouth College catalog were the names and hometowns of all students as well as professions of alumni. There were 219 alumni listed in the catalog. Graduation class size ranged from 4 in 1858 to 39 in 1869. In 1870, less than one percent of all females aged 18 through 21 years were enrolled in higher education, according to educational historian Mabel Newcomer.
Four former members of the Holt House Committee along with the painting of Pi Beta Phis 12 founders.
Those who attended coeducational institutions sought support systems and friends with whom they could share their educational pursuits. Although most colleges had literary and debating societies that females could join, some women were seeking closer ties. There were four literary societies at Monmouth College, two for men and two for women. The Philadelphian and Eccritean were male societies. Amateurs des Belles Lettres (ABL) and Aletheorian were the female literary societies. The men’s fraternity system had been established and chapters were located at many colleges. Therefore, there was a model upon which to create women’s fraternities. The women’s fraternity movement began in the Midwest soon after the end of the Civil War. I.C. Sorosis, today known by its original Greek motto, Pi Beta Phi, was founded on April 28, 1867, at Monmouth College in Illinois. It was an institution supported by the Presbyterians. Kappa Alpha Theta came to life at Indiana Asbury University (now DePauw University), a Methodist supported institution in Greencastle, Indiana, in January of 1870. Kappa Kappa Gamma made its debut at Monmouth College in October of that year. In 1870, Monmouth, Illinois, was a city of 6,000. It was accessible via the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad and the Rockford, Rock Island and St. Louis Railroad. The 1869-70 catalog boasted “Ladies and Gentleman are admitted to all the privileges of the College on the same footing.” It appears that about a third of the students during that academic year were women. At that time, Monmouth’s library had 1,500 volumes. The collection of James Barnett, D.D., who spent 17 years as a missionary at Cairo, Egypt, had been purchased by the College. It contained “ancient coins, geological specimens from Sinai and regions about the Red Sea, and many articles of interest to students of Bible History.” There was also a cabinet of geological specimens from the state of Illinois.
The expenses for the college year were about $30. Music students were charged for lessons and piano time. “Soldiers and Soldiers’ children, unable to pay, are admitted to all the privileges of the College without charge for tuition,” according to the catalog. It was also noted that the Trustees might need to increase the $2.00 incidental fee for the following year.
There were no residence halls. Students boarding in private homes were notified it cost $4 or $5 per week to do so. Two of Pi Beta Phi’s founders rented a room and boarded at the home of Jacob Holt.
Monmouth College offered two degrees. The “A.B.” was awarded to students who completed and passed examinations in the Classical course. “B.S.” degree was conferred on those who completed and passed exams in the Scientific course. For the 1869-70 academic year there were 370 students enrolled in all courses, including the Preparatory and Mercantile programs. The Mercantile program consisted of single entry bookkeeping course and one on business forms. The Preparatory program was a high school type program to prepare students for collegiate study.
1869-70 Monmouth College catalog, courtesy of Hewes Library
Women’s fraternities provided their members a safe haven, moral support and academic encouragement. Until 1881, when Alpha Phi’s second chapter was established at Northwestern University, only four groups – Delta Gamma, Kappa Alpha Theta, Kappa Kappa Gamma, and Pi Beta Phi – formed chapters beyond the founding campus. The National Panhellenic Conference began in 1902. It fostered cooperation on campuses and added structure to the recruitment practices of the organizations.
I like to say that I am an accidental Pi Phi. As a first-generation college student, I had no clue about any of it. I went through rush, as it was then known, strictly to see the insides of the chapter houses. That I became a member is something that still floors me. I remember learning that the organization was founded in Monmouth, Illinois. Frankly, as a New Yorker, Illinois was somewhere “out there” to the west of the Hudson River. Never did I once think that I would be in the very room where the organization was founded, nor that I would be entrusted with the care of its history. At that point, I did not think about things like that. I had not yet realized that the more I gave of myself to Pi Beta Phi, the more I would get in return. Thank you New York Alpha for extending me an invitation to membership in Pi Beta Phi. I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to be one of your number.
