On April 28, 1867, a college society of women modeled after men’s Greek-letter fraternities was founded at Monmouth College in Monmouth, Illinois. Its name was I. C. Sorosis and its grip, the handshake of its members, was accompanied by the secret motto Pi Beta Phi (Spring, 1936).
The founders were Emma Brownlee [Kilgore], Margaret Campbell, Libbie Brook [Gaddis], Ada Bruen [Grier], Clara Brownlee [Hutchinson], Fannie Whitenack [Libbey], Rosa Moore, Jennie Nicol, M.D., Inez Smith [Soule], Fannie Thomson, Jennie Horne [Turnbull], and Nancy Black [Wallace]. In 1888, the name was officially changed to what its motto had been, Pi Beta Phi (Helmick, 1915).
Pi Beta Phi was founded at Holt House in Monmouth, Illinois on April 28, 1867.
I. C. Sorosis founder Ada Bruen Grier (personal communication, June 22, 1893) offered her recollections of the founding of I. C. Sorosis, “The origin of the society was simply from the girlish impulse of a few of the students at Monmouth College who felt the need of close friendships, and desired to have some institution which could be called their own. The college was full of Greek-letter societies for the young men but there was only one small society, other than those purely literary in their purpose for the young women. It was called “The A” for what reason I do not now know, but it was without much enterprise and was not up to the standard some of us had fixed in our minds.”
During the early years any member was vested with the power to establish a chapter in any collegiate institution provided she had the consent of the Alpha chapter at Monmouth College (Lewis, 1899).
The preamble of the I. C. Sorosis constitution reflected the founders’ intention of finding fellowship and “kindred spirits” among the other college women, “Whereas it was deemed necessary, in order to cultivate sincere friendship, establish the real object of life, and promote the happiness of humanity, we, the undersigned ladies of Monmouth College do ordain and establish the following constitution” (Lewis, 1899, p. 4).
Forty years later, founder Fannie Whitenack Libbey (1907) recalled the fraternity’s founding at Monmouth College, “Three of our secrets were these: The first secret was our birthplace. It was quite generally believed that we were a chapter from an eastern college. This secret we kept for about fifteen years. Then it was our greatest secret. Now that we were the Alpha chapter is our greatest pride. Our second secret where and from whom we secured our pins. Had it not been known that our pins were from Chicago, it would soon have been known that we like Topsy – never had no father, no mother, no nothing, just growed. Our third secret was the meaning we attached to the magic I. C.” (p. 270).
The summer after the founding of I. C. Sorosis, the group got together at the home of Fannie Thomson in Oquawka, Illinois, and had its first convention. Founder Emma Brownlee Kilgore later described it: “Well laid plans were made of how we would extend the I. C. reputation of being the first woman’s secret society; how we would enter other colleges; no high schools were to be considered; and we also unanimously decided that no college fraternity among the young men should be better, wiser, or stronger than ours (Helmick, 1915, p. 86).
In October of 1867, Brook postponed her college work due to eye problems or “opthalmia” as she called it. During the summer she persuaded her parents to let her forgo another year at Monmouth. “Believing that I could accomplish more in a school where I was not acquainted and where there would be no social demands on my time, and with the mental reservation that it might mean the extension of I. C.” she convinced her parents to allow her to change institutions (Gaddis, 1904, p. 237).
In September of 1868, she enrolled at Iowa Wesleyan University in Mount Pleasant, Iowa. She described it thusly, “During my stay in ‘I. W. U.’ I succeeded in organizing a chapter of I. C., the first in the history of expansion” (“Our founders,” 1917, p. 461). On December 21, 1868, the second chapter of I. C. Sorosis came into being. Gaddis noted “On New Year’s eve we wore our arrows for the first time to the Beta banquet” (p. 461). Iowa Alpha charter member Jessie Donnell-Thomas (1916) stated that initiation was “carefully planned as not
to interfere with study or recitation hours” (p. 482).
Delta chapter of I. C. Sorosis was founded at the Mount Pleasant Female Seminary in Mount Pleasant, Iowa. The chapter was installed by Prude Kibben and I. C. founder Nancy Black [Wallace] in November 1869. It closed in 1871 due to the Seminary administration’s opposition to secret societies. Most of its members were absorbed into the Iowa Alpha chapter also located in Mount Pleasant (Spring, 1936).
In 1870, Kate F. Preston left Mount Pleasant and founded a chapter at Indiana Asbury College (now De Pauw University), in Greencastle, Indiana. Epsilon Chapter of I. C. Sorosis was in existence until 1877 and there were 13 initiates.
Mary Brook, Libbie’s sister, followed on the mission of expansion, entering Lombard College at Galesburg, Illinois. There, in 1872, she established the Illinois Beta chapter.
Coeducation and the History of Women’s Fraternities 1867-1902 by Frances DeSimone Becque, 2002, Dissertation, Southern Illinois University, pages 19-22, all rights reserved.
Hopefully the entire disseration will be available on this web-site very soon.
