Alpha Delta Phi

Founding

When Samuel Eells arrived on campus at Hamilton College, he found two existing literary societies, the Phoenix and the Philopeuthian, the latter of which he reluctantly joined. Eells quickly became disenchanted with both societies' unscrupulous recruiting tactics and considered creating his own society which would disavow what he described as jealous and unsavory competition between the two. Eells proposed to select members from both the Phoenix and the Philopeuthian and found a new society of limited membership based on "the loftiest of intellectual and moral ideals."

On October 29, 1832, Eells gathered four other members, two from the Phoenix and two from the Philopeuthian, to a meeting in his room. The other men were Lorenzo Latham, John Curtiss Underwood, Oliver Andrew Morse and Henry Lemuel Storrs. At that meeting Eells wrote the constitution and he and Latham designed the fraternity's emblem and symbols. Later in the year, other members were added and the first chapter of the Alpha Delta Phi was in full operation by the beginning of 1833.

Alpha Delta Phi was the first fraternity to establish a chapter west of the Appalachian Mountains when it formed a chapter at Miami University in 1835. This chapter preceded the formation of three national fraternities at Miami University known as the Miami Triad in the years that followed.

The Alpha Delta Phi Fraternity is a charter member of the North-American Interfraternity Conference (formerly known as the National Interfraternity Conference; NIC). A Brother of Alpha Delta Phi, Hamilton W. Mabie (Williams College, class of 1867), was the first President of the NIC. The Alpha Delta Phi Fraternity is today still a member of the NIC; the Alpha Delta Phi Society is not.

Alpha Delta Phi is both a social fraternity and a literary society. As part of this focus, the Samuel Eells Literary and Educational Foundation sponsors annual literary competitions, which awards cash prizes.

Chapters

In August 2015, the fraternity had 33 chapters and 1 affiliate, the oldest of which is at Hamilton College. Its regional alumni organization, the Midwest Association of Alpha Delta Phi, is more than 125 years old. Alpha Delta Phi also has the third oldest continuously-operating chapter in the North American Fraternity System, which is also the second oldest Alpha chapter, placed at Hamilton College.

At Yale University, it was mostly brothers of Alpha Delta Phi who were invited to join the university's top-ranked senior society Skull and Bones. Issues with the number of Alpha Delta Phis tapped for Skull and Bones also led to the creation of Yale's second society, Scroll and Key. Students at Harvard formed a chapter of Alpha Delta Phi but disaffiliated to form the independent final club, the A.D.

Cornell chapter

In 1877, the Cornell University chapter's alumni group built its first house for the undergraduates, which has been described as the "first house in America built solely for fraternity use." Financed by 19th century entrepreneur Martin McVoy, the house served the brothers until the turn of the century. The chapter has since moved to a different location on campus - into a house designed by John Russell Pope - but the original chapter house, designed and built by William Henry Miller, still stands.

The chapter is also known for its "Goat House," a multi-sided, windowless room designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, which has served as the fraternity's meeting room since 1903.

Dartmouth chapter

Alpha Delta Phi's Dartmouth College chapter was the inspiration for National Lampoon's Animal House. The movie was co-written by Chris Miller and Doug Kenney. Miller based his writings on his own fraternity experiences at the chapter. The chapter was affiliated with Alpha Delta Phi from 1846 until 1969, when it broke away from the national organization and formed an independent one, Alpha Delta.

Wisconsin chapter

In 1897 seven men founded a local fraternity, Phi Rho Beta, with two definite aims: (1) to promote character, leadership, scholarship and brotherly feeling in its members, and (2) to found a Chapter of Alpha Delta Phi on the University of Wisconsin campus. In May 1902, at the Annual Convention of Alpha Delta Phi, the petition for a Wisconsin Charter was granted.

The original Chapter House was a frame house located at 610 Langdon Street. In 1916 a house at 640 North Henry Street, in Madison, was purchased from Thomas and Mary Brittingham, a wealthy lumber family that made significant donations to the University of Wisconsin. Thomas Brittingham served on the UW Board of Regents. Their donations include the statue of Abraham Lincoln on Bascom Hill and the Brittingham Fund that helped build the Chazen Museum of Art. The new house had rooming accommodations for twenty-three men and the location on the shores of Lake Mendota included a stone boathouse.

As the age and condition of the nearly 60-year-old house had become a burden to the Alumni Association, the structure was razed and a new house was built in 1959. This modern structure housed 44 men and was complete with a large living room, library, dining room, and chapter room. The stone boathouse was preserved and renovated to slow the deterioration trend.

In August 2002, the Chapter hosted the Convention of Alpha Delta Phi, celebrating the Chapter’s 100th year of existence.

In 2011 the 52-year-old structure was expanded by adding two floors to the already four story structure and turning the dormitory style living into an array of apartments. Some common areas were preserved and the stone boathouse was re-renovated.

One hundred and fifteen years after its founding Alpha Delta Phi Wisconsin Chapter is still a strong active organization in The University of Wisconsin community.

The Society

The Fraternity is a retronym used now to distinguish the all-male Alpha Delta Phi Fraternity from the co-ed Alpha Delta Phi Society (discussed below). In general parlance, the Fraternity refers to itself simply as the "Alpha Delta Phi"; the Society uses either the "Alpha Delta Phi Society" or "The Society".

Co-Ed Agreement of 1992

The Brunonian (Brown University) chapter first initiated women into its local membership in November 1973 and this was followed by a proposal at the 1974 national convention to either allow individual chapters to admit women or to do so fraternity-wide. This debate was often contentious with most chapters opposed, some members lobbying for full admission of women but a larger number wanting to ban women altogether or grant them some form of associate membership. In 1992 an Agreement was made that allowed five chapters to withdraw from the fraternity (the Brunonian, Columbia, Middletown (Wesleyan University), Stanford and Bowdoin Chapters) and to allow those chapters wishing to be coeducational to create the Alpha Delta Phi Society separate from the existing Fraternity.

Under the terms of this agreement, the Fraternity and the Society are completely separate and independent legal entities with separate governing bodies. The two organizations are not part of the same entity and do not share membership, except for male members of the society who joined before 1992. Both groups are licensees who share the Greek letters and intellectual property such as history and songs. The Society espouses "home rule," letting each chapter decide whether or not to co-educate. To date, all of its chapters are coeducational. There are limitations on both organizations as to where they can have chapters, and there are limitations on the use of the name Alpha Delta Phi by the Society.