Delta Beta Phi

Delta Beta Phi Fraternity
ΔΒΦ
Founded	1878 (1878) Cornell University
Type	Social
Scope	National
Colors	Garnet and   Black
Symbol	crossed keys, star
Publication	Delta Beta Phi Quarterly
Chapters	6 (all dormant) Later up to 25

Delta Beta Phi (ΔΒΦ) was a small national men's fraternity founded on 1878 at Cornell University, soon forming six chapters. The national disbanded in 1882, but may have been briefly restored through the 1920s.

History

Delta Beta Phi was formed in 1878 at Cornell University. Its four Founders were:

• J.D. Hamrick
• I.W. Kelly
• J.S. Monroe
• Willard Olney

The original Cornell chapter was cheekily nicknamed the "Dead Bits" on campus on account of the first two letters of its name. It expanded quickly to form six chapters in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic states, creating five in its first year. Two of its chapters, Psi and Delta came from earlier, local societies. The Fraternity did not follow strict Greek letter alphabetization in naming its chapters.

An additional period of expansion may have occurred; additional yearbooks show up to 25 chapters through the 1920s.

Dissolution occurred abruptly in 1882 when the entire society was broken up and appeared to be disbanded; a 1905 history of Cornell gives the fraternity rather short shrift, and is aware only of the original chapter and five successors in its original existence, noting that "[f]rom this time [1876] until 1881 no new chapters appeared at Cornell, if we except Delta Beta Phi, which originated here in 1878, spread to five other institutions, and after four years ceased to exist." An 1880 fraternal publication records that already at that time the fraternity was struggling, describing the Cornell chapter as "disbanded," with the chapter at the University of Pennsylvania seeking to gain recognition by Psi Upsilon, the CCNY chapter likewise petitioning Alpha Delta Phi, and the chapter at Lafayette having "languidly expired." Meanwhile, Alpha Delta Phi sought to poach the nascent Johns Hopkins chapter by offering them commodious new quarters, with the result nearly assured: "no doubt Delta Beta Phi will be minus a chapter soon," comments the author. Nonetheless, the national fraternity, such as it was, strove still to revive its fortunes, disseminating a circular seeking seeking to recruit men for a chapter at Columbia University, albeit unsuccessfully -- indeed, the same publication reported it was "hard at work in establishing new chapters," citing efforts in the South and specifically at the University of Virginia. The languid desuetude of the Lafayette chapter proved short-lived, as it was soon reported to have survived with eight men. The CCNY chapter, however, indeed collapsed and dispersed in roughly equal moieties to Alpha Delta Phi and Theta Delta Chi.

Delta Beta Phi escutcheon and entry from the University of Pennsylvania archives, 1879

As for further developments, according to Baird's 12th ed., the Delta chapter continued on as a local society for two more years. Later information from the Baird's Archive says this group (CCNY) left Delta Beta Phi in 1881 to join Theta Delta Chi. This information is consistent with the ΘΔΧ online chapter list. This chapter appears to have remained active until 1931. The Baird's Archive further goes on to describe the fraternity's reappearance: "Some decades later bona fide yearbooks from Columbia and NYU during the 1920s show this fraternity, claiming up to as many as 25 chapters." The following 17, in an alphabetical list, have been identified:

• Alpha - Cornell University
• Beta - University of Pennsylvania
• Gamma or Pi - Columbia University 1921-193x
• Delta - City University of New York
• Epsilon - Harvard University
• Iota - DePaul University 192x-193x
• Kappa - New York University
• Mu - Ohio State University
• No - Northwestern University
• Omicron - Columbia Dental College
• Pi - Johns Hopkins University
• Rho - University of Washington
• Phi - Lehigh University
• Chi - Crane College 1923-1933
• Psi - University of Virginia
• Psi Deuteron - Lafayette College
• Omega - Stetson University

Symbols and publications

The official badge of the society was a diamond-shaped lozenge, displaying the letters Δ, Β and Φ, with these surmounting a pair of crossed keys. There was a star at each corner of the badge.

The crest was an etching that included an image of the badge at top, displaying other symbolism of the fraternity within a Grecian motif. The crest was in use by the Alpha chapter in the Cornell Cornellian yearbook for the several years it remained active.

The Fraternity's colors were garnet and black.

The Fraternity began a publication, the Delta Beta Phi Quarterly in 1880 or 1881, but this only existed for a single issue.

Chapters

Baird's Manual (12th ed) lists six chapters formed between 1878 and 1882. Dates for disbanding of these six are from Baird's or collegiate yearbooks:

Name	Chartered	Institution	Location	Status	Notes	Reference
Alpha	1878	Cornell University	Ithaca, NY	Disbanded 1882
Phi	1878	Lehigh University	Bethlehem, PA	Disbanded 1882
Sigma	1878	University of Pennsylvania	Philadelphia, PA	Disbanded 1882
Psi	1878	Lafayette College	Easton, PA	Disbanded 1882	Originally a local called Nu Phi Mu.
Delta	1878	City College of New York	New York, NY	Disbanded 1881	Originally a local called Alpha Omega. Became the Phi Deuteron charge of ΘΔΧ in 1881. Reverted into local in 1921. Closed in 1931
Pi	1881	Johns Hopkins University	Baltimore, MD	Disbanded 1885

Additional chapters, as listed in yearbooks should be added once their years of activity have been clarified.