Flat Hat Club: Difference between revisions
changing cat |
added early members, clarified years known to be in existence |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
'''The Flat Hat Club''' (as it was known outside its membership) or '''F.H.C. Society''' was the first of the collegiate [[secret societies]] or fraternities founded in the present United States. |
'''The Flat Hat Club''' (as it was known outside its membership) or '''F.H.C. Society''' was the first of the collegiate [[secret societies]] or fraternities founded in the present United States. |
||
==History== |
|||
The F.H.C. Society was established at [[The College of William and Mary]] in [[Williamsburg, Virginia]] on [[November 11]], [[1750]]. The organization's initials likely stand for the Latin phrases "Fraternitas, Humanitas, et Cognitio" or "Fraternitas Humanitas Cognitioque" (two different renderings of "Brotherhood, Humanity, and Knowledge"). As members of the first American collegiate fraternity in the modern sense, the "brothers" of the F.H.C. devised and employed a secret handshake, wore a silver membership medal, issued certificates of membership, and met regularly for discussion and fellowship. The Society became publicly known as the "Flat Hat Club," in probable allusion to the [[mortarboard cap]]s then commonly worn by all students at the College (now worn at graduation by students at most American universities). |
|||
Another Latin-letter society, the P.D.A. Society (publicly known as "Please Don't Ask"), was founded at William and Mary early in 1773 in imitation of the F.H.C. [[John Heath]], a student at William and Mary who (according to tradition) sought but was refused admission to the F.H.C., in retaliation established the first Greek-letter fraternity, the [[Phi Beta Kappa]] Society. |
Another Latin-letter society, the P.D.A. Society (publicly known as "Please Don't Ask"), was founded at William and Mary early in 1773 in imitation of the F.H.C. [[John Heath]], a student at William and Mary who (according to tradition) sought but was refused admission to the F.H.C., in retaliation established the first Greek-letter fraternity, the [[Phi Beta Kappa]] Society. |
||
The F.H.C. Society faded away in the 1770s (sometime after 1772) as the College of William and Mary felt the effects of the [[American Revolution]]. The group was revived in the twentieth century on September 30, 1920, but again ceased operation during World War II when the number of men enrolled at the College steeply declined. The last known meeting in the 1940s was in 1943. The F.H.C. Society was again revived in May 1972. The F.H.C. remains active today yet most of their activities are veiled in relative secrecy.<ref>"F.H.C. Society," [http://scrc.swem.wm.edu/controlcard.php?id=6514 University Archives Subject File Collection], Special Collections Research Center, Earl Gregg Swem Library, College of William and Mary</ref> |
|||
The F.H.C. remains active today yet most of their activities are veiled in relative secrecy. |
|||
| ⚫ | The F.H.C. Society numbers among its members many notable Virginians of the late colonial, Revolutionary, and early federal periods. Perhaps the most famous was [[Thomas Jefferson]], who late in life wrote an enquiring member of [[Phi Beta Kappa]] that the Society had "served no useful object." <ref>http://www.dogstreetjournal.com/story/2049</ref> Whether Jefferson genuinely lost interest in the F.H.C. in his old age is doubtful, for his friends in the society had remained confidantes for life. |
||
''[[The Flat Hat]]'' is also the twice-weekly student newspaper of The College of William and Mary, taking its name from the nickname of the society. |
''[[The Flat Hat]]'' is also the twice-weekly student newspaper of The College of William and Mary, taking its name from the nickname of the society. |
||
==Notable Alumni== |
|||
| ⚫ | The F.H.C. Society numbers among its members many notable Virginians of the late colonial, Revolutionary, and early federal periods. Perhaps the most famous was [[Thomas Jefferson]], who late in life wrote an enquiring member of [[Phi Beta Kappa]] that the Society had "served no useful object." <ref>http://www.dogstreetjournal.com/story/2049</ref> Whether Jefferson genuinely lost interest in the F.H.C. in his old age is doubtful, for his friends in the society had remained confidantes for life. Other notable members from this period include Col. James Innes, St. George Tucker, and George Wythe.<ref>"F.H.C. Society," [http://scrc.swem.wm.edu/controlcard.php?id=6514 University Archives Subject File Collection], Special Collections Research Center, Earl Gregg Swem Library, College of William and Mary</ref> |
||
==References== |
==References== |
||
| Line 19: | Line 23: | ||
==External links== |
==External links== |
||
*[http://swem.wm.edu/images/jefferson/jefferson-short/lot2-folder7/jef18190614/jef1819061401.png Thomas Jefferson's letter] to Thomas McAuley regarding the F.H.C. Society, June 14, 1819. |
|||
*[http://flathat.wm.edu/2005-09-30/history.php Flat Hat History from the William and Mary newspaper] |
*[http://flathat.wm.edu/2005-09-30/history.php Flat Hat History from the William and Mary newspaper] |
||
Revision as of 17:49, 6 December 2007
The Flat Hat Club (as it was known outside its membership) or F.H.C. Society was the first of the collegiate secret societies or fraternities founded in the present United States.
History
The F.H.C. Society was established at The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia on November 11, 1750. The organization's initials likely stand for the Latin phrases "Fraternitas, Humanitas, et Cognitio" or "Fraternitas Humanitas Cognitioque" (two different renderings of "Brotherhood, Humanity, and Knowledge"). As members of the first American collegiate fraternity in the modern sense, the "brothers" of the F.H.C. devised and employed a secret handshake, wore a silver membership medal, issued certificates of membership, and met regularly for discussion and fellowship. The Society became publicly known as the "Flat Hat Club," in probable allusion to the mortarboard caps then commonly worn by all students at the College (now worn at graduation by students at most American universities).
Another Latin-letter society, the P.D.A. Society (publicly known as "Please Don't Ask"), was founded at William and Mary early in 1773 in imitation of the F.H.C. John Heath, a student at William and Mary who (according to tradition) sought but was refused admission to the F.H.C., in retaliation established the first Greek-letter fraternity, the Phi Beta Kappa Society.
The F.H.C. Society faded away in the 1770s (sometime after 1772) as the College of William and Mary felt the effects of the American Revolution. The group was revived in the twentieth century on September 30, 1920, but again ceased operation during World War II when the number of men enrolled at the College steeply declined. The last known meeting in the 1940s was in 1943. The F.H.C. Society was again revived in May 1972. The F.H.C. remains active today yet most of their activities are veiled in relative secrecy.[1]
The Flat Hat is also the twice-weekly student newspaper of The College of William and Mary, taking its name from the nickname of the society.
Notable Alumni
The F.H.C. Society numbers among its members many notable Virginians of the late colonial, Revolutionary, and early federal periods. Perhaps the most famous was Thomas Jefferson, who late in life wrote an enquiring member of Phi Beta Kappa that the Society had "served no useful object." [2] Whether Jefferson genuinely lost interest in the F.H.C. in his old age is doubtful, for his friends in the society had remained confidantes for life. Other notable members from this period include Col. James Innes, St. George Tucker, and George Wythe.[3]
References
- ^ "F.H.C. Society," University Archives Subject File Collection, Special Collections Research Center, Earl Gregg Swem Library, College of William and Mary
- ^ http://www.dogstreetjournal.com/story/2049
- ^ "F.H.C. Society," University Archives Subject File Collection, Special Collections Research Center, Earl Gregg Swem Library, College of William and Mary
Bibliography
- Robert W. Storm, "In Token of Friendship: Early Fraternity Medals at the College of William and Mary"; 1973. Typescript in university archives, Earl Gregg Swem Library, College of William and Mary (Williamsburg, Virginia).
See also
External links
- Thomas Jefferson's letter to Thomas McAuley regarding the F.H.C. Society, June 14, 1819.
