Beta Psi (ΒΨ) was a small national men's fraternity founded in 1924 at the University of Illinois. Eventually chartering five chapters, it survived for about 10 years until succumbing to the pressures of the Great Depression.
| Beta Psi | |
|---|---|
| ΒΨ | |
 | |
| Founded | July 19, 1924 University of Illinois |
| Type | Social |
| Affiliation | Independent |
| Scope | National |
| Member badge |  |
| Colors | Black and Gold |
| Publication | The Lamp |
| Chapters | 0 surviving |
| Merged with | Scattered |
History edit
Beta Psi's origin dates to February 1920 when six young men formed a social fraternity in "a junior college in Chicago."[1] The Members of this parent organization who later went to the University of Illinois and the Armour Institute formed local fraternities: Mu Omega Beta at the University of Illinois, and the Sodales Club at Armour Institute. These were both organized in 1922 and their colleges gave permission, in 1923 and 1924 respectively, to proceed with the formation of a national social college fraternity. The Junior college group was dropped, and on August 29, 1924, the state of Illinois chartered the Beta Psi national fraternity.[2] The fraternity however counts its founding as July 19, 1924.[3][4]
Beta Psi had five chapters at its high point. Too small and too young to survive the financial downturn of the Great Depression, it disbanded abruptly in 1934, with members and chapters dispersing that year.
Governance edit
Overall governance was by the Grand Council, an in-person meeting held bi-annually, composed of the council of administrators and two delegates from each chapter. In between Grand Councils, the council of administrators was composed of the president, secretary, treasurer, and four additional men, which together formed the governing body of the fraternity.
Chapters and their outcome edit
In order of founding, its five chapters were as follows. Those active at the time of dissolution are in bold, inactive chapters are in italics.[4]
| Name | Chartered | Institution | Location | Status | Notes | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alpha | July 19, 1924–1934 | University of Illinois | Champaign and Urbana, Illinois | Withdrew, scattered | Twelve men to ΑΣΦ and some to ΠΚΦ | [5][6][7][8] |
| Beta | 1924–1932 | Armour Institute of Technology | Chicago, Illinois | Withdrew, ΠΚΦ | Became the Alpha Phi chapter of ΠΚΦ | [5][9][6] |
| Delta Alpha | 1925–1935 | Cornell University | Ithaca, New York | Disbanded | Some to ΒΚ | [10][11] |
| Delta Beta | 1927–1934 | Middlebury College | Middlebury, Vermont | Disbanded | One man to ΒΚ | [12] |
| Gamma | 1928–1932 | Lake Forest College | Lake Forest, Illinois | Disbanded | [13] |
Insignia edit
Beta Psi's badge was an equilateral triangle of enameled black, surrounded by a gold border, with the point toward the bottom. This was superimposed by the Greek letters Β and Ψ. The ψ was somewhat larger, encompassing most of the triangle and rendered in polished gold. The Β was superimposed on this, set with 12 pearls.[14] The pledge pin is a gilded shield in which is set a black equilateral triangle.[14] There is a crest shown in the 1927 Cornellian yearbook which was used several times, and appears to be original to the fraternity.[11]
The Fraternity's colors were Black and Gold.[12][14]
The Fraternity's magazine was The Lamp. The Lamp was issued quarterly starting in 1923.[3][14]
Demise edit
Dissolution seems to have been rancorous: Twelve men from the founding chapter, Alpha chapter at Illinois, sought a merger or absorption by the neighboring Alpha Sigma Phi chapter there, whose building was under-occupied at the time.[15] The local IFC, Beta Psi's headquarters[16] and even the NIC sought to suppress this merger. The dispute forced Alpha Sigma Phi to leave the NIC for a period of three years in 1935/36, rejoining in 1938. Some of the Alpha chapter men joined Pi Kappa Phi instead. Beta chapter eventually became a chapter of Pi Kappa Phi, as noted by Baird's archive. The three other chapters scattered, with some individual members released de facto to join other groups, notably at Cornell and at Middlebury. None of Beta Psi's chapters survived beyond 1935.
References edit
- ^ Unnamed in Baird's, could this have been the Armour Institute? One line from Baird's notes that, "with the move to the University of Illinois, the Junior college group was dropped." Was this same group quickly reorganized as Beta chapter?
- ^ Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities (12 ed.). G. Banta Company. 1930. p. 67.
- ^ a b William Raimond Baird (1927). Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities (11 ed.). G. Banta Company. p. 497.
- ^ a b William Raimond Baird; Carroll Lurding (eds.). "Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities (Baird's Manual Online Archive), document showing Beta Psi". Student Life and Culture Archives. University of Illinois: University of Illinois Archives. Retrieved 23 December 2021. The main archive URL is The Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage.
- ^ a b The predecessor to this society was an unnamed club formed at a junior college in 1920. The founders dispersed to Illinois and to the Armor institute. At Illinois they formed Mu Omega Beta in 1922, and at the Armor Institute formed the Sodales Club in 1923. Already known to each other, these two local societies joined in the creation of ΒΨ as a new national fraternity.
- ^ a b Clarifying as best as the information allows, Baird's Archive Online notes that Alpha chapter went on to [also] revive a Pi Kappa Phi chapter at Illinois, and the Beta chapter went on to become a chapter of Pi Kappa Phi, rather than disbanding.
- ^ The Illio yearbook of 1927 includes a profile of its Beta Sigma chapter, accessed 21 Jan 2020. Its last yearbook presence was in the 1934 edition.
- ^ Alpha Sigma Phi notes a minor NIC jurisprudence issue over this, which after investigation found no fault over a claim of poaching since the "national office" of Beta Psi, such as it was, had closed.
- ^ The Armour Engineer publication regularly referenced the Beta chapter of the fraternity. This chapter had originally formed as the Sodales Club in the Spring of 1923, according to the Nov 2024 edition of that publication. Newsletter references ceased by 1933.
- ^ The 1926 yearbook appears to be the chapter's first entry. One sophomore had been a member of the Eleusis Club the previous year, and another was in the Officers Club. There appears to be no predecessor society. Members shown on the 1926 Beta Psi list were mostly missing from the 1925 book.
- ^ a b The 1927 Cornellian yearbook notes Beta Psi's Delta Alpha chapter on pages 318-319, accessed 21 Jan 2020. The 1935 Cornellian yearbook was Beta Psi's last entry. In the 1936 edition, at least three members are shown as members of the new Beta Kappa chapter at Cornell, which started in 1934, but that group didn't survive beyond 1936, with its members opting later to merge into ΑΤΩ, and calling the two years with Beta Kappa a "failed absorption". Note that yearbook information typically trailed one year due to publication cycles.
- ^ a b The origination of this chapter was from Delta Sigma (local) formed in 1926. The 1934 Kaleidoscope yearbook from Middlebury College notes the fraternity's colors, along with the local (1927) and national founding date of 1920. This was the last entry for Beta Psi in Middlebury yearbooks. The 1935 edition shows one man joined Beta Kappa.
- ^ The origination of this chapter was from Beta Psi Gamma (local) formed earlier in 1928. The Forester yearbook of 1932 shows the last yearbook entry for Beta Psi at Lake Forest College. No members show up in subsequent yearbooks.
- ^ a b c d William Raimond Baird (1935). ... Baird's Manual, American College Fraternities: A Descriptive Analysis with a Detailed Account of Each Fraternity (13 ed.). George Banta Publishing Company. p. 650.
- ^ Alpha Sigma Phi's website discusses this at length within the scope of the history of their Eta chapter, accessed 21 Jan 2020.
- ^ Any "HQ" at this time would have been recently formed, and likely dominated by Alpha chapter alumni.