Delta Epsilon (fraternity)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Delta Epsilon
ΔΕ
Founded1862; 159 years ago (1862)
Roanoke College
TypeSocial
AffiliationIndependent
ScopeVirginia only
Chapters3 installed; 0 survived

Delta Epsilon (ΔΕ) was a college fraternity for men, founded in 1862 at Roanoke College, Virginia. Two of its three chapters went defunct due to the tumult of the Civil War, while the third became, in 1868, the restoration of an early chapter of Beta Theta Pi which then remained viable for 140 years.

History[]

Delta Epsilon was founded in 1862 at Roanoke College, Salem, Virginia. The Founders' intention was to limit the fraternity entirely to Virginia colleges.[1]

The first edition of Baird's manual suggests that all three chapters "were weak", ostensibly due to their formation in the tumultuous days leading up to the Civil War.[2]

After establishing three chapters, Delta Epsilon became defunct, with one of these becoming a unit of Beta Theta Pi at Hampden–Sydney College in 1868, post-war. Baird's 2nd edition describes the Zeta chapter of Beta Theta Pi as having been "killed by the War", but notes that it was revived with the adoption of Delta Epsilon's sole remaining chapter.[3][4][5][6]

Chapters[]

Name Chartered Institution Location Status Notes Reference
Alpha 1862 Roanoke College Salem, VA Disbanded No post-Civil War activity [1]
Beta? 186x school? [7] City?, VA Disbanded No post-Civil War activity [1]
Gamma? 186x Hampden–Sydney College Hampden Sydney, VA Merged Became Zeta chapter of ΒΘΠ [8]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c Anson, Jack L.; Marchenasi, Robert F., eds. (1991) [1879]. Baird's Manual of American Fraternities (20th ed.). Indianapolis, IN: Baird's Manual Foundation, Inc. p. VIII-6. ISBN 978-0963715906.
  2. ^ American College Fraternities. J.B. Lippincott. 1890. p. 165.
  3. ^ Clarification of the outcome of this particular fraternity is made more difficult by the lack of reference materials that survived the wartime period. Yearbook publishing hadn't yet come into vogue, and campus records are thin.
  4. ^ American College Fraternities. J.B. Lippincott. 1883. p. 47.
  5. ^ William Raimond Baird (1912). Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities. G. Banta Company. p. 628.
  6. ^ William Raimond Baird; Carroll Lurding (eds.). "Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities (Baird's Manual Online Archive)". Student Life and Culture Archives. University of Illinois: University of Illinois Archives. Retrieved 21 May 2021. The main archive URL is The Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage.
  7. ^ There is a narrow list of six possible schools this could be: Washington and Lee, UVA, Randolph-Macon, and VMI, with a less likely possibility of VCU or Emory and Henry. None of the other Virginia institutions would fit what is known about this group.
  8. ^ This chapter became the Zeta chapter of Beta Theta Pi in 1868, after Beta's earlier attempt "was killed off" during the Civil War. It was viable for 140 years, but in 2012, this chapter was declared inactive, subject to revival by ΒΘΠ.


Stub icon

This article about a fraternity or sorority is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by .

  • v
  • t
Retrieved from ""