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College literary societies (American)
Encyclopedia
College literary societies in American higher education were a distinctive kind of social organization, distinct from literary societies generally, and they were the precursors of college fraternities and sororities
. In the period from the late eighteenth century to the Civil War
, collegiate literary societies were an important part of campus social life. College literary societies are often called Latin literary societies because they typically had compound Latinate names.
Since these organizations are virtually the oldest kind of student organization in America, where they have survived, they are seen as ancient institutions. One author from Georgia acknowledged that fact (by parody) in discussing his own society: "The origin of the Washington Society dates back to the glory days of the Jurassic Period of the Mesozoic Era. It was during this time that great plant-eating dinosaurs roamed the Earth, feeding on lush growths of ferns and palm-like cycads and ennettitaleans. Meanwhile, smaller but vicious carnivores stalked the great herbivores. The oceans were full of fish, squid, and coiled ammonites, plus great ichthyosaurs and the long-necked plesiosaurs. Vertebrates first took to the air, like the mighty pterosaurs and the first true birds. The supercontinent Pangaea began to break up and disperse itself across the Earth's surface, sending a big chunk of land to the very spot where Thomas Jefferson's decomposed old ass lies buried today. And it is on this same chunk of land, a few miles away, that Mr. Jefferson's University sits, home to the Washington Literary Society and Debating Union.
The societies could fulfill this function because they were independent organizations, and entirely student run activities. "[T]he societies were virtually little republics, with their own laws and a democratically elected student administration."
Topics could include Classical history
, religion
, ethics
, politics
, and current events. Controversial topics not covered in the official curriculum
were often the most popular. Studies have been done, for example, finding an increasing discussion of slavery
at literary society meetings through the 1850s.
and Cliosophic
Societies at Princeton University
, Social Friends and United Fraternity at Dartmouth College
, the Philorhetorian and Peithologian societies at Wesleyan University
, the Philologian and Philotechnian societies at Williams College
, the Philomathean and Zelosophic societies at the University of Pennsylvania
, the Philolexian and Peithologian societies at Columbia University
, the Clariosophic
and Euphradian
societies at the University of South Carolina
, the Demosthenian and Phi Kappa
societies at the University of Georgia
, the Linonia and Brothers in Unity
at Yale University
, the Miami Union and Erodelphian societies at Miami University
and Dialectic and Philanthropic Societies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
. These societies were usually in a limited adversarial role; at Columbia University
the Peithologian and Philolexian were competitors, and they maintained a rivalry that was friendly at best and highly charged at worst. In his famous diary, George Templeton Strong
recorded that a Philolexian gathering was disrupted by "those rascally Peithologians"; and firecrackers and stink bombs, tossed into the midst of each other's meetings, were usually the weapons of choice.
Membership in these societies was not only open to all the students in the college, but in many cases membership was all but required. At the opening of University of South Carolina virtually all students were members of the Philomathic Society which was soon divided by lot into the Clariosophic and Euphradian societies. In some cases, intense recruitment
battles would ensue over new students, and to avoid problems some colleges chose to assign incoming students to one or the other literary society. This pattern was followed, for example, at Dartmouth, where the faculty imposed rule was "The students of College shall be assigned according to the odd or even places which their names shall hold on an alphabetical list of the members of each successive class..." Having two societies on a campus encouraged competition
, and a thriving society would have interesting enough meetings to attract full attendance from its membership and perhaps even people from the community. These societies met publicly, sometimes in large lecture rooms, and in most instances the literary exercises would consist of a debate
, but could also include speeches
, poetry
readings, and other literary work.
. Kappa Alpha
, Sigma Phi
, Delta Phi
, Mystical Seven
, Alpha Delta Phi
, Psi Upsilon
, and Delta Kappa Epsilon
, in fact, virtually all the pre-Civil War college fraternities were either first organized as literary societies or derived from factions split off of literary societies. These new organizations held meetings and were organized on identical lines to the large literary societies. Soon, the existence of these smaller private Greek letter organizations undermined the large Latin literary societies. Competition from athletics
and other entertainments also took a toll, so that many dissolved or existed in name only by the 1880s. A literary society almost always provided its members with an extensive library
, either available to members only, or to the campus at large. When the societies dissolved, their libraries were transferred to the college libraries, and in many colleges the acquisition of the literary societies' libraries was a significant change in their collection, usually broadening the colleges libraries' scope into popular literature, but often also adding important and rare works.
Although literary societies had Latin names, and fraternities had Greek names reduced to initials, this is not always the case, however; Phi Phi Society at Kenyon
and the Phi Kappa
at Georgia
are examples of large literary societies with Greek names. The Clariosophic
and Euphradian
societies at South Carolina
both had Greek letter aliases, Mu Sigma Phi and Phi Alpha Epsilon, respectively, which appeared on their seals, but which were not used in normal conversation or writing.
In the following table, there are two types of literary societies societies listed together, the college literary societies, (frequently half the college's student body), and smaller private societies, and were admission by invitation. Some of these societies are still active.
(1813) of the University of Pennsylvania
is the oldest continuously-existing literary society in the United States. The University of Georgia
hosts two literary societies (both of which were temporarily disbanded during the Civil War and the subsequent Union occupation): the Demosthenian Literary Society
, founded in 1803, and the Phi Kappa Literary Society
, founded in 1820 and dormant from the 1970s until its official reestablishment in 1991. Similarly, the Philolexian Society
of Columbia University
, established in 1802, operated more or less continuously until the early 1950s when it sputtered out and, except for a brief revival in the early 1960s, was not revived until 1985.
Some early college social fraternities still meet in a literary society format, including Kappa Alpha, Alpha Delta Phi, and Mystical 7.
There are seven literary societies at Illinois College
in Jacksonville, Illinois
where they have remained despite the nationwide trend of developing into fraternities and sororities; these include: Phi Alpha Literary Society
, Chi Beta Literary Society, Sigma Pi Literary Society
, Gamma Nu Literary Society, Sigma Phi Epsilon Literary Society, Pi Pi Rho Literary Society, and Gamma Delta Literary Society.
Fraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In Latin, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in the United States, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
. In the period from the late eighteenth century to the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, collegiate literary societies were an important part of campus social life. College literary societies are often called Latin literary societies because they typically had compound Latinate names.
Since these organizations are virtually the oldest kind of student organization in America, where they have survived, they are seen as ancient institutions. One author from Georgia acknowledged that fact (by parody) in discussing his own society: "The origin of the Washington Society dates back to the glory days of the Jurassic Period of the Mesozoic Era. It was during this time that great plant-eating dinosaurs roamed the Earth, feeding on lush growths of ferns and palm-like cycads and ennettitaleans. Meanwhile, smaller but vicious carnivores stalked the great herbivores. The oceans were full of fish, squid, and coiled ammonites, plus great ichthyosaurs and the long-necked plesiosaurs. Vertebrates first took to the air, like the mighty pterosaurs and the first true birds. The supercontinent Pangaea began to break up and disperse itself across the Earth's surface, sending a big chunk of land to the very spot where Thomas Jefferson's decomposed old ass lies buried today. And it is on this same chunk of land, a few miles away, that Mr. Jefferson's University sits, home to the Washington Literary Society and Debating Union.
Literary and other activities
Most literary societies' literary activity consisted of formal debates on topical issues of the day, but literary activity could include original essays, poetry, music, et c. As a part of their literary work, many also collected and maintained their own libraries for the use of the society's members. "[C]ollege societies were the training grounds for men in public affairs in the nineteenth century."The societies could fulfill this function because they were independent organizations, and entirely student run activities. "[T]he societies were virtually little republics, with their own laws and a democratically elected student administration."
Topics could include Classical history
Classical antiquity
Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, collectively known as the Greco-Roman world...
, religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
, ethics
Ethics
Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime, etc.Major branches of ethics include:...
, politics
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
, and current events. Controversial topics not covered in the official curriculum
Curriculum
See also Syllabus.In formal education, a curriculum is the set of courses, and their content, offered at a school or university. As an idea, curriculum stems from the Latin word for race course, referring to the course of deeds and experiences through which children grow to become mature adults...
were often the most popular. Studies have been done, for example, finding an increasing discussion of slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
at literary society meetings through the 1850s.
Libraries
Since every college literary society saw itself as complementing the classical curriculum with the knowledge of current events, the societies also had libraries. "At a number of Northern colleges...the society libraries were larger than the college libraries. The society libraries were also high in quality, as shown by their printed catalogs... Rivalry between the two societies at each college extended to their libraries; each tried to have a larger library than the other." A number of societies, especially in the South, would build separate buildings for the societies and their libraries. On the austere college campus of two centuries ago, "the only fairly comfortable and attractive places were the rooms of the literary societies. Their members,... raised money for rugs, draperies, and comfortable, even luxurious, furniture."In relation to the campus
Typically, a college would have two or more competing societies. The campus societies were generally intense competitors. Some examples include the American WhigAmerican Whig-Cliosophic Society
The American Whig–Cliosophic Society is a political, literary, and debating society at Princeton University and the oldest debate union in the United States...
and Cliosophic
American Whig-Cliosophic Society
The American Whig–Cliosophic Society is a political, literary, and debating society at Princeton University and the oldest debate union in the United States...
Societies at Princeton University
Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution....
, Social Friends and United Fraternity at Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
, the Philorhetorian and Peithologian societies at Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...
, the Philologian and Philotechnian societies at Williams College
Williams College
Williams College is a private liberal arts college located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams. Originally a men's college, Williams became co-educational in 1970. Fraternities were also phased out during this...
, the Philomathean and Zelosophic societies at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, the Philolexian and Peithologian societies at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, the Clariosophic
Clariosophic Society
The Clariosophic Society, also known as MΣΦ , is a literary society founded in 1806 at the University of South Carolina, then known as South Carolina College, as a result of the splitting in two of the Philomathic Society, which had been formed within weeks of the opening of the college in 1805 and...
and Euphradian
Euphradian Society
The Euphradian Society, also known as ΦAΕ , is a literary society founded in 1806 at the University of South Carolina, then known as South Carolina College, as a result of the splitting in two of the Philomathic Society, which had been formed within weeks of the opening of the college in 1805 and...
societies at the University of South Carolina
University of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...
, the Demosthenian and Phi Kappa
Phi Kappa Literary Society
The Phi Kappa Literary Society is a college literary society, located at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia.The Society was founded in 1820 by Joseph Henry Lumpkin, later to become the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia and eponym for the , and by William Crabbe, Edwin...
societies at the University of Georgia
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
, the Linonia and Brothers in Unity
Brothers in Unity
Brothers in Unity was an 18th century debating society at Yale University. At the time of the formation of Yale's central library, two debating societies, Linonia and Brothers in Unity, donated their respective libraries to the university...
at Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, the Miami Union and Erodelphian societies at Miami University
Miami University
Miami University is a coeducational public research university located in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the 10th oldest public university in the United States and the second oldest university in Ohio, founded four years after Ohio University. In its 2012 edition, U.S...
and Dialectic and Philanthropic Societies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is a public research university located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States...
. These societies were usually in a limited adversarial role; at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
the Peithologian and Philolexian were competitors, and they maintained a rivalry that was friendly at best and highly charged at worst. In his famous diary, George Templeton Strong
George Templeton Strong
George Templeton Strong was an American lawyer and diarist. His 2,250-page diary, discovered in the 1930s, provides a striking personal account of life in the 19th century, especially during the events of the American Civil War...
recorded that a Philolexian gathering was disrupted by "those rascally Peithologians"; and firecrackers and stink bombs, tossed into the midst of each other's meetings, were usually the weapons of choice.
Membership in these societies was not only open to all the students in the college, but in many cases membership was all but required. At the opening of University of South Carolina virtually all students were members of the Philomathic Society which was soon divided by lot into the Clariosophic and Euphradian societies. In some cases, intense recruitment
Recruitment
Recruitment refers to the process of attracting, screening, and selecting qualified people for a job. For some components of the recruitment process, mid- and large-size organizations often retain professional recruiters or outsource some of the process to recruitment agencies.The recruitment...
battles would ensue over new students, and to avoid problems some colleges chose to assign incoming students to one or the other literary society. This pattern was followed, for example, at Dartmouth, where the faculty imposed rule was "The students of College shall be assigned according to the odd or even places which their names shall hold on an alphabetical list of the members of each successive class..." Having two societies on a campus encouraged competition
Competition
Competition is a contest between individuals, groups, animals, etc. for territory, a niche, or a location of resources. It arises whenever two and only two strive for a goal which cannot be shared. Competition occurs naturally between living organisms which co-exist in the same environment. For...
, and a thriving society would have interesting enough meetings to attract full attendance from its membership and perhaps even people from the community. These societies met publicly, sometimes in large lecture rooms, and in most instances the literary exercises would consist of a debate
Debate
Debate or debating is a method of interactive and representational argument. Debate is a broader form of argument than logical argument, which only examines consistency from axiom, and factual argument, which only examines what is or isn't the case or rhetoric which is a technique of persuasion...
, but could also include speeches
Oratory
Oratory is a type of public speaking.Oratory may also refer to:* Oratory , a power metal band* Oratory , a place of worship* a religious order such as** Oratory of Saint Philip Neri ** Oratory of Jesus...
, poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
readings, and other literary work.
Private literary societies
There also is a fundamentally distinct type of literary society, that, although formed at a college and following the same forms and kinds of literary exercises, were limited to a small subset of the college. These are private literary societies, such as Phi Beta Kappa or Yale's Elizabethan Club. Membership is usually by invitation. They share all the characteristics with a college literary society, except that they are not open to all students; and they share many of the characteristics of a college fraternity.Literary Societies & Fraternities
In the 1830s and 1840s, students began to organize private literary societies for smaller groups, and these more intimate associations quickly developed into wholly secret associations. These groups are the earliest college fraternitiesFraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In Latin, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in the United States, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
. Kappa Alpha
Kappa Alpha Society
The Kappa Alpha Society , founded in 1825, was the progenitor of the modern fraternity system in North America. It was the first of the fraternities which would eventually become known as the Union Triad...
, Sigma Phi
Sigma Phi
The Sigma Phi Society was founded on 4 March 1827, on the campus of Union College as a part of the Union Triad in Schenectady, New York.It is the second oldest Greek fraternal organization in the United States, and the oldest in continuous existence...
, Delta Phi
Delta Phi
Delta Phi is a fraternity founded in 1827 at Union College in Schenectady, New York. Founded as part of the Union Triad, along with the Kappa Alpha Society and Sigma Phi Society, Delta Phi was the third and last member of the Triad...
, Mystical Seven
Mystical Seven (Wesleyan)
The Mystical Seven is a society founded in 1837 at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut that currently is in existence as two separate groups. Publicly, members are called Mystics.-Early history:...
, Alpha Delta Phi
Alpha Delta Phi
Alpha Delta Phi is a Greek-letter social college fraternity and the fourth-oldest continuous Greek-letter fraternity in the United States and Canada. Alpha Delta Phi was founded on October 29, 1832 by Samuel Eells at Hamilton College and includes former U.S. Presidents, Chief Justices of the U.S....
, Psi Upsilon
Psi Upsilon
Psi Upsilon is the fifth oldest college fraternity in the United States, founded at Union College in 1833. It has chapters at colleges and universities throughout North America. For most of its history, Psi Upsilon, like most social fraternities, limited its membership to men only...
, and Delta Kappa Epsilon
Delta Kappa Epsilon
Delta Kappa Epsilon is a fraternity founded at Yale College in 1844 by 15 men of the sophomore class who had not been invited to join the two existing societies...
, in fact, virtually all the pre-Civil War college fraternities were either first organized as literary societies or derived from factions split off of literary societies. These new organizations held meetings and were organized on identical lines to the large literary societies. Soon, the existence of these smaller private Greek letter organizations undermined the large Latin literary societies. Competition from athletics
Sport
A Sport is all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical fitness and provide entertainment to participants. Sport may be competitive, where a winner or winners can be identified by objective means, and may require a degree...
and other entertainments also took a toll, so that many dissolved or existed in name only by the 1880s. A literary society almost always provided its members with an extensive library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
, either available to members only, or to the campus at large. When the societies dissolved, their libraries were transferred to the college libraries, and in many colleges the acquisition of the literary societies' libraries was a significant change in their collection, usually broadening the colleges libraries' scope into popular literature, but often also adding important and rare works.
Although literary societies had Latin names, and fraternities had Greek names reduced to initials, this is not always the case, however; Phi Phi Society at Kenyon
Kenyon College
Kenyon College is a private liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio, founded in 1824 by Bishop Philander Chase of The Episcopal Church, in parallel with the Bexley Hall seminary. It is the oldest private college in Ohio...
and the Phi Kappa
Phi Kappa Literary Society
The Phi Kappa Literary Society is a college literary society, located at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia.The Society was founded in 1820 by Joseph Henry Lumpkin, later to become the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia and eponym for the , and by William Crabbe, Edwin...
at Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
are examples of large literary societies with Greek names. The Clariosophic
Clariosophic Society
The Clariosophic Society, also known as MΣΦ , is a literary society founded in 1806 at the University of South Carolina, then known as South Carolina College, as a result of the splitting in two of the Philomathic Society, which had been formed within weeks of the opening of the college in 1805 and...
and Euphradian
Euphradian Society
The Euphradian Society, also known as ΦAΕ , is a literary society founded in 1806 at the University of South Carolina, then known as South Carolina College, as a result of the splitting in two of the Philomathic Society, which had been formed within weeks of the opening of the college in 1805 and...
societies at South Carolina
University of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...
both had Greek letter aliases, Mu Sigma Phi and Phi Alpha Epsilon, respectively, which appeared on their seals, but which were not used in normal conversation or writing.
In the following table, there are two types of literary societies societies listed together, the college literary societies, (frequently half the college's student body), and smaller private societies, and were admission by invitation. Some of these societies are still active.
List of literary societies in the USA
| Founded | Ended | Society | College or University | Source and notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1750 | 1787 | F. H. C. Flat Hat Club The Flat Hat Club is the popular name of a society founded after 1916 at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, and revived there in 1972. The organization was named after the F.H.C. Society, which had been founded at the College on November 11, 1750, and was itself known... |
William & Mary | |
| 1750 | 1772 | Crotonia Society | Yale Yale University Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States... |
|
| 1753 | (unkn.) | Linonian Society Linonian Society Linonia is a literary and debating society founded in 1753 at Yale University.-History:Linonia was founded in 1753 as Yale University's second literary and debating society. By the late eighteenth century, all incoming freshmen at Yale College became members either of Linonia or its rival society,... |
Yale Yale University Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States... |
|
| 1765 | 1928 | American Whig Society American Whig-Cliosophic Society The American Whig–Cliosophic Society is a political, literary, and debating society at Princeton University and the oldest debate union in the United States... |
Princeton Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution.... |
|
| 1765 | 1928 | Cliosophic Society American Whig-Cliosophic Society The American Whig–Cliosophic Society is a political, literary, and debating society at Princeton University and the oldest debate union in the United States... |
Princeton Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution.... |
|
| 1768 | (unkn.) | Brothers in Unity Brothers in Unity Brothers in Unity was an 18th century debating society at Yale University. At the time of the formation of Yale's central library, two debating societies, Linonia and Brothers in Unity, donated their respective libraries to the university... |
Yale Yale University Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States... |
|
| 1770 | (unkn.) | Institute of 1770 | Harvard Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country... |
|
| 1771 | (unkn.) | Pronouncing Society | Brown Brown University Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,... |
|
| 1773 | 1781 | P. D. A. Flat Hat Club The Flat Hat Club is the popular name of a society founded after 1916 at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, and revived there in 1972. The organization was named after the F.H.C. Society, which had been founded at the College on November 11, 1750, and was itself known... |
William & Mary | |
| 1776 | 1786 | Athenian Society | Rutgers Rutgers University Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American... |
|
| 1776 | 1787 | Phi Beta Kappa Society | William & Mary | |
| 1776 | 1782 | Polemical Society | Rutgers Rutgers University Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American... |
|
| 1780 | Present | Phi Beta Kappa Society Phi Beta Kappa Society The Phi Beta Kappa Society is an academic honor society. Its mission is to "celebrate and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences"; and induct "the most outstanding students of arts and sciences at America’s leading colleges and universities." Founded at The College of William and... |
Yale Yale University Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States... |
|
| 1781 | Present | Phi Beta Kappa Society | Harvard Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country... |
|
| 1783 | Defunct | Social Friends Society | Dartmouth Dartmouth College Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences... |
|
| 1786 | Present | Belles Lettres Society | Dickinson Dickinson College Dickinson College is a private, residential liberal arts college in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Originally established as a Grammar School in 1773, Dickinson was chartered September 9, 1783, five days after the signing of the Treaty of Paris, making it the first college to be founded in the newly... |
|
| 1786 | Defunct | United Fraternity | Dartmouth Dartmouth College Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences... |
|
| 1787 | Present | Phi Beta Kappa Society | Dartmouth Dartmouth College Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences... |
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| 1789 | Present | Union-Philanthropic Society Union-Philanthropic Society The Union-Philanthropic Society is a college literary society at Hampden-Sydney College in Hampden-Sydney, Virginia.For over two centuries, the Union-Philanthropic Society has offered Hampden-Sydney a unique forum for discussion... |
Hampden-Sydney Hampden-Sydney College Hampden–Sydney College is a liberal arts college for men located in Hampden Sydney, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1775, Hampden–Sydney is the oldest private charter college in the Southern U.S., the last college founded before the American Revolution, and one of only three four-year,... |
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| 1789 | Present | Union Philosophical Society Union Philosophical Society The Union Philosophical Society or UPS is the seventh oldest collegiate organization in the United States, and one of the three oldest literary societies. Founded at Dickinson College in 1789, it took the white rose and the Roman goddess Minerva as its primary symbols... |
Dickinson Dickinson College Dickinson College is a private, residential liberal arts college in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Originally established as a Grammar School in 1773, Dickinson was chartered September 9, 1783, five days after the signing of the Treaty of Paris, making it the first college to be founded in the newly... |
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| 1789 | 1795 | Society for Progress in Letters | Columbia Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the... |
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| 1791 | (unkn.) | Porcellian Society | Harvard Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country... |
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| 1793 | 1890 | Calliopean Society | Union Union College Union College is a private, non-denominational liberal arts college located in Schenectady, New York, United States. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents. In the 19th century, it became the "Mother of Fraternities", as... |
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| 1794 | 1866 | Philermenian Society | Brown Brown University Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,... |
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| 1795 | Present | Dialectic Society | North Carolina University of North Carolina Chartered in 1789, the University of North Carolina was one of the first public universities in the United States and the only one to graduate students in the eighteenth century... |
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| 1795 | Present | Philanthropic Society | North Carolina University of North Carolina Chartered in 1789, the University of North Carolina was one of the first public universities in the United States and the only one to graduate students in the eighteenth century... |
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| 1795 | (unkn.) | Philologian Society | Williams Williams College Williams College is a private liberal arts college located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams. Originally a men's college, Williams became co-educational in 1970. Fraternities were also phased out during this... |
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| 1795 | (unkn.) | Philotechnian Society | Williams Williams College Williams College is a private liberal arts college located in Williamstown, Massachusetts, United States. It was established in 1793 with funds from the estate of Ephraim Williams. Originally a men's college, Williams became co-educational in 1970. Fraternities were also phased out during this... |
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| 1796 | (unkn.) | Adelphic Society | Union Union College Union College is a private, non-denominational liberal arts college located in Schenectady, New York, United States. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents. In the 19th century, it became the "Mother of Fraternities", as... |
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| 1797 | Present | Franklin Literary Society | Jefferson Washington & Jefferson College Washington & Jefferson College, also known as W & J College or W&J, is a private liberal arts college in Washington, Pennsylvania, in the United States, which is south of Pittsburgh... |
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| 1797 | (unkn.) | Philo Literary Society | Jefferson Washington & Jefferson College Washington & Jefferson College, also known as W & J College or W&J, is a private liberal arts college in Washington, Pennsylvania, in the United States, which is south of Pittsburgh... |
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| 1802 | Present | Philolexian Society Philolexian Society The Philolexian Society of Columbia University is one of the oldest college literary societies in the United States, and the oldest student group at Columbia... |
Columbia Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the... |
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| 1802 | 1887 | Athenian Society | Bowdoin Bowdoin College Bowdoin College , founded in 1794, is an elite private liberal arts college located in the coastal Maine town of Brunswick, Maine. As of 2011, U.S. News and World Report ranks Bowdoin 6th among liberal arts colleges in the United States. At times, it was ranked as high as 4th in the country. It is... |
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| 1803 | Present | Demosthenian Literary Society Demosthenian Literary Society The Demosthenian Literary Society is a debating society at The University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia. It was founded in 1803 by the first graduating class of the University's Franklin College. The society was founded on February 19, 1803 and the anniversary is celebrated now with the Society's... |
Georgia University of Georgia The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States... |
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| 1803 | (unkn.) | Phi Sigma Nu Society | Vermont University of Vermont The University of Vermont comprises seven undergraduate schools, an honors college, a graduate college, and a college of medicine. The Honors College does not offer its own degrees; students in the Honors College concurrently enroll in one of the university's seven undergraduate colleges or... |
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| 1805 | Present | Peucinian Society | Bowdoin Bowdoin College Bowdoin College , founded in 1794, is an elite private liberal arts college located in the coastal Maine town of Brunswick, Maine. As of 2011, U.S. News and World Report ranks Bowdoin 6th among liberal arts colleges in the United States. At times, it was ranked as high as 4th in the country. It is... |
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| 1806 | (unkn.) | Peithologian Society Peithologian Society The Peithologian Society was an undergraduate literary organization at Columbia University. It was founded in 1806, four years after Columbia's first literary group, the Philolexian Society, by freshmen who were disenfranchised by Philolexian's requirement that its members be upperclassmen... |
Columbia Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the... |
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| 1806 | 1970 | Clariosophic Society Clariosophic Society The Clariosophic Society, also known as MΣΦ , is a literary society founded in 1806 at the University of South Carolina, then known as South Carolina College, as a result of the splitting in two of the Philomathic Society, which had been formed within weeks of the opening of the college in 1805 and... |
South Carolina University of South Carolina The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House... |
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| 1806 | 1970 | Euphradian Society Euphradian Society The Euphradian Society, also known as ΦAΕ , is a literary society founded in 1806 at the University of South Carolina, then known as South Carolina College, as a result of the splitting in two of the Philomathic Society, which had been formed within weeks of the opening of the college in 1805 and... |
South Carolina University of South Carolina The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House... |
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| 1806 | 1866 | United Brothers Society | Brown Brown University Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,... |
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| 1807 | (unkn.) | Philological Society | Pennsylvania University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution... |
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| 1809 | (unkn.) | Union Literary Society | Washington Washington & Jefferson College Washington & Jefferson College, also known as W & J College or W&J, is a private liberal arts college in Washington, Pennsylvania, in the United States, which is south of Pittsburgh... |
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| 1811 | (unkn.) | Hermean Society | Pennsylvania University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution... |
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| 1813 | Present | Philomathean Society Philomathean Society The Philomathean Society of the University of Pennsylvania is a collegiate literary society, the oldest student group at the university, and a claimant to the title of the oldest continuously-existing literary society in the United States.This claim is disputed between the Philomathean Society and... |
Pennsylvania University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution... |
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| 1814 | (unkn.) | Washington Literary Society | Washington Washington & Jefferson College Washington & Jefferson College, also known as W & J College or W&J, is a private liberal arts college in Washington, Pennsylvania, in the United States, which is south of Pittsburgh... |
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| 1814 | (unkn.) | Phoenix Society | Hamilton | |
| 1814 | (unkn.) | Union Society | Hamilton | |
| 1817 | Present | Phi Beta Kappa Society Phi Beta Kappa Society The Phi Beta Kappa Society is an academic honor society. Its mission is to "celebrate and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences"; and induct "the most outstanding students of arts and sciences at America’s leading colleges and universities." Founded at The College of William and... |
Union Union College Union College is a private, non-denominational liberal arts college located in Schenectady, New York, United States. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents. In the 19th century, it became the "Mother of Fraternities", as... |
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| 1819 | Present | Calliopean Society | Yale Yale University Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States... |
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| 1819 | 1830 | Patrick Henry Society | Virginia University of Virginia The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson... |
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| 1820 | Present | Phi Kappa Literary Society Phi Kappa Literary Society The Phi Kappa Literary Society is a college literary society, located at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia.The Society was founded in 1820 by Joseph Henry Lumpkin, later to become the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia and eponym for the , and by William Crabbe, Edwin... |
Georgia University of Georgia The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States... |
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| 1820 | (unkn.) | Henodelphisterian Society | Indiana | |
| 1821 | (unkn.) | Alexandrian Society | Amherst Amherst College Amherst College is a private liberal arts college located in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Amherst is an exclusively undergraduate four-year institution and enrolled 1,744 students in the fall of 2009... |
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| 1821 | (unkn.) | Athenian Society | Amherst Amherst College Amherst College is a private liberal arts college located in Amherst, Massachusetts, United States. Amherst is an exclusively undergraduate four-year institution and enrolled 1,744 students in the fall of 2009... |
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| 1822 | (unkn.) | Franklin Debating Society | Randolph-Macon Randolph-Macon College Randolph–Macon College is a private, co-educational liberal arts college located in Ashland, Virginia, United States, near the capital city of Richmond. Founded in 1830, the school has an enrollment of over 1,200 students... |
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| 1824 | 1834 | Franklin Society Franklin Society The Franklin Society is a secret society based at Brown University, in Providence, Rhode Island, and is one of the oldest student secret societies in the United States... |
Brown Brown University Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,... |
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| 1824 | (unkn.) | Athenaeum Society | Trinity Trinity College (Connecticut) Trinity College is a private, liberal arts college in Hartford, Connecticut. Founded in 1823, it is the second-oldest college in the state of Connecticut after Yale University. The college enrolls 2,300 students and has been coeducational since 1969. Trinity offers 38 majors and 26 minors, and has... |
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| 1824 | (unkn.) | Society for Inquiry | Colgate Colgate University Colgate University is a private liberal arts college in Hamilton, New York, USA. The school was founded in 1819 as a Baptist seminary and later became non-denominational. It is named for the Colgate family who greatly contributed to the university's endowment in the 19th century.Colgate has 52... |
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| 1825 | Present | Jefferson Society | Virginia University of Virginia The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson... |
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| 1825 | Present | Phi Beta Kappa Society Phi Beta Kappa Society The Phi Beta Kappa Society is an academic honor society. Its mission is to "celebrate and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences"; and induct "the most outstanding students of arts and sciences at America’s leading colleges and universities." Founded at The College of William and... |
Bowdoin Bowdoin College Bowdoin College , founded in 1794, is an elite private liberal arts college located in the coastal Maine town of Brunswick, Maine. As of 2011, U.S. News and World Report ranks Bowdoin 6th among liberal arts colleges in the United States. At times, it was ranked as high as 4th in the country. It is... |
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| 1825 | 1892 | Philoclean Society Philoclean Society The Philoclean Society at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey is one of the oldest collegiate literary societies in the United States, and among the oldest student organizations at Rutgers University... |
Rutgers Rutgers University Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American... |
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| 1825 | (unkn.) | Agatheridan Society | Nashville University of Nashville The University of Nashville was an educational institution that existed as a distinct entity from 1826 until 1909. During its history, it operated at various times a medical school, a four-year military college, a literary arts college, and a boys preparatory school... |
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| 1825 | 1891 | Peithissophian Society | Rutgers Rutgers University Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American... |
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| 1825 | (unkn.) | Erodelphian Literary Society | Miami University Miami University Miami University is a coeducational public research university located in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the 10th oldest public university in the United States and the second oldest university in Ohio, founded four years after Ohio University. In its 2012 edition, U.S... |
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| 1826 | (unkn.) | Franklin Society | William & Mary | |
| 1826 | (unkn.) | Philozetian Society | Western Reserve | |
| 1827 | (unkn.) | Literary Fraternity | Colby Colby College Colby College is a private liberal arts college located on Mayflower Hill in Waterville, Maine. Founded in 1813, it is the 12th-oldest independent liberal arts college in the United States... |
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| 1827 | (unkn.) | Parthenon Society | Trinity Trinity College (Connecticut) Trinity College is a private, liberal arts college in Hartford, Connecticut. Founded in 1823, it is the second-oldest college in the state of Connecticut after Yale University. The college enrolls 2,300 students and has been coeducational since 1969. Trinity offers 38 majors and 26 minors, and has... |
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| 1827 | (unkn.) | Philomathesian Society | Kenyon Kenyon College Kenyon College is a private liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio, founded in 1824 by Bishop Philander Chase of The Episcopal Church, in parallel with the Bexley Hall seminary. It is the oldest private college in Ohio... |
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| 1828 | (unkn.) | Nu Pi Kappa Society | Kenyon Kenyon College Kenyon College is a private liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio, founded in 1824 by Bishop Philander Chase of The Episcopal Church, in parallel with the Bexley Hall seminary. It is the oldest private college in Ohio... |
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| 1828 | (unkn.) | Philomathean Society | College of Charleston College of Charleston The College of Charleston is a public, sea-grant and space-grant university located in historic downtown Charleston, South Carolina, United States... |
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| 1829 | (unkn.) | Beth-Hacma | Maryville Maryville College Maryville College is a private four-year liberal arts college in Maryville, Tennessee, near Knoxville. It was founded in 1819 by Presbyterian minister Isaac L. Anderson for the purpose of furthering education and enlightenment into the West. The College is one of the fifty oldest colleges in the... |
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| 1829 | (unkn.) | Sophirodelphian Society | Maryville Maryville College Maryville College is a private four-year liberal arts college in Maryville, Tennessee, near Knoxville. It was founded in 1819 by Presbyterian minister Isaac L. Anderson for the purpose of furthering education and enlightenment into the West. The College is one of the fifty oldest colleges in the... |
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| 1829 | (unkn.) | Transylvania Whig Society | Transylvania Transylvania University Transylvania University is a private, undergraduate liberal arts college in Lexington, Kentucky, United States, affiliated with the Christian Church . The school was founded in 1780. It offers 38 majors, and pre-professional degrees in engineering and accounting... |
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| 1829 | (unkn.) | Union Philosophical Society | Transylvania Transylvania University Transylvania University is a private, undergraduate liberal arts college in Lexington, Kentucky, United States, affiliated with the Christian Church . The school was founded in 1780. It offers 38 majors, and pre-professional degrees in engineering and accounting... |
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| 1829 | (unkn.) | Zelosophic Society | Pennsylvania University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution... |
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| 1830 | Present | Phi Beta Kappa Society Phi Beta Kappa Society The Phi Beta Kappa Society is an academic honor society. Its mission is to "celebrate and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences"; and induct "the most outstanding students of arts and sciences at America’s leading colleges and universities." Founded at The College of William and... |
Brown Brown University Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,... |
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| 1830 | Present | Philodemic Society Philodemic Society The Philodemic Society is a student debating organization at Georgetown University. It was founded in 1830 by Father James Ryder, S.J., in whose honor an award is given every Spring at the Merrick Debate. The Philodemic is among the oldest such societies in the United States and is the oldest... |
Georgetown Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States... |
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| 1830 | (unkn.) | Athenian Society | Indiana | |
| 1830 | (unkn.) | Calliopean Society | Maine Wesleyan | |
| 1830 | (unkn.) | Philosophronian Society | Hanover Hanover College Hanover College is a private liberal arts college, located in Hanover, Indiana, near the banks of the Ohio River. The college is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church . The college was founded in 1827 by the Rev. John Finley Crowe, making it the oldest private college in Indiana. The Hanover... |
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| 1830 | (unkn.) | Union Literary Society | Hanover Hanover College Hanover College is a private liberal arts college, located in Hanover, Indiana, near the banks of the Ohio River. The college is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church . The college was founded in 1827 by the Rev. John Finley Crowe, making it the oldest private college in Indiana. The Hanover... |
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| 1831 | Present | Washington Literary Society and Debating Union Washington Literary Society and Debating Union The Washington Literary Society and Debating Union is a literary and debating group at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville... |
Virginia University of Virginia The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson... |
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| 1831 | (unkn.) | Adelphic Society | Western Reserve | |
| 1831 | (unkn.) | Erosophic Society | Alabama University of Alabama The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States.... |
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| 1831 | (unkn.) | Euphradian Society | College of Charleston College of Charleston The College of Charleston is a public, sea-grant and space-grant university located in historic downtown Charleston, South Carolina, United States... |
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| 1831 | (unkn.) | Franklin Society | Western Reserve | |
| 1831 | (unkn.) | Peithologian Society | Wesleyan Wesleyan University Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and... |
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| 1831 | (unkn.) | Philomathean Society | Indiana | |
| 1831 | (unkn.) | Philorhetorian Society | Wesleyan Wesleyan University Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and... |
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| 1831 | (unkn.) | Miami Union Literary Society | Miami University Miami University Miami University is a coeducational public research university located in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the 10th oldest public university in the United States and the second oldest university in Ohio, founded four years after Ohio University. In its 2012 edition, U.S... |
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| 1832 | (unkn.) | Philomathic Society | Alabama University of Alabama The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States.... |
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| 1833 | 1834 | Franklin Polemic Society | Mercer Mercer University Mercer University is an independent, private, coeducational university with a Baptist heritage located in the U.S. state of Georgia. Mercer is the only university of its size in the United States that offers programs in eleven diversified fields of study: liberal arts, business, education, music,... |
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| 1833 | Present | Washington Society | Randolph-Macon Randolph-Macon College Randolph–Macon College is a private, co-educational liberal arts college located in Ashland, Virginia, United States, near the capital city of Richmond. Founded in 1830, the school has an enrollment of over 1,200 students... |
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| 1834 | 1943 | Eucleian Society Eucleian Society The Eucleian Society is a student society begun at New York University in 1832. - Origins :In 1832 sixteen students began the Eucleian Society at New York University, originally under the name “Adelphic Society”... |
New York New York University New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan... |
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| 1834 | 1888 | Philomathean Society Philomathean Society The Philomathean Society of the University of Pennsylvania is a collegiate literary society, the oldest student group at the university, and a claimant to the title of the oldest continuously-existing literary society in the United States.This claim is disputed between the Philomathean Society and... |
New York New York University New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan... |
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| 1834 | (unkn.) | Beth-Hacma ve Berith | Maryville Maryville College Maryville College is a private four-year liberal arts college in Maryville, Tennessee, near Knoxville. It was founded in 1819 by Presbyterian minister Isaac L. Anderson for the purpose of furthering education and enlightenment into the West. The College is one of the fifty oldest colleges in the... |
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| 1834 | Defunct | Ciceronian Society | Mercer Mercer University Mercer University is an independent, private, coeducational university with a Baptist heritage located in the U.S. state of Georgia. Mercer is the only university of its size in the United States that offers programs in eleven diversified fields of study: liberal arts, business, education, music,... |
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| 1834 | (unkn.) | Ladies' Literary Society | Oberlin Oberlin College Oberlin College is a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, noteworthy for having been the first American institution of higher learning to regularly admit female and black students. Connected to the college is the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the oldest continuously operating... |
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| 1834 | Defunct | Phi Delta Society | Mercer Mercer University Mercer University is an independent, private, coeducational university with a Baptist heritage located in the U.S. state of Georgia. Mercer is the only university of its size in the United States that offers programs in eleven diversified fields of study: liberal arts, business, education, music,... |
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| 1834 | (unkn.) | Philo-Franklin Society | Allegheny Allegheny College Allegheny College is a private liberal arts college located in northwestern Pennsylvania in the town of Meadville. Founded in 1815, the college has about 2,100 undergraduate students.-Early history:... |
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| 1834 | (unkn.) | Philomathean Society | Wabash Wabash College Wabash College is a small, private, liberal arts college for men, located in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Along with Hampden-Sydney College and Morehouse College, Wabash is one of only three remaining traditional all-men's liberal arts colleges in the United States.-History:Wabash College was founded... |
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| 1835 | (unkn.) | Allegheny Society | Allegheny Allegheny College Allegheny College is a private liberal arts college located in northwestern Pennsylvania in the town of Meadville. Founded in 1815, the college has about 2,100 undergraduate students.-Early history:... |
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| 1835 | (unkn.) | Calliopean Society | Denison Denison College Denison College of Secondary Education is a college of secondary education in Bathurst founded in 2007.Located in Bathurst the college is the largest provider of secondary education in the area with student numbers for 2007 of 1580, a college teaching staff of 130 and support staff of 30.- History... |
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| 1835 | (unkn.) | Diagnothian Society | Franklin & Marshall Franklin & Marshall College Franklin & Marshall College is a four-year private co-educational residential national liberal arts college in the Northwest Corridor neighborhood of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, United States.... |
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| 1835 | (unkn.) | Erosophian Adelphoi Society | Colby Colby College Colby College is a private liberal arts college located on Mayflower Hill in Waterville, Maine. Founded in 1813, it is the 12th-oldest independent liberal arts college in the United States... |
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| 1835 | (unkn.) | Euphronean Society | Wabash Wabash College Wabash College is a small, private, liberal arts college for men, located in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Along with Hampden-Sydney College and Morehouse College, Wabash is one of only three remaining traditional all-men's liberal arts colleges in the United States.-History:Wabash College was founded... |
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| 1835 | (unkn.) | Euzelian Society | Wake Forest Wake Forest University Wake Forest University is a private, coeducational university in the U.S. state of North Carolina, founded in 1834. The university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina, the state capital. The Reynolda Campus, the university's main campus, is... |
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| 1835 | (unkn.) | Philomathesian Society | Wake Forest Wake Forest University Wake Forest University is a private, coeducational university in the U.S. state of North Carolina, founded in 1834. The university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina, the state capital. The Reynolda Campus, the university's main campus, is... |
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| 1835 | (unkn.) | Society for Religious Inquiry | Vermont University of Vermont The University of Vermont comprises seven undergraduate schools, an honors college, a graduate college, and a college of medicine. The Honors College does not offer its own degrees; students in the Honors College concurrently enroll in one of the university's seven undergraduate colleges or... |
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| 1836 | (unkn.) | Chi Delta Society | East Tennessee | |
| 1836 | (unkn.) | Philomathesian Society | East Tennessee | |
| 1836 | (unkn.) | Union Literary Society | Muskingum Muskingum College Muskingum University is a private four-year comprehensive college with a strong liberal arts tradition located in New Concord, Ohio, approximately sixty miles east of the state capital of Columbus. Founded in 1837, Muskingum University is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church , although since the... |
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| 1837 | Present | Philanthropic Society | Davidson Davidson College Davidson College is a private liberal arts college in Davidson, North Carolina. The college has graduated 23 Rhodes Scholars and is consistently ranked in the top ten liberal arts colleges in the country by U.S. News and World Report magazine, although it has recently dropped to 11th in U.S. News... |
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| 1837 | Present | Eumenean Society | Davidson Davidson College Davidson College is a private liberal arts college in Davidson, North Carolina. The college has graduated 23 Rhodes Scholars and is consistently ranked in the top ten liberal arts colleges in the country by U.S. News and World Report magazine, although it has recently dropped to 11th in U.S. News... |
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| 1837 | Defunct | Phi Gamma Society | Emory Emory University Emory University is a private research university in metropolitan Atlanta, located in the Druid Hills section of unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The university was founded as Emory College in 1836 in Oxford, Georgia by a small group of Methodists and was named in honor of... |
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| 1837 | (unkn.) | Philosophian Society | McKendree McKendree College McKendree University, formerly known as McKendree College, is a private liberal arts college located in Lebanon, Illinois. The area is a part of the Metro-East region of Greater St. Louis. Founded in 1828 as the Lebanon Seminary, it is the oldest college in Illinois... |
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| 1838 | (unkn.) | Cliosophic Society | College of Charleston College of Charleston The College of Charleston is a public, sea-grant and space-grant university located in historic downtown Charleston, South Carolina, United States... |
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| 1838 | (unkn.) | Platonian Society | Indiana Asbury | |
| 1839 | (unkn.) | Alpha Kappa Society | Marietta Marietta College Marietta College is a co-educational private college in Marietta, Ohio, USA, which was the first permanent settlement of the Northwest Territory. The school offers 42 majors along with a large number of minors, all of which are grounded in a strong liberal arts foundation... |
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| 1839 | (unkn.) | Dialectic Society | Oberlin Oberlin College Oberlin College is a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, noteworthy for having been the first American institution of higher learning to regularly admit female and black students. Connected to the college is the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the oldest continuously operating... |
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| 1839 | Present | Euphemian Society | Erskine Erskine College Erskine College is a four year, Christian liberal arts college located in Due West, South Carolina.-Early history:Established in 1839 by the Associate Reformed Synod of the South as an academy for men, Erskine College became the first four year, church-related college in South Carolina... |
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| 1839 | Defunct | Few Society | Emory Emory University Emory University is a private research university in metropolitan Atlanta, located in the Druid Hills section of unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The university was founded as Emory College in 1836 in Oxford, Georgia by a small group of Methodists and was named in honor of... |
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| 1839 | (unkn.) | Licivyronian Society | William & Mary | |
| 1839 | (Defunct 1863) | Phi Delta Society | Oglethorpe Oglethorpe University Oglethorpe University is a private liberal arts college in Brookhaven, Georgia, an inner suburb of Atlanta. It was chartered in 1835 and named after James Edward Oglethorpe, the state's founder.-History:... |
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| 1839 | (unkn.) | Philological Society | Indiana Asbury | |
| 1839 | (unkn.) | Philomathesian Society | Oberlin Oberlin College Oberlin College is a private liberal arts college in Oberlin, Ohio, noteworthy for having been the first American institution of higher learning to regularly admit female and black students. Connected to the college is the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the oldest continuously operating... |
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| 1839 | (unkn.) | Psi Gamma Society | Marietta Marietta College Marietta College is a co-educational private college in Marietta, Ohio, USA, which was the first permanent settlement of the Northwest Territory. The school offers 42 majors along with a large number of minors, all of which are grounded in a strong liberal arts foundation... |
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| 1839 | Present | Thalian Society | Oglethorpe Oglethorpe University Oglethorpe University is a private liberal arts college in Brookhaven, Georgia, an inner suburb of Atlanta. It was chartered in 1835 and named after James Edward Oglethorpe, the state's founder.-History:... |
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| 1840 | (unkn.) | Adelphian Society | Colgate Colgate University Colgate University is a private liberal arts college in Hamilton, New York, USA. The school was founded in 1819 as a Baptist seminary and later became non-denominational. It is named for the Colgate family who greatly contributed to the university's endowment in the 19th century.Colgate has 52... |
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| 1840 | (unkn.) | Aeonian Society | Colgate Colgate University Colgate University is a private liberal arts college in Hamilton, New York, USA. The school was founded in 1819 as a Baptist seminary and later became non-denominational. It is named for the Colgate family who greatly contributed to the university's endowment in the 19th century.Colgate has 52... |
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| 1840 | (unkn.) | Calliopean Society | Emory & Henry Emory and Henry College Emory & Henry College, known as E&H, Emory, or the College, is a private liberal arts college located in Emory, Virginia, United States. The campus comprises of Washington County, Virginia, which is part of the mountain region of Southwest Virginia... |
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| 1840 | Defunct | Hermesian Society | Emory & Henry Emory and Henry College Emory & Henry College, known as E&H, Emory, or the College, is a private liberal arts college located in Emory, Virginia, United States. The campus comprises of Washington County, Virginia, which is part of the mountain region of Southwest Virginia... |
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| 1840 | (unkn.) | Phi Delta Society | Western Reserve | |
| 1840 | (unkn.) | Philalethian Society | Hanover Hanover College Hanover College is a private liberal arts college, located in Hanover, Indiana, near the banks of the Ohio River. The college is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church . The college was founded in 1827 by the Rev. John Finley Crowe, making it the oldest private college in Indiana. The Hanover... |
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| 1840 | (unkn.) | Tau Chi Society | William & Mary | |
| 1841 | (unkn.) | Philopaedian Society | St. Xavier St. Xavier University Saint Xavier University is a four-year, coeducational institution of higher learning located in the southwest side of Chicago, Illinois.- History :... |
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| 1842 | (unkn.) | Adelphi Society | Howard Howard College Howard College is a community college with its main campus in Big Spring, Texas and branch campuses in San Angelo and Lamesa.... |
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| 1842 | (unkn.) | Franklin Society | Howard Howard College Howard College is a community college with its main campus in Big Spring, Texas and branch campuses in San Angelo and Lamesa.... |
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| 1842 | (unkn.) | Phi Phi Alpha Society | Michigan University of Michigan The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan... |
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| 1843 | (unkn.) | Alpha Nu Society | Michigan University of Michigan The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan... |
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| 1843 | (unkn.) | Franklin Society | Denison Denison College Denison College of Secondary Education is a college of secondary education in Bathurst founded in 2007.Located in Bathurst the college is the largest provider of secondary education in the area with student numbers for 2007 of 1580, a college teaching staff of 130 and support staff of 30.- History... |
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| 1843 | Present | Sigma Pi Society | Illinois Illinois College Illinois College is a private, liberal arts college, affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church , and located in Jacksonville, Illinois. It was the second college founded in Illinois, but the first to grant a degree . It was founded in 1829 by the Illinois Band,... |
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| 1844 | (unkn.) | Clever Fellows Society | Albion Albion College Albion College is a private liberal arts college located in Albion, Michigan. Related to the United Methodist Church, it was founded in 1835 and was the first private college in Michigan to have a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. It has a student population of about 1500.The school's sports teams are... |
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| 1844 | (unkn.) | Clever Girls Society | Albion Albion College Albion College is a private liberal arts college located in Albion, Michigan. Related to the United Methodist Church, it was founded in 1835 and was the first private college in Michigan to have a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. It has a student population of about 1500.The school's sports teams are... |
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| 1845 | (unkn.) | Adelphi Society | Knox | |
| 1845 | (unkn.) | Atheniaedes Society | Albion Albion College Albion College is a private liberal arts college located in Albion, Michigan. Related to the United Methodist Church, it was founded in 1835 and was the first private college in Michigan to have a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. It has a student population of about 1500.The school's sports teams are... |
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| 1845 | Defunct | Calliopean Society | Citadel The Citadel (military college) The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, also known simply as The Citadel, is a state-supported, comprehensive college located in Charleston, South Carolina, USA. It is one of the six senior military colleges in the United States... |
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| 1845 | (unkn.) | Eclectic Society | Albion Albion College Albion College is a private liberal arts college located in Albion, Michigan. Related to the United Methodist Church, it was founded in 1835 and was the first private college in Michigan to have a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. It has a student population of about 1500.The school's sports teams are... |
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| 1851 | Present | Excelsior Men's Society | Heidelberg | |
| 1845 | (unkn.) | Hermean Society | Geneva Geneva College Geneva College is a Christian liberal arts college in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, United States, north of Pittsburgh. Founded in 1848, in Northwood, Ohio, the college moved to its present location in 1880, where it continues to educate a student body of about 1400 traditional undergraduates in... |
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| 1845 | Present | Phi Alpha Society | Illinois Illinois College Illinois College is a private, liberal arts college, affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church , and located in Jacksonville, Illinois. It was the second college founded in Illinois, but the first to grant a degree . It was founded in 1829 by the Illinois Band,... |
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| 1845 | (unkn.) | Zetagathea Society | Ohio Wesleyan Ohio Wesleyan University Ohio Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college in Delaware, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1842 by Methodist leaders and Central Ohio residents as a nonsectarian institution, and is a member of the Ohio Five — a consortium of Ohio liberal arts colleges... |
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| 1846 | (unkn.) | Alfreidian Lyceum Society | Alfred Alfred University Alfred University is a small, comprehensive university in the Village of Alfred in Western New York, USA, an hour and a half south of Rochester and two hours southeast of Buffalo. Alfred has an undergraduate population of around 2,000, and approximately 300 graduate students... |
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| 1846 | (unkn.) | Philomathean Society | Muskingum Muskingum College Muskingum University is a private four-year comprehensive college with a strong liberal arts tradition located in New Concord, Ohio, approximately sixty miles east of the state capital of Columbus. Founded in 1837, Muskingum University is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church , although since the... |
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| 1846 | (unkn.) | Philosophian Society | Wittenberg | |
| 1847 | (unkn.) | Calliopean Society | Wabash Wabash College Wabash College is a small, private, liberal arts college for men, located in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Along with Hampden-Sydney College and Morehouse College, Wabash is one of only three remaining traditional all-men's liberal arts colleges in the United States.-History:Wabash College was founded... |
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| 1847 | (unkn.) | Chrestomathean Society | Ohio Wesleyan Ohio Wesleyan University Ohio Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college in Delaware, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1842 by Methodist leaders and Central Ohio residents as a nonsectarian institution, and is a member of the Ohio Five — a consortium of Ohio liberal arts colleges... |
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| 1847 | (unkn.) | Lyceum Society | Wabash Wabash College Wabash College is a small, private, liberal arts college for men, located in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Along with Hampden-Sydney College and Morehouse College, Wabash is one of only three remaining traditional all-men's liberal arts colleges in the United States.-History:Wabash College was founded... |
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| 1847 | Present | Polytechnic Literary Society | Citadel The Citadel (military college) The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, also known simply as The Citadel, is a state-supported, comprehensive college located in Charleston, South Carolina, USA. It is one of the six senior military colleges in the United States... |
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| 1848 | 1948 | Chrestomathic Society | College of Charleston College of Charleston The College of Charleston is a public, sea-grant and space-grant university located in historic downtown Charleston, South Carolina, United States... |
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| 1848 | (unkn.) | Philomatic Society | Spring Hill Spring Hill College Spring Hill College is a private, Roman Catholic Jesuit liberal arts college in the United States. It was founded in 1830 on the Gulf Coast in Mobile, Alabama, by Most Rev. Michael Portier, Bishop of Mobile, Alabama... |
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| 1848 | (unkn.) | Tripartite Union | Lycoming Lycoming College Founded in 1812, Lycoming College is located in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. One of the 50 oldest colleges in America, Lycoming enrolls 1400 undergraduate students from over 28 states and 12 foreign countries. Eighty percent of the college's students live on campus... |
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| 1849 | (unkn.) | Alethearian Society | Geneva Geneva College Geneva College is a Christian liberal arts college in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, United States, north of Pittsburgh. Founded in 1848, in Northwood, Ohio, the college moved to its present location in 1880, where it continues to educate a student body of about 1400 traditional undergraduates in... |
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| 1849 | (unkn.) | Gnothautii Society | Knox | |
| 1849 | 1946 | Hermaean Society | Mississippi University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the... |
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| 1849 | 1934 | Phi Sigma Society | Mississippi University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the... |
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| 1849 | (unkn.) | Philo-Christomathean Society | Geneva Geneva College Geneva College is a Christian liberal arts college in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, United States, north of Pittsburgh. Founded in 1848, in Northwood, Ohio, the college moved to its present location in 1880, where it continues to educate a student body of about 1400 traditional undergraduates in... |
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| 1849 | Defunct | Platonian Society | McKendree McKendree College McKendree University, formerly known as McKendree College, is a private liberal arts college located in Lebanon, Illinois. The area is a part of the Metro-East region of Greater St. Louis. Founded in 1828 as the Lebanon Seminary, it is the oldest college in Illinois... |
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| 1850 | (unkn.) | Athenian Society | Wisconsin | |
| 1850 | (unkn.) | Belles Letters Society | Lycoming Lycoming College Founded in 1812, Lycoming College is located in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. One of the 50 oldest colleges in America, Lycoming enrolls 1400 undergraduate students from over 28 states and 12 foreign countries. Eighty percent of the college's students live on campus... |
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| 1850 | (unkn.) | Ciceronian Society | Roanoke Roanoke College Roanoke College is an private, coeducational, four-year liberal-arts college affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The college is located in Salem, Virginia, a suburban independent city adjacent to Roanoke, Virginia... |
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| 1850 | Defunct | Columbian Society | Carson-Newman Carson-Newman College Carson–Newman College is a historically Baptist liberal arts college located in Jefferson City, Tennessee, United States. Enrollment as of 2006-2007 was about 2,050. The college's students come from 44 U.S. states and 30 other countries. Studies are offered in approximately 90 different academic... |
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| 1850 | 1865 | Delphic Society | Rochester University of Rochester The University of Rochester is a private, nonsectarian, research university in Rochester, New York, United States. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The university has six schools and various interdisciplinary programs.The... |
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| 1850 | (unkn.) | Demosthenean Society | Roanoke Roanoke College Roanoke College is an private, coeducational, four-year liberal-arts college affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The college is located in Salem, Virginia, a suburban independent city adjacent to Roanoke, Virginia... |
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| 1850 | (unkn.) | Eupia Society | Bucknell Bucknell University Bucknell University is a private liberal arts university located alongside the West Branch Susquehanna River in the rolling countryside of Central Pennsylvania in the town of Lewisburg, 30 miles southeast of Williamsport and 60 miles north of Harrisburg. The university consists of the College of... |
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| 1850 | (unkn.) | Orophilian Lyceum Society | Alfred Alfred University Alfred University is a small, comprehensive university in the Village of Alfred in Western New York, USA, an hour and a half south of Rochester and two hours southeast of Buffalo. Alfred has an undergraduate population of around 2,000, and approximately 300 graduate students... |
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| 1850 | Defunct | Philomathean Society | Carson-Newman Carson-Newman College Carson–Newman College is a historically Baptist liberal arts college located in Jefferson City, Tennessee, United States. Enrollment as of 2006-2007 was about 2,050. The college's students come from 44 U.S. states and 30 other countries. Studies are offered in approximately 90 different academic... |
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| 1850 | (unkn.) | Philophrenian Society | Columbian | |
| 1850 | (unkn.) | Pithonian Society | Rochester University of Rochester The University of Rochester is a private, nonsectarian, research university in Rochester, New York, United States. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The university has six schools and various interdisciplinary programs.The... |
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| 1850 | (unkn.) | Soverville Society | Ohio Female | |
| 1850 | (unkn.) | Theta Alphea Society | Bucknell Bucknell University Bucknell University is a private liberal arts university located alongside the West Branch Susquehanna River in the rolling countryside of Central Pennsylvania in the town of Lewisburg, 30 miles southeast of Williamsport and 60 miles north of Harrisburg. The university consists of the College of... |
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| 1851 | (unkn.) | Addisonian Society | Kentucky Military | |
| 1851 | (unkn.) | Adelphean Society | Wesleyan Wesleyan College Wesleyan College is a private, liberal arts women's college located in Macon, Georgia, United States.-History:The school was chartered on December 23, 1836 as the Georgia Female College, and opened its doors to students on January 7, 1839. The school was renamed Wesleyan Female College in 1843... |
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| 1851 | (unkn.) | Alleghenian Lyceum Society | Alfred Alfred University Alfred University is a small, comprehensive university in the Village of Alfred in Western New York, USA, an hour and a half south of Rochester and two hours southeast of Buffalo. Alfred has an undergraduate population of around 2,000, and approximately 300 graduate students... |
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| 1851 | (unkn.) | Amphictyon Society | Lawrence Lawrence University Lawrence University is a selective, private liberal arts college with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, in Appleton, Wisconsin. Lawrence University is known for its rigorous academic environment. Founded in 1847, the first classes were held on November 12, 1849... |
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| 1851 | (unkn.) | Athenian Society | Ohio Wesleyan Ohio Wesleyan University Ohio Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college in Delaware, Ohio, United States. It was founded in 1842 by Methodist leaders and Central Ohio residents as a nonsectarian institution, and is a member of the Ohio Five — a consortium of Ohio liberal arts colleges... |
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| 1851 | (unkn.) | Belles Letters Society | MacMurray MacMurray College MacMurray College is a career-directed liberal arts college located in Jacksonville, Illinois. Its enrollment in fall 2011 was 548. It is from Springfield and from Chicago.... |
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| 1851 | (unkn.) | Clionian Society | Free Academy | |
| 1851 | (unkn.) | Philolexian Society | Kalamazoo Kalamazoo College Kalamazoo College, also known as K College or simply K, is a private liberal arts college in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1833, the college is among the 100 oldest in the country. Today, it produces more Peace Corps volunteers per capita than any other U.S... |
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| 1851 | (unkn.) | Philomathean Society | Waynesburg | |
| 1851 | (unkn.) | Philophronean Society | Otterbein | |
| 1851 | (unkn.) | Sherwood Rhetorical Society | Kalamazoo Kalamazoo College Kalamazoo College, also known as K College or simply K, is a private liberal arts college in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1833, the college is among the 100 oldest in the country. Today, it produces more Peace Corps volunteers per capita than any other U.S... |
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| 1851 | (unkn.) | St. Aloysius Philodemic Society | Notre Dame | |
| 1851 | (unkn.) | Students Philomathean Society | Hartsville | |
| 1851 | (unkn.) | Union Society | Waynesburg | |
| 1852 | Present | Philomathean Society Philomathean Society The Philomathean Society of the University of Pennsylvania is a collegiate literary society, the oldest student group at the university, and a claimant to the title of the oldest continuously-existing literary society in the United States.This claim is disputed between the Philomathean Society and... |
Wesleyan Wesleyan College Wesleyan College is a private, liberal arts women's college located in Macon, Georgia, United States.-History:The school was chartered on December 23, 1836 as the Georgia Female College, and opened its doors to students on January 7, 1839. The school was renamed Wesleyan Female College in 1843... |
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| 1852 | (unkn.) | Gamma Epsilon Society | Lycoming Lycoming College Founded in 1812, Lycoming College is located in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. One of the 50 oldest colleges in America, Lycoming enrolls 1400 undergraduate students from over 28 states and 12 foreign countries. Eighty percent of the college's students live on campus... |
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| 1852 | (unkn.) | Ladies Literary Society | Milton Milton College Milton College was a private college located in Milton, Wisconsin. Founded in 1844 as the Milton Academy, it closed in 1982. Its campus is now part of the Milton Historic District.... |
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| 1852 | (unkn.) | Philaletha Society | Otterbein | |
| 1852 | (unkn.) | Philomathean Society | Hiram Hiram College Hiram College is a private liberal arts college located in Hiram, Ohio. Founded by Amos Sutton Hayden of the Disciples of Christ Church in 1850, the institution has, since its first days, been nonsectarian and coeducational, and throughout its existence Hiram College has sustained this egalitarian... |
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| 1852 | (unkn.) | Philomathian Society | Mississippi University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, is a public, coeducational research university located in Oxford, Mississippi. Founded in 1844, the school is composed of the main campus in Oxford, four branch campuses located in Booneville, Grenada, Tupelo, and Southaven as well as the... |
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| 1852 | (unkn.) | Philomethean Society | Wesleyan Wesleyan College Wesleyan College is a private, liberal arts women's college located in Macon, Georgia, United States.-History:The school was chartered on December 23, 1836 as the Georgia Female College, and opened its doors to students on January 7, 1839. The school was renamed Wesleyan Female College in 1843... |
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| 1852 | (unkn.) | Phrenocosmian Society | Free Academy | |
| 1853 | (unkn.) | Amphictyon Society | Cornell College Cornell College Cornell College is a private liberal arts college in Mount Vernon, Iowa. Originally called the Iowa Conference Seminary, the school was founded in 1853 by Reverend Samuel M. Fellows... |
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| 1853 | (unkn.) | Chrestomathian Society | Grinnell Grinnell College Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, U.S. known for its strong tradition of social activism. It was founded in 1846, when a group of pioneer New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College.... |
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| 1853 | (unkn.) | Clio Society | Capital Capital University Capital University is a private liberal arts university of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America located in Bexley, Ohio, founded in 1830. In addition to its rigorous liberal arts program, the university also offers a reputable adult degree program in Columbus, Ohio. It is one of the oldest... |
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| 1853 | (unkn.) | Emma Willards Society | Waynesburg | |
| 1853 | (unkn.) | Hentz Society | La Grange | |
| 1853 | (unkn.) | Judson Society | La Grange | |
| 1853 | (unkn.) | Parthenian Society | Baltimore University of Baltimore The University of Baltimore , located in downtown Baltimore, Maryland in the Mt. Vernon neighborhood at 1420 N. Charles Street, is part of the University System of Maryland. Through the Freshman Initiative or Lower Division Initiative, UB has transformed from an upper division university to a... |
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| 1853 | (unkn.) | Periclesian Society | Franklin | |
| 1853 | (unkn.) | Phi Nu Society | MacMurray MacMurray College MacMurray College is a career-directed liberal arts college located in Jacksonville, Illinois. Its enrollment in fall 2011 was 548. It is from Springfield and from Chicago.... |
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| 1853 | (unkn.) | Phileans Society | Waynesburg | |
| 1853 | (unkn.) | Union Literary Society | Geneva Geneva College Geneva College is a Christian liberal arts college in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, United States, north of Pittsburgh. Founded in 1848, in Northwood, Ohio, the college moved to its present location in 1880, where it continues to educate a student body of about 1400 traditional undergraduates in... |
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| 1853 | (unkn.) | Webster Society | Franklin | |
| 1854 | (unkn.) | Alethezethian Society | Antioch Antioch College Antioch College is a private, independent liberal arts college in Yellow Springs, Ohio, United States. It was the founder and the flagship institution of the six-campus Antioch University system. Founded in 1852 by the Christian Connection, the college began operating in 1853 with politician and... |
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| 1854 | 2001 | Archanian Society | Univ. of the Pacific | |
| 1854 | (unkn.) | Aristotelian Society | Central Central College Central College is a private liberal arts college located in Pella, Iowa. It is a four-year school affiliated with the Reformed Church in America. Central has a student body of approximately 1,600 undergraduates and a main campus... |
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| 1854 | (unkn.) | Calhoun Society | Wofford Wofford College Established in 1854 and related to the United Methodist Church, Wofford College is an independent, Phi Beta Kappa liberal arts college of 1,525 students located in downtown Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States. The historic campus is recognized as a national arboretum and features “The... |
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| 1854 | 1875 | Delphic Society | Hiram Hiram College Hiram College is a private liberal arts college located in Hiram, Ohio. Founded by Amos Sutton Hayden of the Disciples of Christ Church in 1850, the institution has, since its first days, been nonsectarian and coeducational, and throughout its existence Hiram College has sustained this egalitarian... |
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| 1854 | (unkn.) | Erodelphian Society | Burlington Burlington College Burlington College is a private liberal arts college located in Burlington, Vermont that offers Associate, Bachelor's, and Masters degrees, as well as several professional certificate programs... |
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| 1854 | (unkn.) | Hamline Society | Iowa Wesleyan Iowa Wesleyan College Iowa Wesleyan College is a private four-year liberal arts college of the United Methodist Church located Mt. Pleasant, Iowa.Iowa Wesleyan is recognized as a pioneer in higher education in America. Founded in 1842, it ranks as the oldest coeducational college located west of the Mississippi River... |
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| 1854 | (unkn.) | Hesperian Society | Hiram Hiram College Hiram College is a private liberal arts college located in Hiram, Ohio. Founded by Amos Sutton Hayden of the Disciples of Christ Church in 1850, the institution has, since its first days, been nonsectarian and coeducational, and throughout its existence Hiram College has sustained this egalitarian... |
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| 1854 | (unkn.) | Hesperian Society | Wisconsin | |
| 1854 | (unkn.) | Linnaen Society | Mount Union Mount Union College The University of Mount Union is a 4-year private, coeducational, liberal arts college in Alliance, Ohio.Mount Union enrolls 2200 undergraduates. Approximately 50 percent are women and 50 percent are men, representing more than 22 states and 13 countries. Mount Union has an active alumni base of... |
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| 1854 | (unkn.) | Phi Alpha Society | Central Central College Central College is a private liberal arts college located in Pella, Iowa. It is a four-year school affiliated with the Reformed Church in America. Central has a student body of approximately 1,600 undergraduates and a main campus... |
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| 1854 | (unkn.) | Philomathian Society | Bethel Bethel College (Kentucky) Bethel College was a Baptist-affiliated college in Kentucky founded in 1854 and closed in 1964. It was a women's college throughout most of its history, though it became co-educational for its final years.... |
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| 1854 | (unkn.) | Washington Society | Bethel Bethel College (Kentucky) Bethel College was a Baptist-affiliated college in Kentucky founded in 1854 and closed in 1964. It was a women's college throughout most of its history, though it became co-educational for its final years.... |
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| 1855 | (unkn.) | Alethean Society | Baldwin | |
| 1855 | (unkn.) | Calliope Academy | Spring Hill Spring Hill College Spring Hill College is a private, Roman Catholic Jesuit liberal arts college in the United States. It was founded in 1830 on the Gulf Coast in Mobile, Alabama, by Most Rev. Michael Portier, Bishop of Mobile, Alabama... |
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| 1855 | (unkn.) | Crescent Society | Antioch Antioch College Antioch College is a private, independent liberal arts college in Yellow Springs, Ohio, United States. It was the founder and the flagship institution of the six-campus Antioch University system. Founded in 1852 by the Christian Connection, the college began operating in 1853 with politician and... |
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| 1855 | (unkn.) | Curious Society | Milwaukee | |
| 1855 | (unkn.) | Erosophian Society | Marshall Marshall College Marshall College was the name of Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia, before it was granted university status in 1961.Marshall College can also refer to:* Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania... |
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| 1855 | (unkn.) | Hyperion Society | Marshall Marshall College Marshall College was the name of Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia, before it was granted university status in 1961.Marshall College can also refer to:* Franklin & Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania... |
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| 1855 | (unkn.) | Philalethean Society | Lawrence Lawrence University Lawrence University is a selective, private liberal arts college with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, in Appleton, Wisconsin. Lawrence University is known for its rigorous academic environment. Founded in 1847, the first classes were held on November 12, 1849... |
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| 1855 | (unkn.) | Philologian Society | Richmond University of Richmond The University of Richmond is a selective, private, nonsectarian, liberal arts university located on the border of the city of Richmond and Henrico County, Virginia. The University of Richmond is a primarily undergraduate, residential university with approximately 4,000 undergraduate and graduate... |
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| 1855 | (unkn.) | Philopenthean Society | Geneva Geneva College Geneva College is a Christian liberal arts college in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, United States, north of Pittsburgh. Founded in 1848, in Northwood, Ohio, the college moved to its present location in 1880, where it continues to educate a student body of about 1400 traditional undergraduates in... |
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| 1855 | (unkn.) | Phoenix Society | Lawrence Lawrence University Lawrence University is a selective, private liberal arts college with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, in Appleton, Wisconsin. Lawrence University is known for its rigorous academic environment. Founded in 1847, the first classes were held on November 12, 1849... |
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| 1855 | (unkn.) | Star Society | Antioch Antioch College Antioch College is a private, independent liberal arts college in Yellow Springs, Ohio, United States. It was the founder and the flagship institution of the six-campus Antioch University system. Founded in 1852 by the Christian Connection, the college began operating in 1853 with politician and... |
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| 1856 | Defunct | Beltionian Society | Wheaton Wheaton College (Illinois) Wheaton College is a private, evangelical Protestant liberal arts college in Wheaton, Illinois, a suburb west of Chicago in the United States... |
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| 1856 | (unkn.) | Hinman Society | Northwestern Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees.... |
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| 1856 | (unkn.) | Mathesian Society | Northwestern Christian | |
| 1856 | (unkn.) | Philadelphian Society | Monmouth Monmouth College Monmouth College is a four-year coeducational private liberal arts college located in Monmouth, Illinois, United States.-History:Monmouth College was founded on April 18, 1853 by the Second Presbytery of Illinois, a frontier arm of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church... |
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| 1856 | (unkn.) | Philalethic Society | Santa Clara | |
| 1856 | (unkn.) | Philomathean Society | Willamette Willamette University Willamette University is an American private institution of higher learning located in Salem, Oregon. Founded in 1842, it is the oldest university in the Western United States. Willamette is a member of the Annapolis Group of colleges, and is made up of an undergraduate College of Liberal Arts and... |
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| 1856 | (unkn.) | Philoneikean Society | Moores Hill University of Evansville The University of Evansville is a small, private university with approximately 3,050 students located in Evansville, Indiana. Founded in 1854 as Moores Hill College, it is located near the interchange of the Lloyd Expressway and U.S. Route 41. It is affiliated with the United Methodist Church... |
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| 1856 | (unkn.) | Phoenix Band Society | Earlham Earlham College Earlham College is a liberal arts college in Richmond, Indiana. It was founded in 1847 by Quakers and has approximately 1,200 students.The president is John David Dawson... |
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| 1857 | (unkn.) | Alpha Kappa Phi Society | Hillsdale Hillsdale College Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan, United States, is a co-educational liberal arts college known for being the first American college to prohibit in its charter all discrimination based on race, religion, or sex; its refusal of government funding; and its monthly publication, Imprimis... |
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| 1857 | (unkn.) | Amphictyon Society | Hillsdale Hillsdale College Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan, United States, is a co-educational liberal arts college known for being the first American college to prohibit in its charter all discrimination based on race, religion, or sex; its refusal of government funding; and its monthly publication, Imprimis... |
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| 1857 | (unkn.) | Eurodelphian Society | Spring Hill Spring Hill College Spring Hill College is a private, Roman Catholic Jesuit liberal arts college in the United States. It was founded in 1830 on the Gulf Coast in Mobile, Alabama, by Most Rev. Michael Portier, Bishop of Mobile, Alabama... |
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| 1857 | (unkn.) | Hesperian Society | Ohio Female | |
| 1857 | (unkn.) | Ionian Society | Earlham Earlham College Earlham College is a liberal arts college in Richmond, Indiana. It was founded in 1847 by Quakers and has approximately 1,200 students.The president is John David Dawson... |
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| 1857 | (unkn.) | Ladies Literary Union | Hillsdale Hillsdale College Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan, United States, is a co-educational liberal arts college known for being the first American college to prohibit in its charter all discrimination based on race, religion, or sex; its refusal of government funding; and its monthly publication, Imprimis... |
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| 1857 | (unkn.) | Literary Adelphi Society | Michigan University of Michigan The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan... |
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| 1857 | (unkn.) | Philomathean Society | Otterbein | |
| 1857 | (unkn.) | Phreno-Cosmian Society | Baldwin | |
| 1857 | (unkn.) | Pythonian Society | Northwestern Christian | |
| 1857 | (unkn.) | Sigournean Society | Moores Hill University of Evansville The University of Evansville is a small, private university with approximately 3,050 students located in Evansville, Indiana. Founded in 1854 as Moores Hill College, it is located near the interchange of the Lloyd Expressway and U.S. Route 41. It is affiliated with the United Methodist Church... |
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| 1858 | (unkn.) | Adelphian Society | Cornell College Cornell College Cornell College is a private liberal arts college in Mount Vernon, Iowa. Originally called the Iowa Conference Seminary, the school was founded in 1853 by Reverend Samuel M. Fellows... |
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| 1858 | (unkn.) | Athena Society | Lawrence Lawrence University Lawrence University is a selective, private liberal arts college with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, in Appleton, Wisconsin. Lawrence University is known for its rigorous academic environment. Founded in 1847, the first classes were held on November 12, 1849... |
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| 1858 | (unkn.) | Excelsior Society | Albright Albright College Albright College is a private, co-ed, liberal arts college affiliated with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1856 and is located in Reading, Pennsylvania, United States.-Overview:... |
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| 1858 | (unkn.) | Preston Society | Wofford Wofford College Established in 1854 and related to the United Methodist Church, Wofford College is an independent, Phi Beta Kappa liberal arts college of 1,525 students located in downtown Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States. The historic campus is recognized as a national arboretum and features “The... |
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| 1858 | (unkn.) | Rhizomian Society | Univ. of the Pacific | |
| 1859 | (unkn.) | Alethean Society | Beloit Beloit College Beloit College is a liberal arts college in Beloit, Wisconsin, USA. It is a member of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest, and has an enrollment of roughly 1,300 undergraduate students. Beloit is the oldest continuously operated college in Wisconsin, and has the oldest building of any college... |
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| 1859 | (unkn.) | Archaean Society | Beloit Beloit College Beloit College is a liberal arts college in Beloit, Wisconsin, USA. It is a member of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest, and has an enrollment of roughly 1,300 undergraduate students. Beloit is the oldest continuously operated college in Wisconsin, and has the oldest building of any college... |
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| 1859 | (unkn.) | Belles Letters Society | Illinois Wesleyan Illinois Wesleyan University Illinois Wesleyan University is an independent undergraduate university located in Bloomington, Illinois. Founded in 1850, the central portion of the present campus was acquired in 1854 with the first building erected in 1856... |
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| 1859 | (unkn.) | Belles Letters Society | Southern Southern University Southern University and A&M College is a historically black college located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The Baton Rouge campus is located on Scott’s Bluff overlooking the Mississippi River in the northern section... |
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| 1859 | (unkn.) | Clariosophic Society | Southern Southern University Southern University and A&M College is a historically black college located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The Baton Rouge campus is located on Scott’s Bluff overlooking the Mississippi River in the northern section... |
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| 1859 | (unkn.) | Delean Society | Beloit Beloit College Beloit College is a liberal arts college in Beloit, Wisconsin, USA. It is a member of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest, and has an enrollment of roughly 1,300 undergraduate students. Beloit is the oldest continuously operated college in Wisconsin, and has the oldest building of any college... |
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| 1859 | Present | German Verein (now the Alpha Omega Chapter of Phi Kappa Tau Phi Kappa Tau Phi Kappa Tau is a U.S. national collegiate fraternity.-History:Phi Kappa Tau Fraternity was founded in the Union Literary Society Hall of Miami University's Old Main Building in Oxford, Ohio on March 17, 1906... Fraternity) |
German Wallace German Wallace College German Wallace College was a German Methodist institution of higher education in Berea, Ohio. It was organized 7 June 1864. The Rev. Jakob Rothweiler of the Central German Annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church was appointed 3 June 1863 to inaugurate the movement to establish this... |
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| 1859 | (unkn.) | Germanae Sodales Society | Hillsdale Hillsdale College Hillsdale College in Hillsdale, Michigan, United States, is a co-educational liberal arts college known for being the first American college to prohibit in its charter all discrimination based on race, religion, or sex; its refusal of government funding; and its monthly publication, Imprimis... |
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| 1859 | (unkn.) | Literary Society | Maryland University of Maryland, College Park The University of Maryland, College Park is a top-ranked public research university located in the city of College Park in Prince George's County, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C... |
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| 1859 | (unkn.) | Neocosmian Society | Albright Albright College Albright College is a private, co-ed, liberal arts college affiliated with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1856 and is located in Reading, Pennsylvania, United States.-Overview:... |
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| 1859 | (unkn.) | Philestorian Society | Santa Clara | |
| 1859 | (unkn.) | Ruthean Society | Iowa Wesleyan Iowa Wesleyan College Iowa Wesleyan College is a private four-year liberal arts college of the United Methodist Church located Mt. Pleasant, Iowa.Iowa Wesleyan is recognized as a pioneer in higher education in America. Founded in 1842, it ranks as the oldest coeducational college located west of the Mississippi River... |
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| 1859 | (unkn.) | Sophronikopean Society | Missionary | |
| 1859 | (unkn.) | Star Society | Adrian Adrian College Adrian College is a private, co-educational liberal arts college related to the United Methodist Church in the city of Adrian, Michigan.-Campus:The school is approximately a 45-minute drive from Ann Arbor and Toledo, Ohio, and 90 minutes from Detroit... |
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| 1859 | (unkn.) | Webster Society | Michigan University of Michigan The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan... |
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| 1860 | (unkn.) | Adelphian Society | Furman Furman University Furman University is a selective, private, coeducational, liberal arts college in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. Furman is one of the oldest, and more selective private institutions in South Carolina... |
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| 1860 | (unkn.) | Adelphic Society | Northwestern Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees.... |
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| 1860 | (unkn.) | Athenaeum Society | Chicago University of Chicago The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890... |
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| 1860 | (unkn.) | Erosophian Society | Lombard Lombard College -History:Lombard College was founded in 1853 by the Universalist Church as the Illinois Liberal Institute. In 1855, however, a major fire damaged much of the college, placing its future at risk, but a large gift from Benjamin Lombard, an Illinois farmer and businessman, rescued the institution,... |
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| 1860 | (unkn.) | Eulexian Society | St. Stephens | |
| 1860 | (unkn.) | Franklin Reading Society | Furman Furman University Furman University is a selective, private, coeducational, liberal arts college in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. Furman is one of the oldest, and more selective private institutions in South Carolina... |
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| 1860 | (unkn.) | Philomathean Society | Milton Milton College Milton College was a private college located in Milton, Wisconsin. Founded in 1844 as the Milton Academy, it closed in 1982. Its campus is now part of the Milton Historic District.... |
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| 1860 | (unkn.) | Philosophian Society | Furman Furman University Furman University is a selective, private, coeducational, liberal arts college in Greenville, South Carolina, United States. Furman is one of the oldest, and more selective private institutions in South Carolina... |
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| 1860 | (unkn.) | Reynolds Society | Stockwell | |
| 1861 | (unkn.) | Addisonian Society | Wayland Wayland Baptist University Wayland Baptist University is private, coeducational Baptist university based in Plainview, Texas, U.S.A. Wayland Baptist has a total of fourteen campuses in four additional Texas cities, five other states, and the country of Kenya. On August 31, 1908, the university was chartered by the state of... |
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| 1861 | (unkn.) | Berean Society | Chicago University of Chicago The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890... |
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| 1861 | (unkn.) | Phi Alpha Pi Society | Olivet Olivet College Olivet College is a coeducational, liberal arts college located in Olivet, Michigan, United States, south of Lansing and west of Detroit. It is affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the National Association of Congregational Christian Churches, and accredited by the North Central... |
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| 1861 | (unkn.) | Tri Kappa Society | Chicago University of Chicago The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890... |
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| 1861 | (unkn.) | Zetagathian Society | Iowa State Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of... |
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| 1865 | (unkn.) | De La Salle Club | Manhattan Manhattan College Manhattan College is a Roman Catholic liberal arts college in the Lasallian tradition in New York City, United States. Despite the college's name, it is no longer located in Manhattan but in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, roughly 10 miles north of Midtown. Manhattan College offers... |
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| 1865 | (unkn.) | Erosophian Society | Baylor | |
| 1865 | (unkn.) | Irving Society | Andalusia, (Pa.) | |
| 1865 | (unkn.) | Philalethian Society | Vassar Vassar College Vassar College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college in the town of Poughkeepsie, New York, in the United States. The Vassar campus comprises over and more than 100 buildings, including four National Historic Landmarks, ranging in style from Collegiate Gothic to International,... |
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| 1866 | (unkn.) | Alka Society | Willamette Willamette University Willamette University is an American private institution of higher learning located in Salem, Oregon. Founded in 1842, it is the oldest university in the Western United States. Willamette is a member of the Annapolis Group of colleges, and is made up of an undergraduate College of Liberal Arts and... |
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| 1866 | (unkn.) | Brown Debating Society | Stockwell | |
| 1866 | (unkn.) | Clionian Society | Almira Greenville College Greenville College is located in Greenville, Illinois, a small Illinois city, located 45 miles east of St. Louis, Missouri on Interstate 70... |
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| 1866 | (unkn.) | Garnet Society | Lincoln Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) Lincoln University is the United States' first degree-granting historically black university. It is located near the town of Oxford in southern Chester County, Pennsylvania. The university also hosts a Center for Graduate Studies in the City of Philadelphia. Lincoln University provides... |
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| 1866 | (unkn.) | Lincoln Association | Illinois Soldiers' | |
| 1866 | (unkn.) | Philomathean Society | Union Christian Union Christian College, Merom Union Christian College was a small co-educational college located in Merom, Indiana, USA. Founded by the denomination called the Christian Church which eventually merged with the Congregational denomination which later joined with the Evangelical and Reformed Churches to form the United Church of... |
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| 1866 | (unkn.) | Robert E. V. Rice Society | Niagara Niagara University Niagara University is a Catholic university in the Vincentian tradition, located in the Town of Lewiston in Niagara County, New York. Originally founded by the Congregation of the Mission in 1856 as Our Lady of Angels Seminary, it became Niagara University in 1883. The University is still run by... |
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| 1866 | (unkn.) | Scientific Society | Wilberforce Wilberforce University Wilberforce University is a private, coed, liberal arts historically black university located in Wilberforce, Ohio. Affiliated with the African Methodist Episcopal Church, it was the first college to be owned and operated by African Americans... |
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| 1866 | (unkn.) | Semicentenary Society | Wilberforce Wilberforce University Wilberforce University is a private, coed, liberal arts historically black university located in Wilberforce, Ohio. Affiliated with the African Methodist Episcopal Church, it was the first college to be owned and operated by African Americans... |
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| 1866 | (unkn.) | St Joseph Society | St. Joseph | |
| 1866 | (unkn.) | Stonewall Society | Baylor | |
| 1866 | (unkn.) | Themian Society | Quincy Quincy College Quincy College is a public junior college located in Quincy, Massachusetts. It is an open admission commuter school that offers associate's degrees in professional fields of study.-History:... |
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| 1867 | (unkn.) | Aristotelian Society | Harlem Springs | |
| 1867 | (unkn.) | Athenian Society | Tennessee Wesleyan Tennessee Wesleyan College Tennessee Wesleyan College is a small liberal arts college founded in 1857, located in the East Tennessee city of Athens. It is affiliated with the Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church... |
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| 1867 | (unkn.) | Byronic Society | Harlem Springs | |
| 1867 | (unkn.) | Erosophian Society | Albion Albion College Albion College is a private liberal arts college located in Albion, Michigan. Related to the United Methodist Church, it was founded in 1835 and was the first private college in Michigan to have a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. It has a student population of about 1500.The school's sports teams are... |
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| 1867 | (unkn.) | Eulexian Society | St. Augustine | |
| 1867 | (unkn.) | Euterpean Society | Muhlenberg Muhlenberg College Muhlenberg College is a private liberal arts college located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1848, Muhlenberg is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and is named for Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, the patriarch of the Lutheran Church in America.- History... |
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| 1867 | (unkn.) | Neotrophian Society | Bethel Bethel College Bethel College can refer to:* Bethel College * Bethel College * Bethel College * Bethel University , called Bethel College until 2004* Bethel University , called Bethel College until 2009... |
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| 1867 | (unkn.) | Philokosmian Society | Lebanon Valley Lebanon Valley College Lebanon Valley College is a small, liberal arts higher education institution situated in the heart of Annville in Lebanon County, east of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.-History:... |
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| 1867 | (unkn.) | Philosophian Society | Lincoln Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) Lincoln University is the United States' first degree-granting historically black university. It is located near the town of Oxford in southern Chester County, Pennsylvania. The university also hosts a Center for Graduate Studies in the City of Philadelphia. Lincoln University provides... |
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| 1867 | (unkn.) | Sophronian Society | Muhlenberg Muhlenberg College Muhlenberg College is a private liberal arts college located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1848, Muhlenberg is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and is named for Henry Melchior Muhlenberg, the patriarch of the Lutheran Church in America.- History... |
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| 1867 | (unkn.) | Zetalethean Society | Simpson Simpson College Simpson College is a four-year, coeducational liberal arts institution situated in Indianola, Iowa, USA, and affiliated with the United Methodist Church. Simpson, which has been fully accredited by North Central Association since 1913, is a small school with approximately 1,400 full-time students... |
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| 1868 | (unkn.) | Adelphene Society | Union Christian Union Christian College, Merom Union Christian College was a small co-educational college located in Merom, Indiana, USA. Founded by the denomination called the Christian Church which eventually merged with the Congregational denomination which later joined with the Evangelical and Reformed Churches to form the United Church of... |
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| 1868 | (unkn.) | Alpha Delta Society | Hiram Hiram College Hiram College is a private liberal arts college located in Hiram, Ohio. Founded by Amos Sutton Hayden of the Disciples of Christ Church in 1850, the institution has, since its first days, been nonsectarian and coeducational, and throughout its existence Hiram College has sustained this egalitarian... |
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| 1868 | (unkn.) | German Society | St. Xaviers | |
| 1868 | 1888 | Irving Society Irving Literary Society (Cornell University) The Irving Literary Society was a literary society at Cornell University active from 1868 to 1887. The U.S... |
Cornell University Cornell University Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions... |
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| 1868 | (unkn.) | Lehigh Junto | Lehigh Lehigh University Lehigh University is a private, co-educational university located in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the United States. It was established in 1865 by Asa Packer as a four-year technical school, but has grown to include studies in a wide variety of disciplines... |
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| 1868 | (unkn.) | Phi Delta Society | Berea Berea College Berea College is a liberal arts work college in Berea, Kentucky , founded in 1855. Current full-time enrollment is 1,514 students... |
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| 1868 | (unkn.) | Philocurian Society | Northwestern Christian | |
| 1868 | (unkn.) | Philomathean Society | Iowa State Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of... |
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| 1868 | (unkn.) | Philomathian Society | Illinois | |
| 1869 | (unkn.) | Athenian Society | Kings | |
| 1869 | (unkn.) | Basilian Society | Niagara Niagara University Niagara University is a Catholic university in the Vincentian tradition, located in the Town of Lewiston in Niagara County, New York. Originally founded by the Congregation of the Mission in 1856 as Our Lady of Angels Seminary, it became Niagara University in 1883. The University is still run by... |
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| 1869 | Still active | Clionian Society | McKendree McKendree College McKendree University, formerly known as McKendree College, is a private liberal arts college located in Lebanon, Illinois. The area is a part of the Metro-East region of Greater St. Louis. Founded in 1828 as the Lebanon Seminary, it is the oldest college in Illinois... |
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| 1869 | (unkn.) | Orthopatetic Society | Blackburn | |
| 1869 | (unkn.) | Philomathean Society | Tennessee Wesleyan Tennessee Wesleyan College Tennessee Wesleyan College is a small liberal arts college founded in 1857, located in the East Tennessee city of Athens. It is affiliated with the Holston Conference of the United Methodist Church... |
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| 1869 | (unkn.) | Photozotean Society | Moore's hill University of Evansville The University of Evansville is a small, private university with approximately 3,050 students located in Evansville, Indiana. Founded in 1854 as Moores Hill College, it is located near the interchange of the Lloyd Expressway and U.S. Route 41. It is affiliated with the United Methodist Church... |
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| 1869 | (unkn.) | Zenobian Society | Minnesota University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557... |
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| 1870 | Defunct | Aristonian Society | Wheaton Wheaton College (Illinois) Wheaton College is a private, evangelical Protestant liberal arts college in Wheaton, Illinois, a suburb west of Chicago in the United States... |
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| 1870 | (unkn.) | Atheneum Society | Willamette Willamette University Willamette University is an American private institution of higher learning located in Salem, Oregon. Founded in 1842, it is the oldest university in the Western United States. Willamette is a member of the Annapolis Group of colleges, and is made up of an undergraduate College of Liberal Arts and... |
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| 1870 | (unkn.) | Bachelor Society | Iowa State Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of... |
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| 1870 | 1906 | Baconian Society | Potsdam State University of New York at Potsdam The State University of New York at Potsdam, also known as SUNY Potsdam, or, colloquially, Potsdam, is a public university located in the Village of Potsdam in St. Lawrence County, New York. Founded in 1816, it is among the 50 oldest colleges in the United States... |
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| 1870 | (unkn.) | Castelian Society | Rockford Rockford College Rockford College is a private American liberal arts college in Rockford, Illinois. It was founded in 1847 as Rockford Female Seminary and changed its name in 1892. The college is known as the alma mater of Nobel Peace Prize winner Jane Addams, who was a member of the class of... |
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| 1870 | (unkn.) | Crescent Society | Iowa State Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of... |
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| 1870 | (unkn.) | Erodelphian Society | Highland | |
| 1870 | (unkn.) | Grinnell Institute | Grinnell Grinnell College Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, U.S. known for its strong tradition of social activism. It was founded in 1846, when a group of pioneer New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College.... |
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| 1870 | (unkn.) | Irving Society | Wooster | |
| 1870 | (unkn.) | Philologian Society | St Stephens Bard College Bard College, founded in 1860 as "St. Stephen's College", is a small four-year liberal arts college located in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York.-Location:... |
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| 1870 | (unkn.) | Philotechnic Society | Louisiana State Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name... |
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| 1870 | Present | Signet Society Signet society The Signet Society of Harvard University was founded in 1870 by members of the class of 1871. The first president was Charles Joseph Bonaparte. It was, at first, dedicated to the production of literary work only, going so far as to exclude debate and even theatrical productions. According to The... |
Harvard Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country... |
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| 1870 | (unkn.) | Vesperian Society | Rockford Rockford College Rockford College is a private American liberal arts college in Rockford, Illinois. It was founded in 1847 as Rockford Female Seminary and changed its name in 1892. The college is known as the alma mater of Nobel Peace Prize winner Jane Addams, who was a member of the class of... |
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| 1870 | (unkn.) | Wayland Society | Brown Brown University Brown University is a private, Ivy League university located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Founded in 1764 prior to American independence from the British Empire as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations early in the reign of King George III ,... |
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| 1871 | (unkn.) | Bettina Society | German Wallace German Wallace College German Wallace College was a German Methodist institution of higher education in Berea, Ohio. It was organized 7 June 1864. The Rev. Jakob Rothweiler of the Central German Annual Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church was appointed 3 June 1863 to inaugurate the movement to establish this... |
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| 1871 | (unkn.) | Bonhommian Society | Highland | |
| 1871 | (unkn.) | Cliolian Society | Iowa State Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of... |
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| 1871 | 1889 | Delphic Society | Geneseo State University of New York at Geneseo The State University of New York at Geneseo—also known as SUNY Geneseo, Geneseo State, or, colloquially, Geneseo—is located in Geneseo, Livingston County, New York, United States. It is a University College of the State University of New York... |
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| 1871 | (unkn.) | Sodalian Society | Wilberforce Wilberforce University Wilberforce University is a private, coed, liberal arts historically black university located in Wilberforce, Ohio. Affiliated with the African Methodist Episcopal Church, it was the first college to be owned and operated by African Americans... |
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| 1872 | (unkn.) | Adelphic Society | Geneva Geneva College Geneva College is a Christian liberal arts college in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, United States, north of Pittsburgh. Founded in 1848, in Northwood, Ohio, the college moved to its present location in 1880, where it continues to educate a student body of about 1400 traditional undergraduates in... |
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| 1872 | Defunct | Excelsior Society | Wheaton Wheaton College (Illinois) Wheaton College is a private, evangelical Protestant liberal arts college in Wheaton, Illinois, a suburb west of Chicago in the United States... |
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| 1873 | Defunct | Alamo Society | Southwestern Southwestern University Southwestern University is a private, four-year, undergraduate, liberal arts college located in Georgetown, Texas, USA. Founded in 1840, Southwestern is the oldest university in Texas. The school is affiliated with the United Methodist Church although the curriculum is nonsectarian... |
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| 1874 | (unkn.) | Ossoli Society | Northwestern Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees.... |
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| 1875 | Defunct | San Jacinto Society | Southwestern Southwestern University Southwestern University is a private, four-year, undergraduate, liberal arts college located in Georgetown, Texas, USA. Founded in 1840, Southwestern is the oldest university in Texas. The school is affiliated with the United Methodist Church although the curriculum is nonsectarian... |
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| 1876 | (unkn.) | Eutaxian Society | Oregon University of Oregon -Colleges and schools:The University of Oregon is organized into eight schools and colleges—six professional schools and colleges, an Arts and Sciences College and an Honors College.- School of Architecture and Allied Arts :... |
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| 1876 | (unkn.) | Laurean Society | Oregon University of Oregon -Colleges and schools:The University of Oregon is organized into eight schools and colleges—six professional schools and colleges, an Arts and Sciences College and an Honors College.- School of Architecture and Allied Arts :... |
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| 1881 | Defunct | Alethean Society | Southwestern Southwestern University Southwestern University is a private, four-year, undergraduate, liberal arts college located in Georgetown, Texas, USA. Founded in 1840, Southwestern is the oldest university in Texas. The school is affiliated with the United Methodist Church although the curriculum is nonsectarian... |
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| 1885 | Defunct | Clio Society | Southwestern Southwestern University Southwestern University is a private, four-year, undergraduate, liberal arts college located in Georgetown, Texas, USA. Founded in 1840, Southwestern is the oldest university in Texas. The school is affiliated with the United Methodist Church although the curriculum is nonsectarian... |
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| 1889 | Present | Winthrop Literary Society | Winthrop Winthrop University Winthrop University is a public, four-year liberal arts university in Rock Hill, South Carolina, USA. In 2006-07, Winthrop University had an enrollment of 6,292 students. The University has been recognized as South Carolina's top-rated university according to evaluations conducted by the South... |
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| 1897 | Present | Gamma Nu Society | Illinois Illinois College Illinois College is a private, liberal arts college, affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church , and located in Jacksonville, Illinois. It was the second college founded in Illinois, but the first to grant a degree . It was founded in 1829 by the Illinois Band,... |
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| 1911 | Present | Elizabethan Club Elizabethan Club The Elizabethan Club is a social club at Yale University named for Queen Elizabeth I and her era. Its profile and members tend toward a literary disposition, and conversation is one of the Club's chief purposes.... |
Yale Yale University Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States... |
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| 1911 | Present | Gamma Delta Society | Illinois Illinois College Illinois College is a private, liberal arts college, affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church , and located in Jacksonville, Illinois. It was the second college founded in Illinois, but the first to grant a degree . It was founded in 1829 by the Illinois Band,... |
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| 1912 | 1913 | Hesperian Society | Heidelberg | |
| 1912 | present | Philomathean Society | Univ. of the Pacific | |
| 1913 | Present | Euglossian Society | Heidelberg | |
| 1913 | Present | Philalethean Society | Heidelberg | |
| 1913 | Present | Philalethean Society | Rutgers Rutgers University Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American... |
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| 1915 | Defunct | Hypatian Society | South Carolina University of South Carolina The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House... |
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| 1916 | Present | Sigma Phi Epsilon Society | Illinois Illinois College Illinois College is a private, liberal arts college, affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church , and located in Jacksonville, Illinois. It was the second college founded in Illinois, but the first to grant a degree . It was founded in 1829 by the Illinois Band,... |
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| 1920 | Present | Chi Beta Society | Illinois Illinois College Illinois College is a private, liberal arts college, affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church , and located in Jacksonville, Illinois. It was the second college founded in Illinois, but the first to grant a degree . It was founded in 1829 by the Illinois Band,... |
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| 1921 | Present | Aptonalton Literary Society | Heidelberg University | |
| 1924 | Present | Euphrosynean Society | South Carolina University of South Carolina The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House... |
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| 1928 | Present | American Whig-Cliosophic Society American Whig-Cliosophic Society The American Whig–Cliosophic Society is a political, literary, and debating society at Princeton University and the oldest debate union in the United States... |
Princeton Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. The school is one of the eight universities of the Ivy League, and is one of the nine Colonial Colleges founded before the American Revolution.... |
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| 1929 | Present | Pi Pi Rho Society | Illinois Illinois College Illinois College is a private, liberal arts college, affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church , and located in Jacksonville, Illinois. It was the second college founded in Illinois, but the first to grant a degree . It was founded in 1829 by the Illinois Band,... |
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| 1991 | Present | Philomathean Society Philomathean Society The Philomathean Society of the University of Pennsylvania is a collegiate literary society, the oldest student group at the university, and a claimant to the title of the oldest continuously-existing literary society in the United States.This claim is disputed between the Philomathean Society and... |
Union Union College Union College is a private, non-denominational liberal arts college located in Schenectady, New York, United States. Founded in 1795, it was the first institution of higher learning chartered by the New York State Board of Regents. In the 19th century, it became the "Mother of Fraternities", as... |
College literary societies today
The Philomathean SocietyPhilomathean Society
The Philomathean Society of the University of Pennsylvania is a collegiate literary society, the oldest student group at the university, and a claimant to the title of the oldest continuously-existing literary society in the United States.This claim is disputed between the Philomathean Society and...
(1813) of the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
is the oldest continuously-existing literary society in the United States. The University of Georgia
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
hosts two literary societies (both of which were temporarily disbanded during the Civil War and the subsequent Union occupation): the Demosthenian Literary Society
Demosthenian Literary Society
The Demosthenian Literary Society is a debating society at The University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia. It was founded in 1803 by the first graduating class of the University's Franklin College. The society was founded on February 19, 1803 and the anniversary is celebrated now with the Society's...
, founded in 1803, and the Phi Kappa Literary Society
Phi Kappa Literary Society
The Phi Kappa Literary Society is a college literary society, located at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia.The Society was founded in 1820 by Joseph Henry Lumpkin, later to become the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia and eponym for the , and by William Crabbe, Edwin...
, founded in 1820 and dormant from the 1970s until its official reestablishment in 1991. Similarly, the Philolexian Society
Philolexian Society
The Philolexian Society of Columbia University is one of the oldest college literary societies in the United States, and the oldest student group at Columbia...
of Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, established in 1802, operated more or less continuously until the early 1950s when it sputtered out and, except for a brief revival in the early 1960s, was not revived until 1985.
Some early college social fraternities still meet in a literary society format, including Kappa Alpha, Alpha Delta Phi, and Mystical 7.
There are seven literary societies at Illinois College
Illinois College
Illinois College is a private, liberal arts college, affiliated with the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church , and located in Jacksonville, Illinois. It was the second college founded in Illinois, but the first to grant a degree . It was founded in 1829 by the Illinois Band,...
in Jacksonville, Illinois
Jacksonville, Illinois
Jacksonville is a city in Morgan County, Illinois, United States. The population was 18,940 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Morgan County....
where they have remained despite the nationwide trend of developing into fraternities and sororities; these include: Phi Alpha Literary Society
Phi Alpha Literary Society
Phi Alpha is a men's Literary Society founded in 1845 at Illinois College in Jacksonville, Illinois. It conducts Business Meetings, Literary Productions, and other activities in Beecher Hall, the oldest college building in the state of Illinois....
, Chi Beta Literary Society, Sigma Pi Literary Society
Sigma Pi literary society
Sigma Pi Literary Society is one of the four male literary societies of Illinois College. Sigma Pi is the oldest literary society at Illinois College and one of the oldest literary societies in the United States, having been founded on Saturday, June 24, 1843. Sigma Pi resides in the oldest...
, Gamma Nu Literary Society, Sigma Phi Epsilon Literary Society, Pi Pi Rho Literary Society, and Gamma Delta Literary Society.