Phi Mu was founded on January 4, 1852 at Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia. Originally known as the Philomathean Society, it and Alpha Delta Pi, also founded at Wesleyan College, are known as the “Macon Magnolias.” Phi Mu was founded by Mary DuPont (Lines), Mary Myrick (Daniel) and Martha Hardaway (Redding). The founding was publicly announced on March 4, 1852, the day that is celebrated as Founders’ Day. On August 1, 1904, the group received a charter from the state of Georgia and was established as Phi Mu Fraternity. The second chapter was founded at Hollins College in 1904. Phi Mu joined the National Panhellenic Conference in 1911.
Phi Mu honored its three founders by placing a large monument at the grave of each founder. The upper portion is in the shape of a barbed quatrefoil, the shape of Phi Mu’s badges.
The first one, for Martha Bibb Hardaway Redding, was dedicated during the 1927 convention in Macon, Georgia. Phi Mu’s Memorial Service for her was held on June 29, 1927, in the late afternoon. Redding is buried in Riverside Cemetery. Two of Redding’s sons unveiled the monument.
On February 5, 1928, the granddaughter of Mary Myrick Daniel, Elizabeth Myrick Jones, a Phi Mu initiated at the 1927 Convention, unveiled the memorial to her grandmother. Myrick is buried in Oak Grove Cemetery in Americus, Georgia.
The dedication of Mary Ann DuPont Lines’ monument took place on March 4, 1928, Founders’ Day. A goodly number of Lines’ grandchildren and great-grandchildren attended the dedication. Lines is buried in Evergreen Cemetery in Jacksonville, Florida.
© Fran Becque, www.fraternityhistory.com, 2014. All Rights Reserved.
