Grace Goodhue Coolidge, Nifty Knitter

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

Grace Goodhue Coolidge learned to knit a a young girl and it was a skill that kept her busy for her entire life. The caption under the photo reads, “The wife of the Vice-President of the United States is an expert needlewoman and her fingers are rarely idle. At the Republican State Convention held in Boston, last September, many interested glances followed the eyes of the Governor of Massachusetts as he looked frequently from his seat on the stage toward a quiet corner in the gallery where sat his wife, a most attentive listener, while her knitting needles flew. Knitting in public is not a pose with her for it  has been her custom for years to fill all odd minutes with this work. She learned to use the needles when a little girl and has perfected herself in the art by always knitting winter stockings for her boys. Consequently her personal friends regard this photograph as very characteristic.”

Below is what appears to be a staged photo, perhaps taken in the White House.

And for an added thrill, google “First Lady Grace Coolidge shops in New York and knits in the White House in Washington DC” and check out the silent motion picture footage of the First Lady knitting (and smiling and laughing).

She enjoyed knitting and crocheting. When she and the President were summering in the Black Hills of South Dakota, she would knit while he fished. Her knitting bag was always close at hand. In her later years, she would listen to her beloved baseball games on the radio and knit.

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Abstract of Coeducation and the History of Women’s Fraternities 1867-1902

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

I’ve promised a few people that I will get the dissertation on this web-site. It’s just taking a little longer than I anticipated (aka the Becque principle), so here is the abstract to whet your appetite.

AN ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION OF FRANCES DESIMONE BECQUE, for the Doctor of Philosophy degree in Educational Administration and Higher Education, presented on March 21, 2002, at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.

TITLE: Coeducation and the History of Women’s Fraternities 1867–1902

MAJOR PROFESSOR: William E. Eaton, Ph.D.

The purpose of this study was to trace the historical development of seven women’s fraternities, Pi Beta Phi (I. C. Sorosis), Kappa Alpha Theta, Kappa Kappa Gamma, Delta Gamma, Alpha Phi, Gamma Phi Beta, and Delta Delta Delta, during the period from 1867 until 1902. Also, the women who were enrolled in the institutions where the women’s fraternity movement grew are profiled as examples of the role membership may have had in their educational and career pursuits.

Women’s fraternities, or sororities as they are sometimes known, became an accepted part of collegiate life in the years examined in this study. The campuses where these organizations took hold were coeducational with the exception of a handful of women’s colleges. The manner in which the women’s fraternity movement developed is outlined as well as the educational institutions at which these women’s fraternities prospered.

By 1902 the institutions that were home to at least five of these women’s fraternities were Syracuse University, the University of Wisconsin, the University of Michigan, Northwestern University, the University of California – Berkeley, Goucher College, Boston University, the University of Nebraska, and Stanford University. DePauw University, Simpson College, Indiana University, the Ohio State University and Cornell University had four of these women’s fraternities on campus by 1902. These coeducational institutions provided a fertile field for women’s fraternities to grow and prosper.

The seven women’s fraternities highlighted in this study met in Boston in 1891. In 1902, they convened in Chicago and formed the National Panhellenic Conference (NPC), the umbrella organization for women’s fraternities. The events are highlighted that lead up to the formation of NPC.

Briefly profiled are the accomplishments of some of the women who founded and joined these women’s fraternities in the years between 1867 and 1902. Some of these early women’s fraternity initiates were Carrie Chapman Catt, Florence Bascom, Julia Morgan, Dorothy Canfield Fisher and Ada Comstock. These women were trailblazers, yet little is told of their membership in women’s fraternities.

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So Long SIU Greek Row…….

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

Plaque from the old Greek Row at SIUC

The above plaque is on the sidewalk in front of where the “Greek Row” sign once greeted visitors to SIUC’s fraternity housing. The sign is gone and, for all intents and purposes, so are the fraternity and sororities members for whom the housing was built. Delta Zeta still occupies a house, but they are the only chapter there and this is the chapter’s last semester in the house.

The plaque reads:

Southern Illinois University

Small Group Housing

Dedicated May 26, 1959

Man must belong and create if he strives for truth, for faith, and for the democratic ethic.

More info on the history of the quest for fraternity housing at SIUC can be found on the links on this page. I have often contended that placing fraternity housing in the middle of nowhere (Greek Row is not on the way to or from anything) on a campus that is chockful of first generation college students hampered any and all efforts to build the system.

I think of all the men and women on the faculty and in the community who worked ceaselessly to guide and mentor the young men and women who joined these organizations. Betty Lou Mitchell is the one who always come to mind. She was initiated into Delta Sigma Epsilon. She was a part of the process when the chapter decided not to become a part of Delta Zeta after Delta Sigma Epsilon merged with Delta Zeta. The group became Nu Delta Sigma for a year until special dispensation was given to the alumnae of Delta Sigma Epsilon to become initiated members of Alpha Gamma Delta (an interesting story also covered in my thesis available in the links on this page).

The Beta Eta Chapter of Alpha Gamma Delta, one of the  first groups to move in on the Row, was the only group to have occupied the same house during their time on the Row. The chapter house at 104 Small Group Housing is officially Hilda A. Stein Hall, named for the Zoology faculty member who was involved in the beginnings of Delta Sigma Epsilon. Professor Stein served as Delta Sigma Epsilon’s National Vice President and Editor of its magazine. She became a member of Alpha Gamma Delta and remained involved with the chapter until her death in 1985 at age 90.

All the chapter houses that were the built on Greek Row are named for the men and women who worked with the chapters. Several of the chapter houses have been demolished over the years. Currently several of the houses are empty. The former Alpha Gamma Delta and Sigma Kappa houses are unoccupied and the first floor windows are boarded. Others such as Miles Hall and Beimfohr Hall are serving other purposes.

I am disheartened that SIUC has chosen to disregard the value of a robust and well functioning fraternity system. Very few alums come back to visit a residence hall room. A chapter house can hold the accumulated memories of a chapter – the ebbs and flows of chapter life – and serve as an anchor to both the chapter and the institution at which it makes its home. When it is done correctly, it can serve the institution very well and can pay great dividends. “Man must belong and created if he strives for truth, for faith, and for the democratic ethic.”

 

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The Ballroom at the Panhellenic

Posted on February 1, 2012 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

I found this postcard the other day. Instead of being in the file with the other Panhellenic House/Beekman Tower postcards that I previously posted, it was in my “to be filed” basket. This was purchased  on eBay as were all of my other Panhellenic House/Beekman Tower items. The series of postcards to which this belongs was taken shortly before or after the hotel opened. Copies of the pictures were sent to all the NPC groups and these photos appeared in many of the NPC magazines of the very late 1920s and the 1930s.

The story of the Panhellenic House fascinates me and if you haven’t read my previous post, I hope this postcard (“Section of modernistic ballroom showing indirect lighting effect”) piques your interest. Ad if nothing else, one can ponder the thought that indirect lighting was once a big deal.

 

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Fun Facts to Know and Tell About SIUC’s Fraternity System

Posted on January 28, 2012 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

Fun Facts to Know and Tell About Southern Illinois University at Carbondale’s Fraternity System

The first local women’s fraternity at SIUC was Epsilon Beta in 1923.

SIUC’s first national women’s fraternity was Delta Sigma Epsilon, a member of the Association of Education Sororities. Epsilon Beta became the Alpha Delta Chapter of Delta Sigma Epsilon on May 11, 1928. When Delta Sigma Epsilon and Delta Zeta merged, the chapter became a local, Nu Delta Sigma, until proper authorization was granted from Delta Zeta’s national organization. The group then became the Beta Eta Chapter of Alpha Gamma Delta.

The Alpha Nu Chapter of Sigma Sigma Sigma was chartered in 1931.

SIUC’s first national men’s fraternity was Alpha Phi Alpha in 1934. Membership included undergraduates and graduates.

SIUC’s first National Interfraternity Conference men’s fraternity was Tau Kappa Epsilon in 1949. It had been a local, Delta Delta Chi, since 1940.

The first local men’s fraternity at SIUC was Sigma Alpha Pi in 1923. There is no mention of the chapter in the SIUC yearbooks after 1930.

The first women’s fraternity which was a National Panhellenic Conference member, never having been a member of the Association of Education Sororities, was Delta Zeta in 1953.

The bench in front of Wheeler Hall was given by Epsilon Beta in 1926. The group that had been Epsilon Beta is now Alpha Gamma Delta.

The Alpha Xi Chapter of Pi Kappa Sigma (a member of the Association of Education Sororities) was founded in 1939. In 1959, the national organization merged with Sigma Kappa. Both groups were on the SIUC campus and the merger of the two chapters made the Gamma Kappa Chapter of Sigma Kappa chapter the largest chapter on campus at that time.

The Theta Xi Variety Show began as the Kappa Delta Alpha All-School Variety Show on February 23, 1948.

Greek Sing was started by Chi Delta Chi in 1936. The chapter became the Beta Chi Chapter of Phi Kappa Tau in 1953.

 

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Grace Goodhue and Calvin Coolidge – Pi Beta Phi and Phi Gamma Delta – The First President and First Lady Initiated into Greek-Letter Societies while in College

Posted on January 25, 2012 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

The bottom of the card reads “Phi Gamma Delta – Calvin Coolidge Fraternity – Amherst College, Mass.”

When Calvin Coolidge was sworn in as President on August 3, 1923, it heralded a fraternity first. The nation had its first couple who had both been initiated as members of Greek letter societies while in college.

Grace Goodhue was a charter member of the Vermont Beta Chapter of Pi Beta Phi. In fact, the chapter often met in the Goodhue family home, now part of Champlain College in Burlington, Vermont. Her husband, a native Vermonter, attended Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts. He became a member of the Alpha Chi Chapter of Phi Gamma Delta. The chapter was chartered in 1893. Coolidge graduated Cum Laude from Amherst in 1895.

An article in the December 1923 Arrow of Pi Beta Phi highlighted this fact “Both Phi Gamma Delta and Pi Beta Phi are indebted to President and Mrs. Coolidge not simply for reflected glory, but for the earnest enthusiasm and constructive aid, which they have given their respective organizations during the past. President Coolidge has not merely assisted his Fiji brothers with advice but was one of two men who negotiated a loan of $2,000 in order to help his chapter buy a lot when they most needed substantial aid. Mrs. Coolidge has given years of her life to unselfish service in various fraternity offices.”

The Coolidge’s son, John, was also a member of the Phi Gamma Delta chapter at Amherst College. In 1925, on the fraternity’s Founders’ Day, May 1, Sires and Sons was founded at the White House by six Phi Gamma Delta fathers.  Any Fiji son or Fiji sire is eligible for membership with a donation to the fraternity’s Educational Foundation. The fraternity has a limited numbers of certificates signed by John Coolidge, first son of the Fiji Sires and Sons.

After the chapter’s founding, it occupied two smaller houses.  The house in the postcard, at 81 Lessey Street, was built around 1835 by Robert Cutler for Luke Sweetser. When Sweetser died in 1882, the house was acquired by the Oak Grove School for Girls. In 1903, the chapter acquired the house. An extensive renovation took place in 1929 and the Greek Revival portico was added.

In 1962, ties were severed between the Alpha Chi Chapter and the national Phi Gamma Delta organization. Chapter members formed a local organization, Phi Gamma Chi, which continued to exist as a fraternity on the campus.  The chapter’s library was called the Calvin Coolidge Library and the chapter felt a kinship to President Coolidge, according to a Phi Gamma Chi member. Amherst College abolished all fraternities in 1984. Today, the building is known as the Marsh House. It was named for Eli Marsh, a Professor of Physical Education and member of Phi Gamma Delta.

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Panhellenic House —> Beekman Tower (Panhellenic) —> Beekman Tower Hotel

Posted on January 15, 2012 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

The Panhellenic House, postmarked 1929.

If you’re ever in New York City, near the United Nations Building, you might notice to the north a small hotel called the Beekman Tower. Its official address is 3 Mitchell Place, but it really is on the corner of 49th Street and 1st Avenue. If you look closely you can see Greek letters in blocks surrounding the door. These blocks harken to the hotel’s Panhellenic history.

The history of the hotel can be traced to the 1920s, before there was even a subway station in the area. The New York City Panhellenic Association, an organization for the alumnae of the National Panehllenic Conference sororities, was formed in 1920. World War I was over and many college women were coming to New York City to pursue careers. Finding affordable and safe housing was a problem. The Panhellenic House Association, Inc. was organized in 1922, with a Board of Directors composed of representatives of the twenty participating sororities. Their goal was to obtain affordable and gracious accommodations for the single sorority women of New York City.

Monogram on a demitasse spoon from the Panhellenic House

Back of a Panhellenic House demitasse spoon

To read and see more about the Panhellenic House and Beekman Tower (Panhellenic) click on the link below.

https://www.franbecque.com/panhellenic-house-to-beekman-tower-panhellenic-to-beekman-tower-hotel/

Back of fork from the Beekman Tower Hotel. The front of the fork is plain.

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Grace Goodhue Coolidge – Vermont Beta

Posted on January 14, 2012 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

Grace Goodhue Coolidge is my very favorite First Lady. Find out why at https://www.franbecque.com/grace-goodhue-coolidge-my-favorite-first-lady-and-a-loyal-pi-phi/

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The Fraternity System at SIU Carbondale in 1948

Posted on November 21, 2011 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

To see the entire document, click on the link at the top of the page. This isn’t the entire document.

A HISTORY OF THE FRATERNITY SYSTEM AT
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY FROM 1948 THROUGH 1960

By Frances DeSimone Becque

Men’s Fraternities

1932 Chi Delta Chi
1933 Kappa Delta Alpha
1934 Alpha Phi Alpha (Beta Eta Chapter)
1939 Sigma Beta Mu
1940 Delta Delta Chi
1942 Nu Epsilon Alpha

Women’s Fraternities

1928 Delta Sigma Epsilon (Alpha Delta Chapter) Delta Sigma Epsilon began as a local, Epsilon Beta, in 1923 
1931 Sigma Sigma Sigma (Gamma Kappa Chapter)
1939 Pi Kappa Sigma (Alpha Xi Chapter) Pi Kappa Sigma began as a local, Alpha Rho Society, in January, 1939.
1941 Alpha Kappa Alpha (Gamma Kappa Omega Carbondale Graduate
Chapter)

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The Fraternity System at SIU Carbondale in 1960

Posted on November 21, 2011 by Fran Becque, Ph.D.

From

A HISTORY OF THE FRATERNITY SYSTEM AT
SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY FROM 1948 THROUGH 1960

by Frances DeSimone Becque

Men’s Fraternities

1953 Phi Kappa Tau (Beta Chi Chapter)  An Acacia Colony existed between 1952 and 1954, when it was merged with the  Phi Kappa Tau chapter. Phi Kappa Tau began as a local, Chi Delta Chi, in  December 1, 1932.

 

1951 Theta Xi (Beta Delta Chapter)  Theta Xi began as a local, Kappa Delta Alpha, in September 15, 1933.  

 

1934 Alpha Phi Alpha (Beta Eta Chapter)

 

1951 Sigma Tau Gamma (Alpha Sigma Chapter)  Sigma Tau Gamma began as a local, Sigma Beta Mu, in January, 1939.

 

1949 Tau Kappa Epsilon (Beta Chi Chapter) Tau Kappa Epsilon began as a local, Delta Delta Chi, in September, 1940.

 

1954 Sigma Pi (Beta Nu Chapter) Sigma Pi began as a local, Nu Epsilon Alpha, in 1942.

 

1950 Kappa Alpha Psi (Gamma Upsilon Chapter)

 

1955 Delta Chi (Southern Illinois Chapter) Delta Chi began as a local, Delta Epsilon Chi, in November, 1954.

 

1957 Phi Kappa Sigma (Kappa Tetarton Chapter) Phi Kappa Sigma began as a local, Alpha Sigma, in November, 1955. It became a colony of Sigma Phi Epsilon in May, 1956. It later  became a local, Alpha Sigma Epsilon, in January, 1957.

 

Women’s Fraternities

1957 Alpha Gamma Delta (Beta Eta Chapter)  When Delta Sigma Epsilon merged with Delta Zeta in 1956, the Alpha Delta Chapter of Delta Sigma Epsilon was released from the terms of the merger; from 1956 to September 1957, it was a local, Nu Delta Sigma. The Alpha Delta Chapter of Delta Sigma Epsilon traced its lineage to 1923 when it began as a local, Epsilon Beta.

 

1931 Sigma Sigma Sigma (Gamma Kappa Chapter)

 

1941 Alpha Kappa Alpha (Gamma Kappa Omega Carbondale Chapter)

 

1953 Delta Zeta (Gamma Omega Chapter) Delta Zeta began as a local, Alpha Eta, in 1952.

 

1955 Sigma Kappa (Kappa Gamma Chapter) Sigma Kappa began as a local Sigma Kappa Gamma, in December, 1954. The Alpha Xi Chapter of Pi Kappa Sigma became part of the Kappa Gamma Chapter of Sigma Kappa in May, 1959, after its national organization merged with that of Sigma Kappa.

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