Theta Chi Society, as it was originally known, was founded at Norwich University, Norwich, Vermont, at nine o'clock on Thursday evening, April 10, 1856.
	At that time Frederick Norton Freeman '57, and Arthur Chase '56, met in Freeman's room in the Old South Barracks of the University and, to quote from the minutes of the first meeting, "being called to order by Mr. Chase, Messrs. Chase and Freeman mutually took the oaths prescribed and declared each other true and accepted members of the Theta Chi Society." From this humble beginning Theta Chi Fraternity has grown to its present status.
To quote again from the minutes of the first meeting we learn that, "The Theta Chi Society was the idea and plan of Frederick Norton Freeman, and with the assistance of Arthur Chase, his plans were perfected and the society was organized.” Chase was elected president and Freeman was elected secretary. The next evening, April 11, the first initiation was conducted. One of the initiates was Edward Bancroft Williston of Norwich Vermont, and the other was Lorenzo Potter of Elkhorn, Wisconsin.
Theta Chi was the first Greek Letter society to make its appearance at Norwich. It was preceded in 1853 by a secret society known as the "Regulators." In a latter from Arthur Chase sent to the chapter in the 1880’s Chase states that he and Freeman were members of a “secret society” prior to founding Theta Chi. However, whether there was any connection between the Regulators and Theta Chi is open to conjecture. The fundamentals of Theta Chi, as expressed in the original constitution, to this day remain unchanged; strengthening the bonds of true friendship, loyalty to Alma Mater and the mutual benefit and improvement of its members. Our present ritual includes the original ritual used in 1856. The oaths taken by Freeman and Chase on that April evening long ago have since been shared by every man initiated into Theta Chi.
The early history of Theta Chi Fraternity is closely connected with the history of Norwich University. The University was founded at Norwich, Vermont, in 1819 being then known as The American Literary, Scientific, and Military Academy. It was a pioneer engineering college of the country and has always maintained its military training and traditions. In 1834 the name was changed to Norwich University. In the Spring of 1866 the Norwich University buildings burned. Old South Barracks, where Theta Chi was founded, was completely destroyed. The University moved after the fire to Northfield, Vermont, its present location. At the Seventy-Fifth Anniversary Convention the Fraternity erected a granite monument with a bronze plaque at Norwich, Vermont, to commemorate the founding of the Fraternity.
In the first decade of the Fraternity's existence a number of serious handicaps were experienced. The Civil War greatly depleted the student body of the University, for Norwich was a military school. After the fire in 1866 there was doubt for a while as to whether or not the University would continue. The war, the fire, and the uncertainty regarding the continuation of the University seriously lowered the attendance, and the school opened in the Fall of 1866 with only nineteen students. In spite of the low enrollment, which continued for some years, “The History of Norwich University” by Dodge and Ellis says that “The Theta Chi and Alpha Sigma Pi fraternities flourished in this period, 1866 to 1880.
In 1881 the student body of Norwich was reduced to a dozen men, and Theta Chi found itself with one active member. This critical situation was relieved when local alumni worked with the undergraduate member, James M. Holland, '83, in initiating Phil S. Randall, '86, and Henry B. Hersey, '85, thus preserving the existence of the Fraternity.
After 1888 the affairs of the University took a decided turn for the better, and from then on there was never a question of Theta Chi leadership on the Norwich campus. From its very inception Theta Chi was planned as a national fraternity. However, while there were several requests for chapters as other colleges, Theta Chi existed as a single chapter for nearly fifty years due to the conservative nature of the undergraduate brothers at Norwich.
In 1888 Theta Chi Fraternity was incorporated under the laws of Vermont. From 1888 until the establishment of the Beta Chapter, fourteen years later, the history of the Fraternity is a history of steady growth of a chapter both in general strength and in members. Norwich University disbanded its fraternities in 1960, so Alpha Chapter no longer exists.
The establishment of Beta Chapter at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology was spearheaded by brother Park V. Perkins, Alpha ’05 who began attending college there. The installation of Beta chapter on December 13, 1902, began a new era opened for Theta Chi, an era of country-wide expansion and national organization and administration. Although hindered by a serious depression and two world wars, Theta Chi has grown, and prospered beyond the dreams of the Founders to the position it now holds in the national fraternity scene. (top)

Delphian Literary Society
The Delphian Literary Society was founded January 14, 1905, and was a non-secret organization for men and women. Its purpose was the development of literary ability and the fostering of good fellowship. The meetings were first held in Kirkwood Hall. The Delphian men first obtained a furnished house at the northwest corner of Sixth Street and Indiana Avenue. In 1910 they rented a house at 202 East Kirkwood Avenue. They occupied this house for two years. In 1912 the men rented a larger house at the southeast corner of Seventh and Washington Streets, and occupied it until the fall of 1916. The literary meetings were held at this house as long as the Delphian Club was in existence as a co-educational organization.
The Delphian colors began as apple green and purple in 1905, but by 1906 were old gold and gray (variously called silver or steel gray). Their motto was Finis Coronat Opus.
Bessie Gutherie, a classmate of Chester A. Amick from the Columbus High School class of 1913, became a member of the Delphian Literary Society. (top)
Dalethian Club
In 1915 the men of the Delphian Literary Society formed the Dalethian Club, which, at that time, was the only local men’s club at Indiana University. The women retained the name Delphian. At the time it was generally understood that all male members of the Delphian Club were considered members of the Dalethian Club. Shortly after its foundation the membership was extended to students of the other colleges and departments of the University, and the Club began to assume the aspect of a local fraternity. Although the colors of the Dalethian Club were old gold and steel gray, the pin was a black shield, on which a Phoenician Delta was engraved in gold and mounted on a golden equilateral triangle.
The charter members of the Dalethian Club were: Virgil French , Edwin Terrell, Lertie Madison Hylton , Arnett H. Owen, Ernest D. Wade, Lloyd D. Waid, Lawrence E. Henderson, Cecil P. Clark, Maurice V. Kahler, Verne E. Washburn, Ralph Ruddell, Herbert A. Smith , Vernon D. Brigham, Maurice Hughes, Lowell S. Martin, Lee R. Kellam, Freeman Hinds, John K. Lanahan, Claude E. Curry, Luther D. Davis , George W. Capouch, and Ansell LaFollette.
	In the fall of 1916 they moved to 312 North Washington Street into a larger and better house. The year 1916-1917 was a prosperous one, but that was soon to change. In the fall of 1917 there were only two or three members of the Dalethian Club on the campus as other members had gone to war.
Because a large number of its members had entered the service, the organization did not open its doors at the beginning of the fall term of 1918 and their house was taken over and used as barracks nº 13 by the Student Army Training Corps. The Dalethian Club ultimately ceased to function until the winter of 1919-1920.
While assigned to the Army of Occupa¬tion in February 1919, Chester A. Amick met George Starr Lasher, Alpha Gamma, ‘11, University of Michigan, who would play a prominent role in Alpha Iota Chapter. Two years later when the war was over, only three initiated members of the Dalethian Club returned in the autumn of 1919 Walter A. Wise, Lertie M. Hylton and Chester A. Amick. Two pledges also returned, J. Edwin Purple and George Buchan¬an. They found, much to their chagrin, that during the war period the rent for the clubhouse on North Washington Street had not been paid, the owner had appropriated all the furnish¬ings in lieu of the unpaid rent, and the clubhouse was occupied by the Phi Mu sorority. The Dalethian Club had disappeared from the campus.
During the fall semester of 1919, several discus¬sions were held concerning the possibility of reviving the Dalethian Club. Jasper A. Reynolds and a few other brothers got together, pledged, and initiated some new men. There were problems three members, no money, no house, no furnishings, and two pledges. Further¬more, some of the people had not been on campus for a couple of years and were not too well acquainted with the student body. Gradually, however, possibilities developed and they decided to give it the old Hoosier try, and thus the Dalethian Club was restarted.
	As is well known, a fraternity needs members, many of them. This problem was met by first initiating the two pledges. One of the five lived on Indiana Avenue, address unknown. This seemed to be a conve¬nient spot for "pledge meet¬ings" and, immediately they started "rushing" men they knew and respected, mostly upperclassmen.
They met at the Indiana Avenue house each Sunday afternoon and usually succeeded in obtaining one or more pledges. As the number approached twenty, it was decided that they were in a position to look for a house. Again, fortune smiled on them and in the spring of 1920 they leased the William N. Showers house at 416 North Walnut Street. The necessary furnishings were obtained to enable them to move in at the beginning of the second semester.
During the spring of 1920 they enjoyed their new home at 416 North Walnut Street (between Eighth and Ninth Streets), and, although they were deeply in debt, they were satisfied with the progress they had made. However, it was evident that if they were to compete with other fraternities on the campus for first rate material it would be necessary to be affili¬ated with a first class Greek letter fraternity. After considerable discussion, it was decided to petition Theta Chi Fraternity and this was done in May 1920. The names of the petitioning members were: Chester A. Amick, Harold E. Curry, Clarence O. Davisson, H. H. Davenport, Emil W. Fisher, Edmund B. Haggard, Lertie M. Hylton, S. Clyde Lacey, Dewey E. Mannan, Arlow R. Pifer, J. Edwin Purple, Jasper A. Reynolds, Gilbert D. Rhea, Virgil D. Reed, Wilbert B. Rhinehart, Roy E. Shanks, Wendell A. Shirley, James F. Slack, Leslie E. Smith, Donald F. Teeters, William G. Thomspon, Donald C. VanHoy, J. Byron Walker, Kelsie R. Warne, Robert C. Waters, William J. Waters, Jesse L. Weaver, Russell E. Wise, Walter A. Wise, Eldo W. Wood.
One day that summer, a letter was received from the Grand Chapter of Theta Chi informing them that a representative was being sent to visit them and make an appraisal of the group. Shortly thereafter, a letter a day began to appear in the morning mail addressed to a stranger to the men. The name on the envelope was George Starr Lasher. Upon his arrival the men oriented him to their organization and the campus. It was a good visit and the men corresponded with Theta Chi throughout that fall and winter. Brother Lasher was a graduate of the University Michigan, 1911 that had been president of his chapter, and in 1931 became National President of Theta Chi Fraternity. The fateful meeting with Chester A. Amick in 1919 now had meaning.
The Dalethians held their last initiation on February 25, 1921, initiating Maurice Barton, Lawrence Carlson, Samuel Schlosser, Jr., Carl Zink, Wyatt May, Earl H. Chaney, Charles Stouder, Alfred Geyer, Jr., Everett Scott, Lewis Pettit, and Allan Warne. (top)
Alpha Iota Chapter
The Grand Chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity granted a charter to the men of the Dalethian Club on February 1, 1921, and plans were set in motion to install the group as a chapter of Theta Chi Fraternity. Three groups were scheduled for installation on the weekend of March 18 19, 1921 and simultaneously became chapters: Alpha Theta, Dartmouth College, Alpha Iota, Indiana University, and Alpha Kappa, West Virginia University. The men most instrumental in securing the charter for Alpha Iota were J. Edwin Purple, Emil Fisher and Lertie Hylton.
An informal smoker was given at the Dalethian chapter house on Friday evening March 18th 1921 for the Dalethian Alumni and the visiting members of Theta Chi. George Starr Lasher acted as toastmaster and short talks were given by various members of Theta Chi and Dalethian. The installation started the next morning, Saturday, at 8:30, and with the exception of a recess of one hour, for lunch, lasted until 4:30 in the afternoon.
The Grand Chapter installation committee consisted of: C. A. Schwier, Alpha Delta, G. S. Lasher, W. H. Granse and E. E. Dreese, Alpha Gamma. Other visiting members of Theta Chi assisting with the installation were: Dr. G. C. Brandenburg, G. F. Isley, and H. S. Jones from Alpha Delta along with A. W. Schmoeller and F. W. Messing from Rho. Sixteen alumni and 29 undergraduate members were initiated on March 19, 1921.
Following the installation a formal banquet at the Blue Lantern Cafe was held in honor of the visiting members of Theta Chi and the Grand Chapter. Roy E. Shanks, Alpha Iota, acted as toastmaster and short talks were made by Arthur Schmoeller, Rho; George Starr Lasher, Alpha Gamma; Dr. William Lowe Bryan, President of Indiana University; John W. Cravens, Registrar of Indiana University; C. M. Hepburn, Dean of the College of Law, Prof. B. D. Myers, Secretary of College of Medicine; S. E. Stoute, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, and Horace Hoffman, past Dean of the College of Liberal Arts.
Immediately following the banquet, a formal dance and reception, lasting until midnight, was held in Assembly Hall, a campus building, and was attended by approximately one hundred and fifty couples. The hall was appropriately decorated in Theta Chi colors.
	In the spring of 1922 Alpha Iota moved to 420 South Fess Avenue (between Atwater and Hunter Streets), where they initially rented a house, which was occupied by 35 members. The home was previously leased, since 1914, by the Pi Beta Phi sorority.
On March 17, 1922 the men hosted an informal 12 o’clock house dance at the chapter house in honor of the first anniversary of the local chapter; Hoagy Carmichael’s orchestra furnished the music.
The Theta Chi Building Association, a non-profit domestic corporation was created on May 12, 1923. They purchased the house on South Fess on January 26, 1925. On June 12 & 13, 1925, property in the Varsity Place Addition was purchased, and building was begun on the 101 North Jordan Avenue house.
The Fess property was sold on June 28, 1926 to Beta Sigma Omicron, a new sorority on campus.
	When the fall semester began, their new house was not available, so the brothers lived temporarily at the old Kappa Sigma house1 until they moved into their new home on November 6, 1926. The men had great pride in their new home and continued to prosper. A fire at the 101 N Jordan house on March 30, 1928, believed to have started by spontaneous combustion in a wardrobe of one of the rooms on the third floor, caused about $800 damage. The loss was fully covered by insurance. (top)
Alpha Iota Chapter moved to the new house at 1440 N. Jordan Av. in the fall of 1969.