National History

        The American college system in the early 1700's was very different from the environment that we find today. Studies were very strict in nature, and little time was allowed for relaxation. Students, however, yearning for interaction outside the classroom, began to form literary societies outside of the classroom. At the College of William and Mary one such group, called the Flat Hat Club, would meet at the Raleigh Tavern and talk over a bowl of punch. Unbeknownstedt to them, these men had created the first college fraternity. Other groups soon followed their lead.
 

       In 1776, a young scholar at William and Mary named John Heath sought to join one of these societies, but was deemed unworthy. Undaunted, Heath took four friends and in the Apollo Room of the Raleigh Tavern, formed the first secret Greek-letter society - Phi Beta Kappa. Phi Beta Kappa based its founding on the commitment to moral ideals, scholastic achievement, and friendship between men. Phi Beta Kappa believed that the college experience should prepare the student for future responsibilities by preparing him socially, the edicts on which all other Greek organizations are founded. Later this year, this same room would be be the place where Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, and Patrick Henry would meet to discuss the ideals that would lead to the creation of another great society - The United States of America.

Richmond College, a Baptist school founded in 1830, was attended by around 200 students in the early 20th century. In 1901, Carter Ashton Jenkens, the 18-year old son of a minister, transferred to Richmond from Rutgers University, where he had been a member of Chi Phi fraternity. Seeking companions to take the place of those he left, he and five men who had become friends applied for a charter of Chi Phi at Richmond. Their attempt was denied, however, because Chi Phi felt the college was too small to support a chapter. Undaunted, the six men (Jenkens, Benjamin Gaw, William Carter, William Wallace, Thomas Wright, and William Phillips) decided to form their own fraternity.
Of the six men, only Jenkens knew what a fraternity was, so the plans for drawing up the new fraternity fell to him. Early on, Jenkens thoroughly searched the Bible for a philosophy upon which the new fraternity could be built. He discovered in the Bible the "Greatest truth the world has ever known".  While still forming the new fraternity, the original six founders discovered six more men who sought the same friendship they did. In October of 1901 the twelve men met in Ryland Hall to discuss organization of the fraternity they were originally going to call "Sigma Phi". The fraternity was founded on November 1, 1901. The group then moved for recognition from the university and, upon changing the name to Sigma Phi Epsilon, were recognized. SigEp within five years had expanded to 14 colleges; by 1924, SigEp was at fifty colleges.
 

Today Sigma Phi Epsilon has established chapters in every state, totalling over 270 chapters nationwide. Over 225,000 men have become brothers in our great Fraternity.