The History of Sigma Chi

A Disagreement
In the fall of 1854 a disagreement arose within the Kappa chapter of Delta Kappa Epsilon (DKE) at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. This chapter consisted of 12 men. Six of them, led by Whitelaw Reid, supported one of the members for Poet in the Erodelphian Literary Society. Four of the other six members, James Parks Caldwell, Isaac M. Jordan, Benjamin Piatt Runkle and Franklin Howard Scobey, refused to vote for the brother because they knew him to lack poetic abilities. The man they did favor for that office was not a Deke. Thomas Cowan Bell and Daniel William Cooper were not members of Erodelphian, but their relation to the disagreement was unqualified endorsement of the four. Thus, they became six.

The chapter of 12 was evenly divided in a difference of opinion that ordinarily would have been decided one way or the other and immediately forgotten. But both sides considered it a matter of principle, and could not reach a compromise. During the ensuing months, the groups disagreed so much that their friendship grew distant.

A Schism at Dinner
Chapter meetings, or attempted chapter meetings, occurred for months with the breach constantly widening. In February 1855, at an Oxford restaurant, a dramatic dinner meeting between the dissenting groups set the stage for Sigma Chi’s founding. Bell, Caldwell, Cooper, Jordan, Runkle and Scobey hosted the event, hoping to mend ways with the other six. They were on hand early, awaiting developments with anticipation. Of the meeting, Founder Benjamin Piatt Runkle said, “With the kindest of intentions, we determined to give a dinner in their honor. I remember that the feast was prepared at the village restaurant, the guests invited, and on the appointed night we gathered and waited for the guests. They did not come for a long time, and then only Mr. Reid and with a stranger. He took into his confidence Minor Millikin (an alumnus of the fraternity from nearby Hamilton, Ohio) and the two decided on strenuous proceedings.”

Minor Millikin Steps Up
Millikin lost no time. “My name is Minor Millikin,” he said. “I live in Hamilton. I am a man of few words.” He then passed judgment on all of the matters in dispute. Since he had heard only one side of the story, his verdict was against Runkle, Scobey and the others who had originally opposed election of the DKE as the Poet in the literary society. Millikin found them guilty.

Next, Millikin unfolded a plan he and Reid had concocted by which “justice” could be satisfied with the formal expulsion of the leaders in the rebellion (undoubtedly Runkle and Scobey), after which the others, having been properly chastised, could remain in the chapter.

At this dramatic moment Runkle stepped forward, pulled off his DKE pin, tossed it upon the table and said to Millikin, “I didn’t join this Fraternity to be anyone’s tool. And that, sir, is my answer!” Runkle stalked out of the room, and his five colleagues followed.

Six Against Six
The final meeting of the 12 active members of Delta Kappa Epsilon was held in Reid’s room in the “Old Southeast” building several days later. After a strenuous effort, led by Reid, for the expulsion of the six, with six against six on all vital issues, the meeting broke up in considerable disorder.

A rather prolonged correspondence ensued with the Delta Kappa Epsilon parent chapter at Yale, resulting in the April 1855 expulsion of Bell, Caldwell, Cooper, Jordan, Runkle and Scobey. It was at this time they began making plans to found their own fraternity.

The Framework of a Fraternity
One of the best moves the first six Founders ever made was to associate themselves with William Lewis Lockwood. He had entered Miami early in 1855 but had not joined a fraternity. He was the “businessman” of the group and possessed a remarkable organizing ability. More than any other Founder, he was responsible for setting up the general plan of the Fraternity, much of which endures to this day.

During the latter months of the 1854-55 academic year, Runkle and Caldwell lived in a second-floor room of a building near Oxford’s public square on High Street-now known as the birthplace of Sigma Chi. The Founders held many of the earlier organizational meetings of Sigma Chi in this room, and it was there that Runkle and Lockwood designed the badge. The White Cross was designed exactly as we know it today except for the letters Sigma Phi in the black center which were changed to Sigma Chi.

Having been members of Delta Kappa Epsilon, six of the Founders were familiar with the general outline of fraternity constitution and ritual content. They were considerably influenced by Lockwood, who had known little of Delta Kappa Epsilon or its differences. With all of their plans formally completed, the seven Founders of the new Fraternity announced its establishment by wearing their badges for the first time in public on Commencement Day at Miami University, June 28, 1855.

Built to Last
The working fraternal conceptions of Sigma Chi Fraternity have long been identified with the words friendship, justice and learning. These three elements were the basic ideals our Founders used in forming the foundation of Sigma Chi.

In their new fraternity, they held the qualities of congenial tastes, quality fellowship and genuine friendship to be indispensable. The element of thorough fellowship was regarded as a characteristic of all real fraternity endeavors, thus they sought true friendship.

In matters of general college interest, the Founders had refused to be limited simply by the ties of their DKE brotherhood. The Founders’ new association was surely not planned to prevent laudable mutual helpfulness. On the contrary it was designed in every worthy way to enhance such helpfulness. The new fraternity stood for the “square deal” in all campus relations. It exalted justice.

The History of Epsilon Omega

The first name of our chapter, Sigma Delta, was first conceived on February 14, 1959, in the minds of two men — William Odell, a student at Ball State Teachers College, and Philip Stoufer, a member of the Muncie, Indiana, Alumni Chapter of Sigma Chi – both former students at Denison University, where they became Sigma Chi.

After interviews with young men on the campus of Ball State, a meeting of seventeen men was held in the early days of April with the intention of eventually becoming affiliated with Sigma Chi National Fraternity. The name of the Pioneer Club was then selected by the men, who had yet to be granted fraternity status by the local Interfraternity Council.

On May 29, 1959, the Interfraternity Council granted fraternity status to the group, which now numbered 29 men. The Greek Letters of Sigma Delta were chosen as the name of the new fraternity. Since five of the men had not remained with the group for various reasons, 24 men returned to the campus in September to the new fraternity which had been purchased by the Sigma Chi alumni in the Muncie area during the summer months.

On June 17, 1962, Sigma Delta officially became the Epsilon Omega Chapter of Sigma Chi. In our 50+ years on Ball State’s campus, the fraternity has been pledging and initiating new members that have consistently upheld the values of our fraternity.

Becoming a Sigma Chi

In order to be invited to become a member of Sigma Chi, each of our members has to meet each of the seven characteristics of the Jordan Standard. The Jordan Standard, named after Founder Isaac M. Jordan, was created after Jordan gave a speech at the 15th Grand Chapter in 1884. The Seven Standards:

Man of Good Character
A Student of Fair Ability
With Ambitious Purposes
A Congenial Disposition
Possessed of Good Morals
Having a High Sense of Honor and
A Deep Sense of Personal Responsibility

All Sigma Chi’s share common ideals in which we strive to achieve, but we are all different. Our fraternity was founded on the value of different temperaments, talents, and convictions. You will see Sigs from all walks of life, from talk show hosts to actors, from politicians to CEO’s, from environmentalists to athletes, Sigma Chi realizes that every man brings something new and unique to the table. If you believe you meet our seven standards and believe you could represent Sigma Chi, click here to be taken to the recruitment page.

Notable Alumni

David Letterman – Talk Show Host (Epsilon Omega Alum)
John Wayne – Motion Picture Actor
Grover Cleveland – President of the United States
Brad Pitt – Television and Movie Actor
Carson Daly – Television Personality
Tom Selleck – Television and Movie Actor
Woody Harrelson – Motion Picture Actor
Warren Beatty – Motion Picture Actor and Producer
Brian Dennehy – Motion Picture Actor
Clarence Gilyard Jr. – Jimmy Trivette on “Walker Texas Ranger”
Woody Hayes – Former Ohio State Football Coach
Bud Adams – Owner of the Tennessee Titans
Jim Palmer – Hall of Fame Baseball Pitcher
Mike Ditka – Super Bowl winning Coach of the Chicago Bears
Mike Holmgren – Super Bowl winning Coach of the Green Bay Packers
Drew Brees – Quarterback for the San Diego Chargers
Jim Everett – Former Quarterback of the New Orleans Saints
Robert Griese – Super Bowl winning Quarterback of the Miami Dolphins
Kliff Kingsbury – Former Texas Tech Quarterback
Eddie Sutton – Oklahoma State Basketball Coach
James Brady – Press Secretary for President Reagan who was shot during Reagan’s assassination attempt
Barry Goldwater – Arizona Senator and 1964 Republican Presidential Candidate
Frank Murphy – US Supreme Court Judge
William Marriott – President & CEO of Marriott Hotel Corp.
Michael D. Rose – CEO of Holiday Corp., parent company of Holiday Inns
Richard Nunis – Chairman of Walt Disney Attractions
Carl Bausch – Chairman of Bausch Lomb
John Gingrich – CEO of Nestle
Ben Wells – President of 7-Up Co.
James Barksdale – CEO of Netscape Communications
Steven Lew – CEO of Universal Studios
Charles Weaver – CEO of the Clorox Company
John Madigan – President of The Tribune Company
Ted Rogers – President of Rogers Communications
Lod Cook – CEO of ARCO
John Young – American’s Most Experienced Astronaut
Greg Harbaugh – U.S. Space Shuttle Astronaut
Gavin & Joe Maloof – Owners of the Sacremento Kings
Barry Ackerley – Owner of the Seattle Supersonics
Bob McNair – Owner of the Houston Texans
Mark DeRosa – Atlanta Braves Infielder
Hank Stram – Super Bowl winning Coach of the Kansas City Chiefs
Dennis Swanson – President of ABC Sports
Patrick Muldoon – Actor on “Days of our Lives”
Merlin Olsen – Former Football Player and Actor
Ted McGinley – Actor on “Married with Children”
William Christopher – Television Actor, known for “M.A.S.H.”
Rip Torn – Motion Picture Actor
Mike Peters – Pulizer Prize cartoonist of “Mother Goose and Grimm”
Alan Sugg – President of the University of Arkansas System
General Merrill McPeak – Chief of Staff, U.S. Air Force
H. Jackson Brown Jr. – Best-Selling Author of “Life’s Little Instruction Book”
Gordon Gould – Primary Inventor of the Laser Dr.
William DeVries – Pioneering Surgeon of the Artificial Heart