Phi Sigma Nu (junior fraternity)

This article is about the defunct junior college fraternity. For the Native American fraternity, see Phi Sigma Nu.
Phi Sigma Nu
ΦΣΝ
FoundedFebruary 14, 1927 (February 14, 1927)
Crane Junior College
TypeSocial
Former affiliationNJCP
StatusDefunct
EmphasisJunior colleges
ScopeNational
Member badge
Colors  Gold and   Emerald Green
FlowerYellow rose
Chapters14
Headquarters
United States

Phi Sigma Nu (ΦΣΝ) was an American junior college social fraternity. It was founded in 1927 at Crane Junior College in Chicago, Illinois. It established at least thirteen additional chapters across the United States before going defunct.

History

Phi Sigma Nu originated at Crane Junior College in Chicago as the Bachelor's Club, an informal luncheon group, in February 1926.[1] Desiring a more formal arrangement, the luncheon club became the Alpha chapter of Zeta Theta Nu fraternity on February 14, 1927.[1][2] By February 1929, Zeta Theta Nu had established three chapters.[3]

After learning that none of the existing four-year fraternities were interested in adding a chapter at a junior college, the Alpha chapter of Zeta Theta Nu reincorporated as a new national junior college fraternity, Phi Sigma Nu, in the State of Illinois on March 27, 1929.[1][2] The fraternity was founded as a non-denominational Christian group.[4]

A second chapter was chartered at Potomac State College on March 27, 1929.[4][5] This was followed by chapters of Vincennes University, the College of Marshall, and Cumnock College in 1930.[2] The fraternity was governed by a board that was elected at biennial national meetings.[6] Its officers included president, vice president, secretary, and treasurer.[6] The 1931 convention was held on July 5 in Chicago.[6]

By 1938, Phi Sigma Nu had 220 members.[5] It had fourteen chapters in 1939; many were at junior colleges and non-accredited institutions.[2] Apparently impacted by World War II, the fraternity only had three active chapters and one alumni chapter in 1940.[7][2] It was an associate member of the National Junior College Panhellenic by 1932, but was dropped from the NJCP in 1941.[8][9]

Phi Sigma Nu was reorganized at a national convention in Cincinnati, Ohio on July 11, 1949.[10][11] At the convention, the fraternity voted to move its national headquarters from the Nu chapter at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College to Zeta chapter at Rider College.[11] The national headquarters later moved to its Iota chapter at Bryant University until September 1957, when it moved to the Mu chapter at Woodbury College.[1] Phi Sigma Nu had at least thirteen chapters as of 1963.[1][2]

The fraternity lost several chapters to four-year fraternities, a change made possible as junior colleges became four-year institutions.[2] Its last known active chapter was at Bryant University; it merged with Delta Kappa Epsilon in 1991.[2]

Symbols

Phi Sigma Nu's colors were gold and emerald green.[4][5][12] Its flower was the yellow rose.[5] The fraternity's song was "Hail to Our Phi Sigma Nu".[12] Its periodical was the semiannual The Phi Sigma Nu.[5][2]

Chapters

Following are the known chapters of Phi Sigma Nu, with inactive chapters and institutions in italics.[2]

Chapter Charter date and range Institution Location Status References
Alpha February 14, 1927 – 1933 Crane Junior College Chicago, Illinois Inactive [7][5][a]
Beta March 27, 1929 – 197x ? Potomac State College Keyser, West Virginia Inactive [4][5][b]
Gamma 1930–1931 Vincennes University Vincennes, Indiana Inactive [13][14]
Delta 1930–19xx ? College of Marshall Marshall, Texas Inactive [c]
Epsilon 1930–19xx ? Cumnock College Los Angeles, California Inactive [d]
Zeta 1931 – April 21, 1956 Rider University Lawrence Township, New Jersey Withdrew (ΤΚΕ) [15][e]
Eta 1931–19xx ? Ferris State University Big Rapids, Michigan Withdrew (local) [5][f]
Theta 1931–19xx ? Beckley College Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Inactive [5][g]
Iota 1932 – January 26, 1991 Bryant University Smithfield, Rhode Island Merged (ΔΚΕ) [1][16][h]
Kappa November 12, 1932 – 19xx ? Wentworth Military Academy Lexington, Missouri Inactive [17]
Lambda 1933–19xx ? Nichols Junior College Dudley, Massachusetts Inactive
Mu 1933 – January 24, 1969 Woodbury College Burbank, California Withdrew (ΔΣΦ) [18][1][i]
Nu May 14, 1938 – 1943; 1946–1954 Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College Miami, Oklahoma Inactive [19][20][21][j]
1947–1959 Tennessee Wesleyan College Athens, Tennessee Withdrew (ΦΣΚ) [22][k]
  1. ^ The chapter formed from the Alpha chapter of Zeta Theta Nu, a three-chapter local fraternity. The chapter went defunct when the college temporarily closed during the Great Depression.
  2. ^ Chapter formed from Kappa Kappa, established in 1922.
  3. ^ The chapter formed from Phi Alpha, established in 1929 at the College of Marshall. The College of Marshall became the East Texas Baptist College in 1944.
  4. ^ Chapter formed from Delta Psi Omega, established in 1929.
  5. ^ Chapter formed from Chi Pi Chi, established in 1926. It withdrew and became the Epsilon Zeta chapter of Tau Kappa Epsilon.
  6. ^ Chapter formed from Gamma Phi Sigma 1920, reverted to Gamma Phi Sigma, and became a chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon
  7. ^ Chapter formed from Omega Phi Alpha, established in 1928.
  8. ^ Chapter became the Phi Sigma chapter of Delta Kappa Epsilon.
  9. ^ Chapter formed from the Bachelors Club, established in 1933. It withdrew and became the Epsilon Pi chapter of Delta Sigma Phi.
  10. ^ Chapter formed from Iota Sigma Phi (local), established in 1929 at the Miami School of Mines, now Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College.
  11. ^ Chapter formed from Phi Pi Delta (local), established in 1930. It withdrew and became the Omicron Tetarton chapter of Phi Sigma Kappa.

Notable members

Chapter and member misconduct

Delaware River crossing

On January 23, 1947, the Rider College chapter of Phi Sigma Nu required its pledges to recreate George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River as the final part of their initiation. The goal was to row across the Delaware River from Pennsylvania to New Jersey, and to walk to the Trenton Battle Monument in Trenton, New Jersey to capture a fraternity pennant. Dressed in Revolutionary War military costumes, forty fraternity pledges crossed the river in five rowboats, with George Chafey standing in the portrayal of George Washington. As the Phi Sigma Nu members reached the New Jersey shore after twelve minutes of rowing, a twin-seated airplane flew over the boats. On the shore were 100 members of Delta Sigma Phi, a rival fraternity, who began pelting the Phi Sigma Nu members with tomatoes, oranges, and firecrackers. Other attackers were in an amphibious truck. The pledges countered the attack with snowballs.[24][25][26][27]

The pledges then followed Washington's route to the Bear Tavern, where members of Kappa Phi, another rival fraternity, launched a second attack. Kappa Phi attempted to kidnap General Washington (Chafey), but only managed to capture a Phi Sigma Nu member portraying a drummer boy. After refreshments at the tavern, the pledges moved on to the Trenton Battle Monument, where they were met by fifty Phi Sigma Nu members armed with pillows. However, the pledges endured the pillow fight and flying feathers, securing the pennant. The incident ended with the arrival of the New Jersey State Police.[24][25][26][27]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g "A History of Phi Sigma Nu Fraternity". The Archway, vol. 23, no. 8 (January 29, 1963), p. 3. via Bryant Digital Depository.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Lurding, Carroll and Becque, Fran. (October 26, 2025) "Phi Sigma Nu". Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities. Urbana: University of Illinois. Accessed November 27, 2025.
  3. ^ "Frat to Celebrate". Chicago Tribune. 1929-02-15. p. 35. Retrieved 2025-12-02 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b c d 1930 Crane College Collegian
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Rider College News, p. 3 (10 October 1938)
  6. ^ a b c "Phi Sigma Nu Meets". Chicago Tribune. 1931-07-06. p. 27. Retrieved 2025-12-02 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ a b "Phi Sigma Nu". The Junior College Journal, vol. 10, 1940. p. 266. via Google Books.
  8. ^ The Fraternity Month, vol. 9, no. 3 (1941) p. 39. via Google Books.
  9. ^ "Panhellenic Council to Meet Wednesday". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. 1932-06-05. p. 31. Retrieved 2025-12-02 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Phi Sigma Nu Elects Athenian as Secretary". The Knoxville Journal. 1949-07-12. p. 12. Retrieved 2025-12-02 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ a b "Phi Sigma Nu Headquarters Moves to Zeta Chapter Here". The Times. Trenton, New Jersey. 1949-08-01. p. 12. Retrieved 2025-12-02 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ a b "Phi Sigma Nu Banquet". Miami News-Record. 1940-09-29. p. 6. Retrieved 2025-12-01 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "University Boys Organize Chapter of Phi Sigma Nu". The Vincennes Sun-Commercial. 1930-04-10. p. 7. Retrieved 2025-12-02 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Irish Edition if Published". The Vincennes Sun-Commercial. 1932-03-17. p. 12. Retrieved 2025-12-02.
  15. ^ Rider student Newspaper(?) - Monday, May 21, 1962 - Page 5 TKE with 181 chapters, is the largest fraternity
  16. ^ Delta Kappa Epsilon education manual 2022-2023
  17. ^ The Junior College Journal 1933-03: Vol 3 Iss 6 p 326
  18. ^ "Fraternity Plans Dance of Saturday". Daily News. Los Angeles, California. 1934-03-21. p. 15. Retrieved 2025-12-02 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ "Junior College Chapter Active". Miami News-Record. 1946-10-06. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-12-01 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ "Phi Sigma Nu Elects Burr Prexy; Initiates Pledges". The Norse Wind. Miami, Oklahoma. 1947-05-07. p. 4. Retrieved 2025-12-01 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ^ The Junior College Journal 1939-04: Vol 9 Iss 7 p 396
  22. ^ "George Collins Chosen King at Tenn. Wesleyan". The Greeneville Sun. 1949-02-23. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-12-02 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ^ Proulx, Janet. "Accounting for a Remarkable Life". Bryant Magazine. vol. 17, no. 1 (Fall 2010), p. 3. via Bryant Digital Repository.
  24. ^ a b "'Washington Crosses Delaware' Again in Stunt by Fraternity and Meets Tomatoes, not Bullets". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. 1947-01-26. p. 15. Retrieved 2025-12-04 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ a b "Modern Washington Gets Tomato Pasting on Delaware". The St. Louis Star and Times. 1947-01-24. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-12-04 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ^ a b "Tomatoes Make Pi of Nu History; Cops' Ire Runs Hi". Times Herald. Washington, D.C. 1947-01-25. p. 20. Retrieved 2025-12-04 – via Newspapers.com.
  27. ^ a b "Ice and Rival Frats Fail to Daunt Rider Colonials". Trenton Evening Times. 1947-01-24. pp. 1, 10. Retrieved 2025-12-04 – via Newspapers.com.
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