Mother of Fraternities

Side A: In 1833, Samuel Eells founded Alpha Delta Phi (ΑΔΦ), the first fraternity west of the Allegheny Mountains and the first fraternity at Miami University. The formation of Miami’s Alpha (founding) chapters followed in the next two decades. In 1839 Beta Theta Phi (ΒΘΠ) was founded, Miami’s first Alpha chapter. Phi Delta Theta (ΦΔΘ) was founded in 1848 and Sigma Chi (ΣΧ) in 1855, completing the Miami Triad. Miami would become home to two more Alpha chapters with the creation of the sorority Delta Zeta (ΔΖ) in 1902 and what would become Phi Kappa Tau (ΦΚΤ), in 1906. Following Miami’s precedent, approximately 800 chapters of these five “Alphas” have been formed in the United States and internationally. Sharing the title with Union College in Schenectady, New York, Miami University is known as the “Mother of Fraternities”. Side B: Same