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Sigma Mu Sigma
Sigma Mu Sigma (ΣΜΣ) is a former American college fraternity founded in 1921 at Trine University, formerly Tri-State University. Sigma Mu Sigma was historically an all-male social fraternity open originally to Master Masons, and later open to all undergraduate male students. As a national fraternity, Sigma Mu Sigma dissolved in 1935 when it was absorbed by Tau Kappa Epsilon. Sigma Mu Sigma was later revived, developed another dozen chapters, and several of these were absorbed by Kappa Sig, Acacia and others. A few remaining chapters of Sigma Mu Sigma transformed into a co-ed service fraternity in 1984 but went defunct around 2020.
In 1921, Sigma Mu Sigma was founded by three Knights Templar students at Tri-State College in Angola, Indiana. The three founders were Claude Brown, Charles Knapp, and Harold Van Vranken. Sigma Mu Sigma was founded as a fraternity exclusively for Master Masons with a zeal for the promotion of the fraternity's cardinal principles of sincerity, morality, and scholarship. Its founding date was Good Friday, March 25, 1921.
At the time of the fraternity's founding, Tri-State College had a ban on secret societies; however, several sub-rosa organizations were known to exist on campus. The three founders of the fraternity selected nine other students who were also Master Masons and among the top students at the college. Sigma Mu Sigma announced its formation to administrators and professors of the college. Faced with the possibility of expelling twelve of the top students at Tri-State, the college moved to end its ban on fraternities.
The fraternity's original intent was to limit membership to Master Masons and to maintain the scholarship standards of Phi Beta Kappa. This was soon found to be impracticable and the Phi Beta Kappa standard was soon dropped. However, the fraternity did require a high scholarship record of its pledges.
Sigma Mu Sigma became a junior member of the North-American Interfraternity Conference (NIC) in 1928. In 1929, the fraternity's membership requirements were changed to allow both Masons and sons of Masons.
In the early 1930s, the United States was in the midst of the Great Depression, resulting in college enrollment and fraternity membership dropping significantly. The effect was especially felt on Sigma Mu Sigma because of the added constraints of its Masonic membership requirement. In the fall of 1934, Sigma Mu Sigma national decided to dissolve itself and allow its chapters to be absorbed by Tau Kappa Epsilon. Sigma Mu Sigma had nine chapters at the time of the decision.
The merger was effected in March 1935 with the Epsilon chapter at George Washington University becoming the Alpha-Pi chapter of Tau Kappa Epsilon. Sigma Mu Sigma's Zeta chapter at Purdue University and the Eta chapter at the University of Illinois merged with existing Tau Kappa Epsilon chapters at their respective campuses. While these three chapters merged, the remaining chapters did not participate: Beta, Gamma, Delta, and Theta chapters dissolved. Alpha and Iota chapters chose to remain as independent, local Sigma Mu Sigma chapters without a national organization.
In 1936, Alpha chapter affiliated with Alpha Lambda Tau, signaling that for some reason, the 1935 merger with Tau Kappa Epsilon had been unworkable. Small nationals were merging or dissolving across the country during this difficult time, however, for the Tri-State chapter, the reason may have been that they were unwelcome. At this juncture, chapters at some schools were incompatible with the larger nationals because the NIC (as well as the NPC) required that Full member fraternities may only allow chapters at accredited institutions. Sigma Mu Sigma had been a junior member; Tau Kappa Epsilon was a full member. Hence, as Tri-State was not yet accredited, the chapter may have realized or been advised it was ineligible for a charter with Tau Kappa Epsilon. This may have been the reason it remained local, and then joined the smaller national fraternity of Alpha Lambda Tau, also a junior NIC member. The Iota chapter lingered for a few years, and was inactive by 1940.
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Sigma Mu Sigma
Sigma Mu Sigma (ΣΜΣ) is a former American college fraternity founded in 1921 at Trine University, formerly Tri-State University. Sigma Mu Sigma was historically an all-male social fraternity open originally to Master Masons, and later open to all undergraduate male students. As a national fraternity, Sigma Mu Sigma dissolved in 1935 when it was absorbed by Tau Kappa Epsilon. Sigma Mu Sigma was later revived, developed another dozen chapters, and several of these were absorbed by Kappa Sig, Acacia and others. A few remaining chapters of Sigma Mu Sigma transformed into a co-ed service fraternity in 1984 but went defunct around 2020.
In 1921, Sigma Mu Sigma was founded by three Knights Templar students at Tri-State College in Angola, Indiana. The three founders were Claude Brown, Charles Knapp, and Harold Van Vranken. Sigma Mu Sigma was founded as a fraternity exclusively for Master Masons with a zeal for the promotion of the fraternity's cardinal principles of sincerity, morality, and scholarship. Its founding date was Good Friday, March 25, 1921.
At the time of the fraternity's founding, Tri-State College had a ban on secret societies; however, several sub-rosa organizations were known to exist on campus. The three founders of the fraternity selected nine other students who were also Master Masons and among the top students at the college. Sigma Mu Sigma announced its formation to administrators and professors of the college. Faced with the possibility of expelling twelve of the top students at Tri-State, the college moved to end its ban on fraternities.
The fraternity's original intent was to limit membership to Master Masons and to maintain the scholarship standards of Phi Beta Kappa. This was soon found to be impracticable and the Phi Beta Kappa standard was soon dropped. However, the fraternity did require a high scholarship record of its pledges.
Sigma Mu Sigma became a junior member of the North-American Interfraternity Conference (NIC) in 1928. In 1929, the fraternity's membership requirements were changed to allow both Masons and sons of Masons.
In the early 1930s, the United States was in the midst of the Great Depression, resulting in college enrollment and fraternity membership dropping significantly. The effect was especially felt on Sigma Mu Sigma because of the added constraints of its Masonic membership requirement. In the fall of 1934, Sigma Mu Sigma national decided to dissolve itself and allow its chapters to be absorbed by Tau Kappa Epsilon. Sigma Mu Sigma had nine chapters at the time of the decision.
The merger was effected in March 1935 with the Epsilon chapter at George Washington University becoming the Alpha-Pi chapter of Tau Kappa Epsilon. Sigma Mu Sigma's Zeta chapter at Purdue University and the Eta chapter at the University of Illinois merged with existing Tau Kappa Epsilon chapters at their respective campuses. While these three chapters merged, the remaining chapters did not participate: Beta, Gamma, Delta, and Theta chapters dissolved. Alpha and Iota chapters chose to remain as independent, local Sigma Mu Sigma chapters without a national organization.
In 1936, Alpha chapter affiliated with Alpha Lambda Tau, signaling that for some reason, the 1935 merger with Tau Kappa Epsilon had been unworkable. Small nationals were merging or dissolving across the country during this difficult time, however, for the Tri-State chapter, the reason may have been that they were unwelcome. At this juncture, chapters at some schools were incompatible with the larger nationals because the NIC (as well as the NPC) required that Full member fraternities may only allow chapters at accredited institutions. Sigma Mu Sigma had been a junior member; Tau Kappa Epsilon was a full member. Hence, as Tri-State was not yet accredited, the chapter may have realized or been advised it was ineligible for a charter with Tau Kappa Epsilon. This may have been the reason it remained local, and then joined the smaller national fraternity of Alpha Lambda Tau, also a junior NIC member. The Iota chapter lingered for a few years, and was inactive by 1940.