User:Naraht/BSO
| Beta Sigma Omicron | |
|---|---|
| ΒΣΟ | |
| Founded | December 12, 1888 University of Missouri |
| Type | Social |
| Affiliation | NPC (former) |
| Scope | National (US) |
| Motto | We Live to do Good |
| Colors | Ruby and Pink |
| Symbol | Stars, Covenant, Lamp, Laurel |
| Flower | Red and Pink Carnations |
| Jewel | Ruby |
| Patron Greek divinity | Hestia |
| Publication | The Beta Sigma Omicron (open) The Lamp (esoteric), and The Urn |
| Chapters | 61 chapters, 13 active at time of merger |
| Members | almost 15,000 lifetime |
| Merged with | Zeta Tau Alpha (1964) |
Beta Sigma Omicron (ΒΣΟ) is a defunct national sorority. It was founded on December 12, 1888 and merged with Zeta Tau Alpha on August 7, 1964.
History[edit]
Beta Sigma Omicron was founded at the University of Missouri on December 12, 1888 by Eulalie Hockaday, Kathering Turner and Maude Haines.[1]
As of 1909, the sorority had 10 active chapters and 3 alumnae associations. These 10 chapters were at Belmont College, Brenau College, Centenary College (Cleveland, TN),[2] Central College, Fairmont Seminary,[3] Hardin College, Liberty Ladies' College (Liberty, MO), Stephens College, Synodical College, Transylvania College.[4]
The sorority absorbed three of the four chapters of Pi Sigma Gamma, a small sorority that disbanded in 1932.[5]
Beta Sigma Omicron became an Associate member of the National Panhellenic Conference in 1930 and a full member in 1933.
At Beta Sigma Omicron's 1963 Convention (75th anniversary), a vote on absorption or disbanding was taken. Although Beta Sigma Omicron had chartered 61 chapters and had almost 15,000 initiated sisters, at the time of the anniversary, it only had 13 active chapters, and thus no longer met the National Panhellenic Conference's membership requirements. The vote was unanimous for absorption and Beta Sigma Omicron looked for an organization for merger. On August 7, 1964, Beta Sigma Omicron was absorbed by Zeta Tau Alpha.
Of the 13 active chapters: Howard College, Millsaps College, William Jewell College, University of Evansville, Thiel College, Westminster College, and Youngstown College were absorbed into Zeta Tau Alpha. Louisiana State University, Baldwin Wallace University and Indiana University of Pennsylvania were released (Zeta Tau Alpha already had chapters on their campuses) and three small chapters at urban schools in New York and Ohio chose to become local sororities.[6][7]
Symbols[edit]
The Badge is a monogram of the sorority letters, with the Omicron around the Beta and the Sigma superimposed on the Omicron.[8]
- Colors - Ruby and Pink
- Flower - Red and Pink Carnations
- Jewel - Ruby
- Open Motto - We Live to do Good
- Insignia - Stars, Covenant, Lamp, Laurel
- Patron - Hestia
- Magazine - The Beta Sigma Omicron, first published in 1905, The Lamp (esoteric), and The Urn [6]
- Convention - June 1910 in Louisville, KY
- Pledge Pin - Triangle of red enamel, displaying a Grecian lamp and three stars
Chapter List[edit]
As of 1963, the chapters of Beta Sigma Omicron were:[1][9][7]Cite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page). (italic for chapters closed at that time.)
- Alpha - 1888 - University of Missouri (inactive 1892)
- Beta - 1891 - Synodical Female College (inactive 1928)
- Gamma I - 1892 - Missouri Valley College (inactive 1895)
- Delta - 1898 - Sedalia, Missouri High school (inactive 1907)
- Epsilon - 1902 - Hardin College - (inactive 1925)
- Zeta (1)- 1902 - Potter College (Kentucky) (inactive 1909)
- Eta - 1902 - Stephens College (inactive 1925)
- Theta - 1903 - Belmont College (inactive 1914)
- Iota - 1903 - Mary Baldwin Seminary (inactive 1907)
- Kappa - 1904 - Fairmont Seminary (Washington DC) (inactive 1913)[3]
- Lambda - 1906 - Hamilton College (inactive 1926)
- Mu - 1906 - Crescent College (Arkansas) (inactive 1912)
- Nu - 1907 - Brenau College (inactive 1913)
- Xi - 1908 - Central College (inactive 1925)
- Omicron - 1908 - Liberty Ladies' College (inactive 1913)
- Zeta (2) - 1909 - Centenary College (Cleveland, TN) (inactive 1921)
- Gamma (2) - 1910 - Christian College (inactive 1915)
- Delta (2) - 1911 - Women's College (Alabama) (inactive 1913)
- Pi - 1913 - Women's College of Alabama (inactive 1917)
- Rho - 1914 - Colorado Women's College (inactive 1920)
- Sigma - 1915 - Greenville Women's College (inactive 1930)
- Tau - 1916 - Lindenwood College (inactive 1920)
- Upsilon - 1916 - Belhaven (Mississippi) (inactive 1930)
- Phi - 1918 - Grenada (Mississippi) (inactive 1920)
- Alpha Alpha - 1926 - University of Wisconsin (inactive 1933)
- Alpha Beta - 1926 - University of Indiana (inactive 1937)
- Alpha Gamma - 1926 - University of Kentucky (inactive 1932)
- Alpha Delta - 1926 - Illinois Wesleyan University (inactive 1936)
- Alpha Epsilon - 1926 - UCLA (inactive 1933)[10]
- Alpha Zeta - 1926 - Millsaps College - Part of Merger to Zeta Tau Alpha, became Delta Phi chapter
- Alpha Eta - 1926 - University of New Mexico (inactive 1933)
- Alpha Theta - 1927 - University of Southern California (inactive 1946)
- Alpha Iota - 1927 - University of California Berkeley (inactive 1942)[11]
- Alpha Kappa - 1927 - University of Mississippi (inactive 1932)
- Alpha Lambda - 1927 - Northwestern University (inactive 1939)
- Alpha Mu - 1927 - University of Illinois (inactive 1941)
- Alpha Nu - 1928 - Lyon College (inactive 1928)
- Alpha Xi - 1929 - Miami University (inactive 1939)
- Alpha Omicron - 1929 - Simpson College (inactive 1941)
- Alpha Pi - 1929 - Baldwin-Wallace College- Active at time of Merger, did not become part of of Zeta Tau Alpha
- Alpha Rho - 1929 - Louisiana State University- Active at time of Merger, did not become part of of Zeta Tau Alpha
- Alpha Sigma - 1929 - H. Sophie Newcomb Memorial College (inactive 1959)
- Alpha Tau - 1930 - University of Pittsburgh - (inactive 1964)[12]Active at time of Merger, did not become part of of Zeta Tau Alpha
- Alpha Upsilon - 1931 - University of Nevada (inactive 1941) -- Originally local Sigma Alpha Omega [13]
- Alpha Phi - 1931 - Washburn College (inactive 1936)
- Alpha Chi - 1931 - University of Oklahoma (inactive 1936)
- Alpha Psi - 1931 - William Jewell College - Part of Merger to Zeta Tau Alpha, became Delta Chi chapter
- Alpha Omega - 1932 - University of Washington (inactive 1936)[14]
- Beta Alpha - 1933 - Hunter College - Active at time of Merger, did not become part of of Zeta Tau Alpha[15]
- Beta Beta - 1933 - Samford University (then called Howard College) - Part of Merger to Zeta Tau Alpha, became Delta Psi chapter [16]
- Beta Gamma - 1937 - Westminster College - Part of Merger to Zeta Tau Alpha, became Delta Omega chapter
- Beta Delta - 1941 -Queens College- Active at time of Merger, did not become part of of Zeta Tau Alpha
- Beta Epsilon - 1946 - Pennsylvania State University (inactive 1962)
- Beta Zeta - 1947 - Florida Southern College (inactive 1959)
- Beta Eta - 1947 - Louisiana Polytechnic Institute (inactive 1959)
- Beta Theta - 1949 - University of Evansville - Part of Merger to Zeta Tau Alpha, became Zeta Alpha chapter
- Beta Iota - 1950 - Thiel College - Part of Merger to Zeta Tau Alpha, became Zeta Beta chapter
- Beta Kappa - 1951 - Indiana University of Pennsylvania - Active at time of Merger, did not become part of of Zeta Tau Alpha
- Beta Lambda - 1952 - Youngstown State University - Part of Merger to Zeta Tau Alpha, became Zeta Gamma chapter
- Beta Mu - 1954 - Fenn College - Active at time of Merger, did not become part of of Zeta Tau Alpha
- Beta Nu - 1961 - Waynesburg College (inactive 1963)
The sorority would go on to eventually charter 63 chapters, including also these four that merged in to Beta Sigma Omicron from their dissolving national, Pi Sigma Gamma:
- _____ - 1932 - University of California, Berkeley[11]
- _____ - 1932 - University of Washington[14]
- _____ - 1932 - Hunter College (NY)[15]
- _____ - 1932 - UCLA[17]
References[edit]
- ^ a b William Raimond Baird (1912). Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities. G. Banta Company. pp. 474–475.
- ^ Centenary College closed in 1929.
- ^ a b This school was founded by Dr. Arthur Ramsey in 1899, near the area of 19th and Belmont Rd, according to a 11 July 1920 article in the Washington Post, accessed 26 Aug 2020. Baird's notes that it has closed, but does not note a date of closure.
- ^ Ida Shaw Martin (1909). The Sorority Handbook. Roxburgh Press. pp. 67–68.
- ^ Baird's (20th ed.) has an error in the name of this group, calling it "Pi Sigma Tau" in the essay on p.I-21.
- ^ a b Fall 2014 Themis, page 50-51
- ^ a b William Raimond Baird; Carroll Lurding (eds.). "Almanac of Fraternities and Sororities (Baird's Manual Online Archive), section showing Beta Sigma Omicron chapters". Student Life and Culture Archives. University of Illinois: University of Illinois Archives. Retrieved 28 Jul 2021. The main archive URL is The Baird's Manual Online Archive homepage.
- ^ Mrs. Ida Shaw Martin (1919). The Sorority Handbook. Banta. pp. 84–85.
- ^ Robson, John, ed. (1963). "Non NIC Members". Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities (17th ed.). Menasha, Wisconsin: Banta Publishing Company. p. 365.
- ^ This original Beta Sigma Omicron chapter at UCLA may have merged with the Delta chapter of Pi Sigma Gamma, a small national that dissolved in 1932.
- ^ a b The Berkeley chapter had previously been the Alpha chapter of Pi Sigma Gamma, a small national that dissolved in 1932. It merged with a Beta Sigma Omicron chapter there, that year.
- ^ The Pitt News The Pitt news. vol. 58, no. 63 March 18, 1964 p 2 "Greeks choose heads"
- ^ [Nevada State Journal (Reno, Nevada) 25 Jun 1965, Fri Page 24 Two Sororities form Zeta Tau Alpha Alumnae chapter]
- ^ a b The Washington chapter had previously been the Beta chapter of Pi Sigma Gamma, a small national that dissolved in 1932. It became a new Beta Sigma Omicron chapter there, that year.
- ^ a b The Hunter chapter had previously been the Gamma chapter of Pi Sigma Gamma, a small national that dissolved in 1932. It became a new Beta Sigma Omicron chapter there, that year.
- ^ Origin of this chapter was in 1924 as Sigma Iota Chi (local). After several decades in ΒΣΟ, at the time of the merger it joined Zeta Tau Alpha.
- ^ This chapter, coming from Pi Sigma Gamma, had previously been the Delta chapter of Pi Sigma Gamma, a small national that dissolved in 1932. It may have merged with the existing Beta Sigma Omicron Alpha Epsilon chapter there, that year.