Greek Life at The University of Missouri - Early History

Early History

In 1869 Samual Day Ayers, a member of Phi Kappa Psi from the Indiana Alpha chapter, wrote to the president of the University of Missouri, asking him to name the five most outstanding men on campus. The men nominated were James Cooney, Eli Penter, John Prather, Prosser K. Ray and Bentley H. Runyan. All five were receptive to the idea of establishing a chapter of Phi Kappa Psi at Missouri, and they were initiated and the Missouri Alpha chapter was chartered on June 12, 1869. The Missouri Alpha chapter of Phi Kappa Psi became the first chapter of a fraternity founded at any public university west of the Mississippi River.

When the Zeta Phi Society was founded on November 7, 1870, one might say that the Greek Life system at MU was born, as there was now two Greek-letter organizations on campus. Phi Delta Theta installed its Missouri Alpha Chapter just two weeks after the founding of Zeta Phi, which brought the total to three active groups. The first women's group to form was the Theta Chapter of Kappa Kappa Gamma, which installed on April 2, 1875. Missouri Alpha of Phi Kappa Psi went on to fold the next year in 1876 after initiating 72 men. As a result, Zeta Phi, which later became a chapter of Beta Theta Pi, holds the title of the oldest fraternity in continuous existence at the MU.

The first professional fraternity to establish itself at MU was the Phi Delta Phi law fraternity in 1890. Professional fraternities, which became co-ed in the 1970s, continue to play an influential role at the University. In fact, the fraternity with the largest number of members at the MU is a professional fraternity - Alpha Kappa Psi.

The first historically black fraternity to establish a chapter at MU was Kappa Alpha Psi, when the Delta Omega chapter was established on March 18, 1961. Since that time, the remaining members of the Divine nine have all chartered chapters at the University.