Lyrecrest - History

History

Prior to the purchase of the property of the house in 1970, a death occurred in the main building, offering an explanation for the tradition of a “Lyrecrest ghost” referred to as “Burr.”

Composer and honorary Sinfonian Aaron Copland visited Lyrecrest in 1970. American Idol winner Reuben Studdard visited the property in 2008.

An intruder broke into the main building of Lyrecrest in the early 1970s.

The National Conventions of 1976 and 1979 were held in Evansville, allowing convention attendees to visit the headquarters property; main activities of the convention were held on nearby university campuses.

Jylene Dewey Wright is the highest ranking female Sinfonian to have served on the Lyrecrest staff. For a period of time, she served as Director of Lyrecrest, and was initiated as an honorary member by the Lambda Kappa Chapter at Carthage College in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The Lambda Kappa chapter was expelled c. 1985 for not supporting the Fraternity's return to single gender status, and has since reorganized as a local co-ed professional music fraternity on the Carthage campus.

Beginning in the mid-1980s, Lyrecrest was the site of the annual Collegiate Province Representative (CPR) convocation, typically held during the week between Christmas and New Years Day. For several years, a tradition of the attendees of the convocation was to “ring in” the New Year for each time zone in which the fraternity had an existing chapter. Work weekends were also begun in the late 1980s to allow fraternity members to spend a weekend at Lyrecrest assisting with landscaping and other labor needs.

In August 1992, the first Leadership Conclave was held on the campus of the University of Evansville. Although activities were not held at Lyrecrest, a welcoming cookout was held the first day of the conclave on the grounds at Lyrecrest, followed by a welcoming session by national president Robert L. Hause and Sinfonia Foundation president Doug Stewart.

For many years, the "Run for the Gold" was a Fraternity tradition, whereby chapters attempt to be the first to turn in their chapter reports. Beginning in the late 1990s, chapter retreats began to take place at Lyrecrest. These educational opportunities for chapter bonding and learning grew out of the more informal “road trips” taken by chapters to Lyrecrest in the past.

The belated thirtieth anniversary of the occupancy of Lyrecrest by the Fraternity was celebrated at the 2001 Conclave, held in Evansville.

In 2002, an earthquake struck Evansville, causing somewhat significant damage to the “south wing” area of the ground floor of the main building in an area that was used for the fraternity store, resulting in a collapsed floor. In the wake of the earthquake, the Fraternity was able to perform major enhancements to that area of the building, conducting renovations that made the area more conducive for shipping, mailing, and storage. A second earthquake struck the American midwest on April 18, 2008. However, in the immediate aftermath of the quake there was no noticeable damage to the Lyrecrest property.

At the 2012 national convention in Orlando, plans were announced for a major fund-raising campaign to build a retreat center on the property (to the west of the archives and museum building), along with potential upgrades to the overall quality of the grounds.