Secret Societies at The University of Virginia - Historical Context

Historical Context

The earliest secret society at the University was probably the no-longer-secret Jefferson Literary and Debating Society, which at its 1825 founding was secret, with expulsion the penalty to any member who exposed the society's secrets. Student society activity for the first period of the University appears to have been confined to similar literary societies, including the Patrick Henry Society, Philomathean Society, Parthenon Society, Columbian, and Washington Society, which were not secret societies; only the last is still active.

At the same time, Greek organizations that were purely social in function (today's fraternities) began to play a role in student life. In 1853, students petitioned the Faculty to set up a "secret" colony of Delta Kappa Epsilon. The first request was rejected by the Faculty, coming as it did on the heels of years of riotous behavior; according to University historian Philip Alexander Bruce, the faculty feared "orderly spirit of the student body acting as a whole or in segments, whether organized into secret fraternities or into Calathumpian bands"; in another session or two, the chapter became established, and other Greek fraternities followed. It can be said generally about the early UVA fraternities that the only "secret" aspect of them was their operation and meeting location; the membership was not kept secret.

The growth of student organizations was interrupted by the Civil War, but resumed thereafter with the establishment of additional fraternities. A few secret societies are recorded during the years 1865 - 1878, of whom the only one of any note is the Dedils, most notable for being shut down by the Faculty after their minutes were found where they had been dropped by the drunken president of the organization.

The Eli Banana Society, established in 1878, represented a new kind of secret society at the university. The new "ribbon society" tended to operate as an upperclass society, drew its members from the "upper class", and sought to exercise control of other student groups such as the Jefferson Society. Other ribbon societies included T.I.L.K.A., the Lotus Society, the O.W.L. (a semi-secret society drawing its membership from the newspaper, magazine, and yearbook staff), the Zeta (later the Z Society), and O.N.E.

The suppression of Eli Banana in 1894 and of the Hot Feet/IMP Society in 1908 coincided with the rise of academic societies, including the semi-secret Raven Society, whose members are initiated in a secret ceremony but is otherwise public. At around the same time, the Seven Society, a group so secret that its members are not made known until their death, appeared. The Seven Society established a new model for secret society operation on Grounds. While the ribbon societies were observed to draw their membership from the fraternities, and the IMPs and Zs from the ribbon societies, the Seven Society's extreme secrecy meant that the society had no apparent formal connections to the social secret societies. At the same time, its exclusive focus on philanthropy meant that, unlike the Elis and Hot Feet, it functioned as an important contributor to the aims of the University. The Sevens tap not only student leaders, but also University administrators and high-profile personnel. They take their secrecy so seriously that they only tap individuals for membership at locations off Grounds. It has been suggested that the IMP Society is composed of the Sevens underlings. The other societies founded after 1905 likewise define themselves in relation to supporting the University, whether through recognizing notable or notorious individuals (P.U.M.P.K.I.N.s, 21 Society, Sons of Liberty) or upholding University traditions (Purple Shadows). The A.N.G.E.L.S. Society both reaches out to students who may be struggling or simply those who display kindness or other laudable characteristics.