On January 26, 1897, Miss Charlotte N. Malotte, the professor of Latin and French, spoke to a student group at the chapel hour. She spoke on the subject of ‘College Fraternities’ which sparked the interest of several students. Then, on the afternoon of February 26, a new fraternity had its first meeting.
The founders of the Fraternity, all cadets at Vincennes University, were William Raper Kennedy, James Thompson Kingsbury, George Martin Patterson, and Rolin Rosco James. The first three were seniors; James was a freshman. Samuel and Maurice Bayard were the first initiates.
The Beta Tau chapter at Valparaiso University was incorporated in 1960. Its origins go back to a local fraternity called Omega Chi Beta in 1946. It stayed a local fraternity until, in the 1950’s, they were beginning to investigate aligning with a national fraternity. They looked seriously at several and some asked them, but it was Sigma Pi that they chose.
The first Sigma Pi Beta Tau house was the former Omega Chi Beta house at 251 Greenwich. They moved to 254 Morgan Street in 1963. In 1972 we bought 805 Brown Street and in 1974 803 Brown Street. A temporary move to the second floor of the Phi Psi house in 1972 and Brandt Hall in 1973 ended once the Brown Street houses were remodeled. Although the current houses are over 100 years old, we continue to enjoy the large lots, volleyball court and free parking.
Since 1960, the Beta-Tau Chapter of Sigma Pi has influenced the lives of hundreds of men, cultivating lasting friendships in the process. Many of our best college memories can be traced back to our Sigma Pi experience. To this day our active brothers continue to thrive on Brown Street and while we celebrate our 125 years of Sigma Pi today, we call upon our brothers to consider how to preserve our past, and secure our future for the next 125 years. To that end, the capital campaign is ongoing and continues to be grateful and appreciative of your love and support for Sigma Pi.
Go to valposigmapi.org/capital-campaign to see how you can be part of securing the next 125 years of Sigma Pi at Valparaiso University.
