Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities
Encyclopedia
Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities is a compendium
of fraternities and sororities
in the United States
and Canada
first published in 1879. It covers national and international general (social), professional, and honor fraternities, including defunct organizations, with an overview of each society's history and traditions, ideals and symbols, and membership information. The 20th and most recent edition, published in 1991, was over 1200 pages long.
(1848-1917), an 1878 graduate of the Stevens Institute of Technology
. He exhaustively researched other fraternal organizations when he was seeking a suitable partner to merge with his own Alpha Sigma Chi. He eventually selected Beta Theta Pi
, which absorbed ΑΣΧ in 1879. As no authoritative resource on the subject existed, Baird published his research for the benefit of the public as American College Fraternities.
Baird and Beta Theta Pi held the rights for some time before selling them to George Banta
, publisher of Banta's Greek Exchange. The Banta Publishing Company
of Menasha, Wisconsin
released several editions before spinning the publication off to the Baird's Manual Foundation, which published editions in 1977 and 1991.
Compendium
A compendium is a concise, yet comprehensive compilation of a body of knowledge. A compendium may summarize a larger work. In most cases the body of knowledge will concern some delimited field of human interest or endeavour , while a "universal" encyclopedia can be referred to as a compendium of...
of fraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In Latin, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in the United States, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
first published in 1879. It covers national and international general (social), professional, and honor fraternities, including defunct organizations, with an overview of each society's history and traditions, ideals and symbols, and membership information. The 20th and most recent edition, published in 1991, was over 1200 pages long.
History
The reference work was compiled by William Raimond BairdWilliam Raimond Baird
William Raimond Baird was the namesake and Baird's Manual of American College Fraternities and publisher of its early editions.-Biography:...
(1848-1917), an 1878 graduate of the Stevens Institute of Technology
Stevens Institute of Technology
Stevens Institute of Technology is a technological university located on a campus in Hoboken, New Jersey, USA – founded in 1870 with an 1868 bequest from Edwin A. Stevens. It is known for its engineering, science, and technological management curricula.The institute has produced leading...
. He exhaustively researched other fraternal organizations when he was seeking a suitable partner to merge with his own Alpha Sigma Chi. He eventually selected Beta Theta Pi
Beta Theta Pi
Beta Theta Pi , often just called Beta, is a social collegiate fraternity that was founded in 1839 at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, USA, where it is part of the Miami Triad which includes Phi Delta Theta and Sigma Chi. It has over 138 active chapters and colonies in the United States and Canada...
, which absorbed ΑΣΧ in 1879. As no authoritative resource on the subject existed, Baird published his research for the benefit of the public as American College Fraternities.
Baird and Beta Theta Pi held the rights for some time before selling them to George Banta
George Banta
George Banta was the founder of the George Banta Company and an influential figure in the development of the collegiate Phi Delta Theta fraternity and Delta Gamma women's fraternity.-Biography:...
, publisher of Banta's Greek Exchange. The Banta Publishing Company
Banta Corporation
Banta Corporation was a major printing, imaging, and supply chain management company of the United States, based in Menasha, Wisconsin for all of its 105 years. Founded in 1901, it was acquired by Chicago-based RR Donnelley in late 2006.-History:...
of Menasha, Wisconsin
Menasha, Wisconsin
Menasha is a city in Calumet and Winnebago Counties in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 16,331 at the 2000 census. The city is located mostly in the Town of Menasha in Winnebago County; only a small portion is in the Town of Harrison in Calumet County. Doty Island is located...
released several editions before spinning the publication off to the Baird's Manual Foundation, which published editions in 1977 and 1991.
Editions
- 1879, William Baird, ed.
- 1880, William Baird, ed.
- 1883, William Baird, ed.
- 1890, William Baird, ed.
- 1898, William Baird, ed.
- 1905, William Baird, ed.
- 1912, William Baird, ed.
- 1915, William Baird, ed.
- 1920, James T. Brown, ed.
- 1923, James T. Brown, ed.
- 1927, Francis Wayland Shepardson, ed.
- 1930, Francis Wayland Shepardson, ed.
- 1935, Francis Wayland Shepardson, ed.
- 1940, Alvan E. Duerr, ed.
- 1949, Harold J. Baily, ed.
- 1957, George Starr Lasher, ed.
- 1963, John Robson, ed.
- 1968, John Robson, ed.
- 1977, John Robson, ed.
- 1991, Jack L. AnsonJack L. AnsonJack Lee Anson was an important leader in the American college interfraternity movement, and was known as "Mr...
, Robert F. Marchesani, Jr., eds., ISBN 0-9637159-0-9