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History
of Alpha Chi Rho
As a student at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, Paul Ziegler joined
the Beta Beta Society, a local literary society. He attended Trinity from 1868
until his graduation in 1872. Ziegler was a scholar, was elected Phi Beta
Kappa, and was the Valedictorian of his class. After graduation he earned his
Masters Degree in Divinity. Later, he was married and became a rector of an
Episcopal church near his hometown in Michigan.
In 1894, Reverend Ziegler's eldest son Carl enrolled in Trinity College.
There were approximately 115 men attending Trinity in 1894, the majority of
whom belonged to one of the national fraternities on campus. By this time,
the Beta Beta Society had become the Beta Beta Chapter of Psi Upsilon
Fraternity. Both William Rouse and his friend, Herbert Sherriff , were not
invited to join that group. Paul Ziegler felt that they were rejected because
William and Herbert were from the Midwest and had not attended a eastern prep
school. Reverend Ziegler suggested that Carl, William, and Herbert create
their own Fraternity based on principles which he felt were lacking in Trinity's
existing fraternities.
Reverend Ziegler believed that Trinity's fraternities were losing sight of
their intended purpose and were basing their membership on a man's background
rather than his intrinsic worth. He then wrote a booklet entitled The
Exoteric Manual, which details the tenants and beliefs of an ideal
fraternity. The manual was presented to these young men as the blueprint for
a new Fraternity at Trinity College - Alpha Chi Rho.
On January 1, 1895 at the Ziegler home in Detroit, Michigan, the final draft
of the Exoteric Manual was accepted by all four men. The four Landmarks of
Alpha Chi Rho were contained in the six page manual, although not in the same
format as we know them today. It also contained an admonition to all Brothers
in Alpha Chi Rho not to succumb to the challenges that had ruined other
fraternities.
On June 4, 1895, the four men performed the first Ritual and were initiated
in Ziegler's room in Northam Towers at Trinity. This room is still being used
b Alpha Chi Rho Brothers. The Founders called their group the Phi Psi
Chapter, and it was their intention from the beginning to expand to other
campuses.
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