Delta Phi

Delta Phi was founded on November 17, 1827, at Union College by nine upperclassmen. Its founders were:

• Benjamin Burroughs, Presbyterian minister from Savannah, Georgia
• William Hun Fondey, attorney from Albany, New York
• Samuel Lewis Lamberson, Presbyterian minister from Jamaica, New York
• Samuel C. Lawrison, United States Navy surgeon from Pensacola, Florida
• David Hervey Little, New York Supreme Court Justice from Rochester, New York
• John Mason, clergyman from Jamaica, New York
• Joseph Griffiths Masten, Mayor of Buffalo, New York
• Thomas Clark McLaury, clergyman from Lisbon, New York
• William Wilson, President of the College of Cincinnati from Ireland

Delta Phi and the other Union Triad fraternities were established during a time of strong Anti-Masonry sentiment in the United States and became targets of the Anti-Masonry movement. This led Phi Beta Kappa, the original fraternity, to abandon secrecy and become a strictly honor society.

In the early 1830s, Dr. Eliphalet Nott, president of Union College, called for the dissolution of all fraternities. Before this policy could be enacted, John Jay Hyde, a member of Delta Phi, argued the benefits of the fraternity system so convincingly that Dr. Nott relented and permitted the organizations to remain in existence. Hyde went on to design the badge still worn by members of Delta Phi today.

This connection to the Knights of Malta led Delta Phi to become known as "St. Elmo", a name first used by the Omicron chapter at Yale University, which since has transformed into a senior secret society known as St. Elmo Society that is no longer associated with Delta Phi. Beginning at some point shortly after the Omicron chapter's inception in 1889, the brothers there used the name of St. Elmo, the patron saint of mariners and the Knights of Malta. On some campuses, Delta Phi chapters are known almost exclusively as "St. Elmo," "St. Elmo Hall," or simply "Elmo." At Cornell University, the Delta Phi chapter is known as Llenroc, since that was the name of the mansion when it was the residence of Cornell University co-founder Ezra Cornell.

In 1838, the Beta chapter of Delta Phi was founded at Brown University and Delta Phi finally became a "national" fraternity. The Gamma chapter was established at New York University in 1841, followed by the Delta chapter at Columbia University in 1842, the Epsilon chapter at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey in 1845, the Zeta chapter at Harvard University in 1845, which was reorganized in 1901 as the Delphic Club, one of Harvard's prestigious Final Clubs, and the Eta chapter at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia in 1849.

In 1844, Delta Phi held its first convention, only the second fraternity to have such a meeting and was held under the auspices of the Alpha chapter in Troy, New York. In 1847, it held its second convention in New York City and, seeing the growth in the organization, authorized the fraternity to undertake its first printed publication, a complete catalogue of the membership up to 1847. Delta Phi left its base in the Northeast and expanded into what was then still the northwest of the young country, establishing the Iota chapter at University of Michigan in 1855 and the Kappa chapter at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill later the same year.

Delta Phi remains a small fraternity with twelve active chapters and few chapters with more than a couple dozen members. It has resisted expansion in order to create an "intimate, personal experience" for its members. The fraternity's current expansion policy is to reactivate dormant chapters. As a member of the Union Triad, Delta Phi is the third oldest fraternity in the United States.

Delta Phi's mott is Semper Ubique or "Always Everywhere". Its badge includes a Maltese Cross, a symbol used by the Knights of Malta.

The fraternity's colors are Columbia blue and white. Its nicknames are St. Elmo, St. Elmo Hall, and Elmo in reference to its relation to Erasmus of Formia, the patron saint of sailors, and the Knights of Malta.

These are the chapters of Delta Phi, with active chapters indicated in bold and inactive chapters in italics.

Overall alumni participation among active chapters remains strong, with chapters hosting several social events throughout the year.

On or around November 17 of every year, the national organization sponsors the Founder's Day Dinner at the Saint Elmo Club where undergraduates and alumni celebrate the founding of the fraternity.

Owing mostly to its development in the early 19th century, Delta Phi organizes itself federally. Individual alumni chapters still exercise significant power over chapter governance. Those powers that are given in the national organization are vested in the Board of Governors. The board consists of one member appointed from each alumni chapter. Among the duties given to the board is hiring the executive director who oversees day-to-day management of the fraternity.

In addition to the national governing organization of the fraternity, Delta Phi alumni have also established the Saint Elmo Foundation which, among other things, sponsors the annual leadership weekend and provides scholarships to undergraduate members of Delta Phi.