GeezerVison

According to Frederick Moore Whitney, two or three groups were working on the idea of a new law fraternity during the spring of 1889. After the class election, there were meetings held in Myron McKee Crandall's apartment as well as in Monroe Marsh Sweetland's law office. It is not clear how these two groups came together, though there seem to have been some individuals who had attended both groups.

Over the summer of 1890, many of the details of the organization were worked out by Myron Mckee Crandall, who had stayed in Ithaca until after school opened. Regarding the adoption of the constitution, Albert Sullard Barnes wrote the following in a 1907 Quarterly article:

As I recall it, after refreshing my recollection from the original minutes now in my possession, on the evening of October 13, 1890, six students in the Law School, Brothers John M. Gorham, Thomas J. Sullivan, F.K. Stephens, A.D. Stillman and the writer, together with Myron Crandall and O.L. Potter, graduate students, and Monroe Sweetland, a former Student in the Law School, met in a brother's room and adopted the constitution and by-laws, and organized the Delta Chi Fraternity.

Its founding fathers were Albert Sullard Barnes, Myron McKee Crandall, John Milton Gorham, Peter Schermerhorn Johnson, Edward Richard O'Malley, Owen Lincoln Potter, Alphonse Derwin Stillman, Thomas Allen Joseph Sullivan, Monroe Marsh Sweetland, Thomas David Watkins, and Frederick Moore Whitney.^[2] Potter was the first president.

The fraternity was recognized by Cornell on October 13, 1890, now considered the group's founding date.^[2] Stillman wrote the fraternity's ritual, which was adopted at a meeting on October 20, 1890.^[2] A second chapter was established at New York University in 1891.^[2] This was followed by chapters at the University of Minnesota, DePauw University, and the University of Michigan in 1892.^[2] The fraternity held its first national convention in 1894, continuing to hold conventions annually through 1911.^[2]

In 1909, at the 15th convention in Ithaca, New York, Delta Chi adopted an amendment to the constitution prohibiting dual membership in multiple fraternities.^[3] As a professional law fraternity, Delta Chi had originally allowed members from other general fraternities to join. The change in policy led to the loss of chapters in New York Law School, West Virginia University, Northwestern University, and Washington University in St. Louis.^[4]

In 1930, Delta Chi had chartered 42 chapters, 15 alumni chapters, and had initiated 8,301 members.^[2] It had 36 active chapters, with 29 of those owning a chapter house.^[2]

During World War I, a majority of the members of the active chapters enlisted in the armed forces. Chapter houses became almost deserted, and a convention in August 1917 was skipped. At the end of the war, members returned to the universities to complete their courses. Chapter finances were generally in bad condition, as were the houses. Attempting to rebuild, many chapters stretched the recruiting restrictions by initiating men who had no intention of studying law.

Starting in 1919 at the 20th convention, the issue of becoming a general social fraternity was debated. In 1921, in Columbus, Ohio at the 21st convention, two amendments were proposed, for and against general membership, respectively. For three days, votes were held, until (on a swing vote by the Buffalo Alumni chapter representative), the Wadsworth amendment was adopted. The amendment made Delta Chi a general fraternity, no longer requiring its members to be law students.^[3]