Pi Gamma Omicron
ΠΓΟ
FoundedJanuary 1, 1905
Ohio State University
TypeSocial
AffiliationIndependent (pre-NPHC)
EmphasisBlack students
Scopelocal
Chapters1 (now dormant)
Members12 lifetime

Pi Gamma Omicron (ΠΓΟ) was one of the first documented black collegiate fraternities which was founded in 1905.[1]

History

The group was founded at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio.[2][3] The group had 12 members.[4] The group was not known by the Ohio State's registrars office but was known to the Chicago Defender newspaper which wrote an article about Pi Gamma Omicron.[1][5] This article about Pi Gamma Omicron took the interest of Alpha Phi Alpha founder Robert H. Ogle who was inspired to transform Alpha Phi Alpha from a literary society into a fraternity.[5]

It was reported that Pi Gamma Omicron initially desired to become a national fraternity by establishing chapters in Michigan, Minnesota, Illinois, and Indiana according to the Beta Theta Pi correspondent at Ohio State University, but this expansion did not occur.[6]

One member, Elmer Shackelford, went on to earn his law certificate in 1906, then the equivalent of today's law degree.[2][7]

Founders

The Founders of Pi Gamma Omicron were:[4][8]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Kofi Lomotey (2010). Encyclopedia of African American Education. SAGE Publications. p. 300. ISBN 978-1-4129-4050-4.
  2. ^ a b "Tracking the early history of African-American fraternities at OSU". "From Woody's Couch" - Official Ohio State University Archives’ blog. March 28, 2012.
  3. ^ Ricky L. Jones (10 March 2010). Black Haze: Violence, Sacrifice, and Manhood in Black Greek-Letter Fraternities. SUNY Press. p. 36. ISBN 978-0-7914-8565-1.
  4. ^ a b OSU Archives Student Assistant Michelle Brundige (March 2012). "Pi Gamma Omicron Members" (PDF).
  5. ^ a b Gregory S. Parks (13 June 2008). Black Greek-letter Organizations in the Twenty-First Century: Our Fight Has Just Begun. University Press of Kentucky. p. 52. ISBN 978-0-8131-3872-5.
  6. ^ "The Rainbow of the Delta Tau Delta". Rainbow. Vol. XXIX, no. 3. March 1906. p. 406. ISSN 1532-5334.
  7. ^ Shackelford senior picture The Makio yearbook (PDF). Columbus, Ohio: OSU student body. 1906. p. 85. Retrieved 26 November 2021.
  8. ^ "Ohio State Lantern". January 10, 1906. p. 3. OCLC 18384916.


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