The history of the Nu chapter of Zeta Psi is as old as that of its host
institution, the Case School of Applied Sciences, which federated with
Western Reserve University in 1967 to form the University as we know
it today. The Case School of Applied Sciences owes its existence and
name to the generosity of a wealthy and public-spirited resident of
Cleveland, Leonard Case. In 1876, Leonard Case established a trust of
two million dollars as an endowment for a technical school that would
be located in the heart of Cleveland.
Case Tech opened modestly in 1881 in the former residence of Mr. Case
on Rockwell Avenue, pending the completion of a new plant on the present
site of the school on Euclid Avenue. The main building for the school
became available in 1885, which provided more adequate quarters for
the school. By this time, enrollment had substantially increased, and
the tremendous appreciation in the value of the land assured the school
of a substantial and steady income. Case Tech seemed to have made an
auspicious beginning, and was expected to have a prosperous existence
of the future.
As early as 1882, some of the better-known national fraternities were
on the campus, looking the situation over, with the intention of starting
new colonies. It so happened that Brother John Eisenmann, Xi 1871,
was a professor of engineering and drafting at this time, and he envisioned
a great opportunity at Case for the foundation of a chapter of his fraternity,
Zeta Psi. Accordingly, in 1884, he broached the subject to one of his
students, Daniel R. Warmington. Warmington was enthusiastic about the
idea and soon convinced five of his friends to form the nucleus of the
proposed chapter.
At this time, another auspicious factor was the presence of several
influential Zetes in Cleveland. Among them was Brother Liberty E. Holden, Xi 1857, who was the Phi Alpha (international president) of Zeta
Psi. He lent his favor to the project, and solicited the support of
the Xi chapter at the University of Michigan, which was also the nearest
Zete chapter to Cleveland. Brothers J. E. Ensign, Xi 1874, and
J. D. Ketchum, Pi 1873, who lived in Cleveland at the time, also
lent their support. Under the guidance of these elders, a petition was
prepared in May 1884 by the six members of Warmington's group and was
sponsored by ten of the Cleveland alumni.
The active Xi chapter was asked to investigate the petition, and on
the 27th of May sent a committee composed of T. J. Ballinger, Xi
1887, and John E. Mills, Xi 1887, to Cleveland. A meeting
as held at the Kennard House on 28th Street. The committee members from
the Xi chapter must have been most impressed, for on the fifth of June,
the Xi chapter unanimously voted to support the petition. The support
of the Xi chapter, of Brother Holden, and the Cleveland elders resulted
in the approval of the petition by the international fraternity on October
27, 1884.
The Xi chapter played a further part in the history of the Nu when
it hosted the petitioners on Thanksgiving Day, 1884, and officially
initiated four of them: Daniel R. Warmington, George H. Gardner, William A. Neff, and Richard H. Neff. The two other petitioners, Louis E. Ritter and William L. Merriam, were unable to
make the trip and were initiated later in Cleveland.
While Merriam and Ritter do not rank as charter members of the Nu,
they are entitled the honor, since they were both members of the petitioning
group from the beginning. Their initiation took place at the West Side
Odd Fellow's Hall on December 13th, and was one of the first acts of
the newly constituted Nu chapter. The chapter designation, Nu, was not
actually granted until the next annual convention of the fraternity,
held at Easton on January 1st, 1886.
The Nu was the first chapter of any Greek-letter fraternity to be established
at Case, and enjoyed the unique distinction of being the only chapter
of Zeta Psi located at a technical school. For its first eleven years,
the Nu was the only national Greek-letter fraternity on campus. Since
those early days, Zeta Psi has held a proud and distinguished history,
and has had moments and periods both challenging and sublime. The future
shines bright for the Nu chapter, and it is sure to be as remarkable
as its past, which now spans well over a century. |
