# North American fraternity and sorority housing

North American fraternity and sorority housing refers largely to the houses or housing areas in which fraternity and sorority members live and work together. In addition to serving as housing, fraternity and sorority housing may also serve to host social gatherings, meetings, and functions that benefit the community.

## History

The first fraternity house seems to have been located at Alpha Epsilon of Chi Psi at the University of Michigan around 1846. As fraternity membership was punishable by expulsion at many colleges at this time, the house was located deep in the woods.
Fraternity chapter housing initially existed in two forms: lodges that served as meeting rooms and houses that had boarding rooms. The lodges came first and were largely replaced by houses with living accommodations. Lodges were often no more than rented rooms above stores or taverns. The idea of substantial fraternity housing caught on quickly, but was accomplished with much greater ease in the North as southern college students had far less available money for construction. The first fraternity house in the South was likely one rented by members of Beta Theta Pi at Hampden–Sydney College from at least 1856. Alpha Tau Omega was then the first fraternity to own a house in the South when, in 1880, its chapter at The University of the South acquired one.
Early chapters of women's fraternities often rented houses where they could live together, usually with a chaperone. This was in a day before colleges and universities had housing available. The first chapter house built by a women's fraternity was the one Alpha Phi erected at Syracuse University in 1886.
Many colleges eventually came to support fraternity and sorority housing as they allowed increased enrollment without the construction of costly dormitories. The nature of this benefit varied between campuses as some houses were paid for entirely by alumni, some were rented, and some were built on land leased from the college. It was further recognized that, while fraternities having chapter houses did not raise academic performance, it did tend to keep it from falling as the chapters could not afford (financially) to have members leaving school and no longer paying for their rooms.
The Inter-Sorority Congress of 1913 saw the establishment of uniform rules and regulations regarding life in chapter houses. The number of houses owned by fraternities and sororities grew from 772 in 1915 to 928 in 1920.

## Design

Fraternity and sorority houses range in size from three to twenty bedrooms or more. They can usually be identified by large Greek letters or flags on the front of the house. The larger chapter houses generally have a large meeting room, a large dining room, a commercial kitchen, and a study room. There is usually a lounge of some sort, access to which is often restricted to fully initiated members. Fraternities and sororities will also often maintain a chapter room, to which only initiates may ever be admitted and even whose existence may be kept secret. The walls of the house may be decorated with pictures of past chapter events, awards, and trophies, decorative (or historic) paddles, or composite photos of members from past years.
In some fraternities or sororities, only the representatives live in the houses while in others the entire fraternity or sorority may live in the house. Other, larger fraternities or sororities may have more than one house to accommodate all of its members.
At many colleges, Greek houses are placed on the same street which is traditionally referred to as "Greek Row."

## Policies

Fraternity and sorority houses are typically owned either by a corporation of alumni, the sponsoring national organization, or the host college. For this reason, such houses may be subject to the rules of the host college, the national organization, or both.
Due to the increase in widely publicized alcohol-related deaths on college campuses, many national organizations and host colleges have implemented dry housing policies in which the consumption and possession of alcohol are prohibited on house property. Some colleges make this policy conditional on overall grade performance.
In addition to banning alcohol, many university-owned fraternity and sorority houses have smoking bans in place inside. Because of residential requirements, some college campuses and national chapter administrations also prohibit members of the opposite sex on certain floors of fraternity and sorority houses.
Founded in 2017, the Fraternal Housing Association is a national membership that supports the unique challenges of managing fraternity and sorority housing.

## National Register chapter houses

The following chapter houses are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Demolished structures are indicated in italics.
| Name | Fraternity or Sorority | Architect | Affiliation | Location | Year Completed |
| Alpha Delta Phi Fraternity House | Alpha Delta Phi | Ralph W. Varney | University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign | Champaign, Illinois | 1925 |
| Alpha House | Alpha Phi Alpha | | | Detroit, Michigan | 1912 |
| Alpha Phi Fraternity House-Beta Alpha Chapter | Alpha Phi | Charles Harris (1937 remodel) | University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign | Champaign, Illinois | 1909 |
| Alpha Rho Chi Fraternity House | Alpha Rho Chi | Royer, Danley, and Smith | University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign | Champaign, Illinois | 1928 |
| Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity House | Alpha Tau Omega | Lehman "Monk" Ferris | University of Nevada | Reno, Nevada | 1929 |
| Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity House (Maltese Manor) | Alpha Tau Omega | | Purdue University | West Lafayette, Indiana | 1920 |
| Beta Theta Pi Fraternity House | Beta Theta Pi | Frederick J. Klein | University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign | Champaign, Illinois | 1912 |
| Beta Theta Pi Fraternity House | Beta Theta Pi | | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | Chapel Hill, North Carolina | 1929 |
| Harold C. Bradley House | Sigma Phi Society | Louis H. Sullivan and George Grant Elmslie | ,University of Wisconsin–Madison | Madison, Wisconsin, | 1909 |
| Chi Omega Chapter House | Chi Omega | Charles L. Ellis | University of Arkansas | Fayetteville, Arkansas | 1927 |
| Chi Psi Fraternity House | Chi Psi | Richard Sundeleaf | University of Oregon | Eugene, Oregon | 1935 |
| Colonials Club House | Colonial Club, Theta Delta Chi, | Proudfoot & Bird; Woodburn & O'Neil | Iowa State University | Ames, Iowa | 1910 |
| Deke House | Delta Kappa Epsilon | William Henry Miller | Cornell University | Ithaca, New York | 1893 |
| Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity House | Delta Kappa Epsilon | E. G. Oldefest | University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign | Champaign, Illinois | 1906 |
| Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity House | Delta Kappa Epsilon | Robert Frost Daggett | DePauw University | Greencastle, Indiana | 1926 |
| Delta Psi, Alpha Chapter building | St. Anthony Hall | Henry Hornbostel and George Carnegie Palmer | Columbia University | Manhattan, New York City, New York | 1898 |
| Delta Tau Delta Founders House | Delta Tau Delta | | Bethany College | Bethany, West Virginia | 1858 |
| Delta Upsilon Chapter House | Delta Upsilon | Alexander M. Linn | Iowa State University | Ames, Iowa | 1930 |
| Delta Upsilon Fraternity House | Delta Upsilon | Albert Kahn | University of Michigan | Ann Arbor, Michigan | 1903 |
| Delta Upsilon Fraternity House | Delta Upsilon | Leonard Steube | University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign | Champaign, Illinois | 1927 |
| Dr. William Gifford House | Tau Kappa Epsilon | William W. Sabin | Cleveland State University | Cleveland, Ohio | c. 1901 |
| Hancock House | Alpha Phi Alpha | M. H. Pettigo | Bluefield State University | Bluefield, West Virginia | 1907 |
| Iowa Beta Chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon | Sigma Phi Epsilon | Amos B. Emery | Iowa State University | Ames, Iowa | 1931 |
| Kappa Delta Rho Fraternity House | Kappa Delta Rho | | University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign | Champaign, Illinois | 1928 |
| Kappa Sigma Fraternity House | Kappa Sigma | Archie H. Hubbard | University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign | Champaign, Illinois | 1911 |
| Kappa Sigma Fraternity, Gamma Theta Chapter | Kappa Sigma | | University of Idaho | Moscow, Idaho | 1916 |
| Llenroc | Delta Phi | Nichols & Brown | Cornell University | Ithaca, New York | 1865 |
| Old Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity House | Alpha Tau Omega | George Lill | University of Oregon | Eugene, Oregon | 1910 |
| Old Beta Theta Pi Fraternity House | Beta Theta Pi, Delta Zeta | | University of Oregon | Eugene, Oregon | 1906 |
| Omega Chapter of the Chi Phi Fraternity | Chi Phi | | Georgia Tech | Atlanta, Georgia | 1929 |
| Parish Apartments | Sigma Pi, Xi Psi Phi, Xi Psi Phi | Myron Edwards Pugh | University of Iowa | Iowa City, Iowa | 1929 |
| Phi Delta Theta Fraternity House | Phi Delta Theta | Howard Van Doren Shaw | University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign | Champaign, Illinois | 1922 |
| Phi Delta Theta Fraternity House | Phi Delta Theta | Martin I. Aitken | University of Nebraska-Lincoln | Lincoln, Nebraska | 1937 |
| Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity House | Phi Gamma Delta | Carl Stravs and Madsen Brothers | University of Minnesota | Minneapolis, Minnesota | 1912 |
| Phi Gamma Delta House | Phi Gamma Delta | Crowell & Lancaster | University of Maine | Orono, Maine | 1925 |
| Pi Chapter House of Psi Upsilon Fraternity | Psi Upsilon | Wellington W. Taber | Syracuse University | Syracuse, New York | 1898 |
| Porcellian Club | Porcellian Club | William York Peters | Harvard University | Cambridge, Massachusetts | |
| Saint Anthony Hall | St. Anthony Hall | J. Cleaveland Cady. | Trinity College | Hartford, Connecticut | 1878 |
| St. Anthony Hall House | St. Anthony Hall | Cope and Stewardson | University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | 1907 |
| Sigma Alpha Epsilon Chapter House | Sigma Alpha Epsilon | Russell S. Potter | Miami University | Oxford, Ohio | 1938 |
| Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity House | Sigma Alpha Epsilon | George Dean and Albert Dean | University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign | Champaign, Illinois | 1907 |
| Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity House | Sigma Alpha Epsilon | Fred Wallace; Marshall and Brown | University of Missouri | Columbia, Missouri | 1908 |
| Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity House | Sigma Alpha Epsilon | Charles I. Carpenter | University of Idaho | Moscow, Idaho | 1932 |
| Sigma Sigma–Delta Chi Fraternity House | Sigma Sigma, Delta Chi, Triangle Fraternity | | Iowa State University | Ames, Iowa | 1924 |
| Theta Xi Fraternity Chapter House | Theta Xi | Joseph M. Lawlor | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | Troy, New York | 1931 |
| Thorsen House | Sigma Phi Society | Greene & Greene | University of California, Berkeley | Berkeley, California | 1909 |
| Welch Hall | Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Alpha Sigma Phi | David Frederick Wallace (1929 renovation) | University of Missouri | Columbia, Missouri | 1820, 1907 |
| Xi Chapter, Psi Upsilon Fraternity | Psi Upsilon | Colin C. Wilson | Wesleyan University | Middletown, Connecticut | 1891 |
| Zeta Psi Fraternity House at Lafayette College | Zeta Psi | James Barnes Baker and William Marsh Micler | Lafayette College | Easton, Pennsylvania | 1910 |
* ↑ The chapter house was demolished in January 2018.
* ↑ Alpha House was a private residence until purchased by the fraternity in 1939,
* ↑ House was a private residence until acquired by the fraternity in 1923.
* ↑ It housed the Indiana Gamma Omicron chapter of Alpha Tau Omega until May 2021,
* ↑ The chapter used the house until 2017 and disbanded in 2018. Its chapter house was demolished in 2020.
* ↑ House was a private residence until acquired by the society in 1915.
* ↑ After serving as a residence, the Mary E. Ingersoll Girls Friendly Club, a clubhouse operated by the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, and a settlement house, Gifford House became a fraternity residence in 1960.
* ↑ Hancock House was purchased by the fraternity in 1962.
* ↑ Llenroc was built for Ezra Cornell, the founder of Cornell University. It became the chapter house of Delta Phi fraternity in 1911.
* ↑ The fraternity used this building from 1910 to 1922.
* ↑ This building was built for Sigma Pi and was used by fraternities until 1943.
* ↑ The frtaternity sold the house in 2006.
* ↑ This was built as the residence of lumber tycoon William Thorsen until his death in 1942. At that time, it became a fraternity house.
* ↑ Oak Hill was a residence, hospital, hotel, and school before becoming a fraternity house in 1929.

## Notable chapter houses by size

| Rank | Size | Fraternity or Sorority | University | Location | Year Completed |
| 1 | 55,500 sq ft (5,160 m$^2$) | Phi Gamma Delta | Indiana University | Bloomington, Indiana | 2016 |
| 2 | 55,000 sq ft (5,100 m$^2$) | Pi Kappa Alpha | Florida State University | Tallahassee, Florida | 2005 |
| 3 | 46,356 sq ft (4,306.6 m$^2$) | Kappa Kappa Gamma | University of Arkansas | Fayetteville, Arkansas | 2013 |
| 4 | 43,000 sq ft (4,000 m$^2$) | Delta Delta Delta | University of Arkansas | Fayetteville, Arkansas | 2019 |
| 5 | 42,000 sq ft (3,900 m$^2$) | Pi Beta Phi | University of Arkansas | Fayetteville, Arkansas | 2016 |
| 6 | 40,352 sq ft (3,748.8 m$^2$) | Delta Chi | Florida State University | Tallahassee, Florida | 2005 |
| 7 (tie) | 40,000 sq ft (3,700 m$^2$) | Kappa Delta | University of Arkansas | Fayetteville, Arkansas | 2019 |
| 7 (tie) | 40,000 sq ft (3,700 m$^2$) | Alpha Chi Omega | University of Alabama | Tuscaloosa, Alabama | 2014 |
| 7 (tie) | 40,000 sq ft (3,700 m$^2$) | Delta Upsilon | University of Missouri | Columbia, Missouri | 2015 |
| 7 (tie) | 40,000 sq ft (3,700 m$^2$) | Gamma Phi Beta | University of Alabama | Tuscaloosa, Alabama | 2015 |
| 11 | 39,500 sq ft (3,670 m$^2$) | Pi Kappa Alpha | Florida State University | Tallahassee, Florida | 2005 |
| 12 | 39,444 sq ft (3,664.5 m$^2$) | Phi Mu | University of Alabama | Tuscaloosa, Alabama | 2016 |
| 13 | 39,264 sq ft (3,647.7 m$^2$) | Sigma Pi | Florida State University | Tallahassee, Florida | 2005 |
| 14 | 38,853 sq ft (3,609.6 m$^2$) | FarmHouse | Oklahoma State University | Stillwater, Oklahoma | 2012 |
| 15 | 38,000 sq ft (3,500 m$^2$) | Pi Kappa Alpha | Oklahoma State University | Stillwater, Oklahoma | 2017 |
| 16 | 36,884 sq ft (3,426.6 m$^2$) | Delta Tau Delta | Indiana University | Bloomington, IN | 2016 |
| 17 | 36,818 sq ft (3,420.5 m$^2$) | Alpha Gamma Rho | Oklahoma State University | Stillwater, Oklahoma | 2015 |
| 18 (tie) | 36,000 sq ft (3,344.5 m$^2$) | Alpha Chi Omega | University of Oklahoma | Norman, Oklahoma | 2023 |
| 18 (tie) | 36,000 sq ft (3,344.5 m$^2$) | Beta Theta Pi | University of Oklahoma | Norman, Oklahoma | 2015 |
| 20 | 35,000 sq ft (3,300 m$^2$) | Phi Kappa Psi | University of Kansas | Lawrence, Kansas | 2005 |
| 21 | 34,800 sq ft (3,230 m$^2$) | Delta Gamma | University of Alabama | Tuscaloosa, Alabama | 2012 |
| 22 | 34,000 sq ft (3,200 m$^2$) | Alpha Delta Pi | Oklahoma State University | Stillwater, Oklahoma | 2021 |
| 23 | 33,783 sq ft (3,138.5 m$^2$) | Alpha Tau Omega | University of Alabama | Tuscaloosa, Alabama | 2011 |
| 24 | 33,557 sq ft (3,117.5 m$^2$) | Chi Omega | University of Missouri | Columbia, Missouri | 2013 |
| 25 | 32,445 sq ft (3,014.2 m$^2$) | Beta Theta Pi | University of Missouri | Columbia, Missouri | 2012 |
| 26 | 32,400 sq ft (3,010 m$^2$) | Sigma Kappa | Indiana University | Bloomington, Indiana | 2005 |
| 27 (tie) | 31,000 sq ft (2,900 m$^2$) | Pi Kappa Phi | University of Alabama | Tuscaloosa, Alabama | 2014 |
| 27 (tie) | 31,000 sq ft (2,900 m$^2$) | Phi Kappa Psi | Indiana University | Bloomington, Indiana | 2014 |
| 29 | 30,534 sq ft (2,836.7 m$^2$) | Kappa Alpha Theta | Oklahoma State University | Stillwater, Oklahoma | |
| 30 (tie) | 30,000 sq ft (2,800 m$^2$) | Pi Kappa Alpha | Missouri Science & Technology | Rolla, Missouri | 2007 |
| 30 (tie) | 30,000 sq ft (2,800 m$^2$) | Alpha Omicron Pi | University of Arkansas | Fayetteville, Arkansas | 2009 |
| 32 | 29,100 sq ft (2,700 m$^2$) | Kappa Sigma | University of Oklahoma | Norman, Oklahoma | 2014 |
| 33 (tie) | 29,000 sq ft (2,700 m$^2$) | Phi Gamma Delta | University of Oklahoma | Norman, Oklahoma | 2008 |
| 33 (tie) | 29,000 sq ft (2,700 m$^2$) | Alpha Tau Omega | Kansas State University | Manhattan, Kansas | 2013 |
| 35 | 28,500 sq ft (2,650 m$^2$) | Kappa Sigma | Missouri Science & Technology | Rolla, Missouri | 2011 |
| 36 | 28,070 sq ft (2,608 m$^2$) | Sigma Sigma Sigma | University of Missouri | Columbia, Missouri | 2012 |
| 37 | 28,051 sq ft (2,606.0 m$^2$) | Sigma Nu | University of Oklahoma | Norman, Oklahoma | 2017 |
| 38 | 28,000 sq ft (2,600 m$^2$) | Pi Kappa Alpha | University of Arkansas | Fayetteville, Arkansas | 2015 |
| 39 (tie) | 27,000 sq ft (2,500 m$^2$) | Pi Kappa Alpha | University of Illinois | Champaign, Illinois | 2011 |
| 39 (tie) | 27,000 sq ft (2,500 m$^2$) | Sigma Chi | University of New Mexico | Albuquerque, New Mexico | 1951 |
| 41 | 26,600 sq ft (2,470 m$^2$) | Alpha Chi Omega | University of Arkansas | Fayetteville, Arkansas | 2018 |
| 42 | 26,500 sq ft (2,460 m$^2$) | Sigma Chi | University of Alabama | Tuscaloosa, Alabama | 2012 |
| 43 | 26,000 sq ft (2,400 m$^2$) | Phi Sigma Kappa | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute | Troy, New York | 2011 |
| 44 | 25,814 sq ft (2,398.2 m$^2$) | Phi Gamma Delta | University of Arizona | Tucson, Arizona | 2004 |
| 45 | 25,425 sq ft (2,362.1 m$^2$) | Sigma Alpha Epsilon | University of Cincinnati | Cincinnati, Ohio | 1925 |
| 46 | 25,000 sq ft (2,300 m$^2$) | Kappa Sigma | University of Arkansas | Fayetteville, Arkansas | 1931 |