# Beta Kappa

Beta Kappa (ΒΚ) was an American social fraternity founded at Hamline University in 1901. It merged with Theta Chi in 1942.

## History

Beta Kappa was formed at Hamline University in Saint Paul, Minnesota on October 15, 1901 with the name The Knights of Beta Omicron Sigma Kappa. Eventually, this somewhat unwieldy name was colloquially shortened to Beta Kappa (date?), maturing into a local fraternity that continued for twenty-one years before beginning a period of rapid expansion.
Founders honored by the fraternity were Edward T. Marlatte, Daniel Paul Rader, Albert T. Spencer, and Charles H. Wallace.
In 1922, the Beta chapter at the University of Washington was formed, and in quick succession, it established over 40 chapters with a total membership of over 5,000.
During the height of WWII, the fraternity merged with Theta Chi, on April 14, 1942 with three exceptions released to join other national groups. The mother chapter at Hamline University was granted the chapter name, Beta Kappa chapter to honor its rank as a former Alpha chapter. The merger added seventeen new chapters to Theta Chi, and two Beta Kappa chapters were merged into existing chapters.
The fraternity became a Junior Member of the NIC in 1926, and a full member in 1928. It continued as a member until the merger with Theta Chi in 1942.

## Symbols and traditions

The fraternity's colors were Purple and Gold. Its flower was the Red Templar Rose. Its badge was shaped like a diamond in black enamel, longer from top to bottom, with 24 pearls on its perimeter. It held a small, white circular disk in the center, a coiled serpent above a lamp, and below were two crossed swords. On the sides of the disk were the Greek letters Β and Κ.
The fraternity's magazine was The Journal of Beta Kappa

## Chapters

The chapters of Beta Kappa were as follows. Chapters noted in bold were active at the time of the merger, with dormant chapters in italics. A few chapters that were active but did not merge (with ΘΧ) are also in bold:
| Name | Chartered | Institution | Location | Status | Notes |
| Alpha | October 15, 1901 | Hamline University | Saint Paul, Minnesota | Merged | Became Beta Kappa chapter of ΘΧ |
| Beta | 1922–1936 | University of Washington | Seattle, Washington | Dormant | |
| Gamma | 1923–1933 | Nebraska Wesleyan University | Lincoln, Nebraska | Dormant | |
| Delta | 1924–1932 | University of California | Berkeley, California | Dormant | |
| Epsilon | 1925 | Middlebury College | Middlebury, Vermont | Merged | Became the Beta Mu chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Zeta | 1925 | University of Cincinnati | Cincinnati, Ohio | Merged | Became the Beta Omicron chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Eta | 1925–1934 | Bucknell University | Lewisburg, Pennsylvania | Dormant | |
| Theta | 1925–1934 | Tufts University | Medford, Massachusetts | Dormant | |
| Iota | 1925 | University of Nevada | Reno, Nevada | Merged | Became the Beta Phi chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Kappa | 1925 | University of Illinois | Champaign and Urbana, Illinois | Merged | Joined the Rho chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Lambda | 1926 | Oregon State University | Corvallis, Oregon | Merged | Joined the Sigma chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Mu | 1926–1931 | University of Wisconsin | Madison, Wisconsin | Dormant | |
| Nu | 1926–1934 | Miami University | Oxford, Ohio | Dormant | |
| Xi | 1926 | Allegheny College | Meadville, Pennsylvania | Merged | Became the Beta Chi chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Omicron | 1926–1935 | University of Maine | Orono, Maine | Dormant | |
| Pi | 1926 | Monmouth College | Monmouth, Illinois | Merged | Became the Beta Pi chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Rho | 1926 | Illinois Wesleyan University | Bloomington, Illinois | Merged | Became the Beta Rho chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Sigma | 1927–1942 | Auburn University | Auburn, Alabama | Withdrew | Became the Alpha Lambda chapter of ΦΚΤ. |
| Tau | 1927–1940 | Pennsylvania State University | University Park, Pennsylvania | Dormant | |
| Upsilon | 1927–1937 | University of Denver | Denver, Colorado | Dormant | |
| Phi | 1927–1934 | Boston University | Boston, Massachusetts | Dormant | |
| Chi | 1927–1933 | University of Virginia | Charlottesville, Virginia | Dormant | |
| Psi | 1927 | Birmingham–Southern College | Birmingham, Alabama | Merged | Became the Beta Xi chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Omega | 1928–1935 | University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Dormant | |
| Alpha Alpha | 1928–1935 | Ohio State University | Columbus, Ohio | Dormant | |
| Alpha Beta | 1928–1933 | Wabash College | Crawfordsville, Indiana | Dormant | |
| Alpha Gamma | 1929–1942 | Georgia Tech | Atlanta, Georgia | Withdrew | Became the Beta Kappa Zeta chapter of ΛΧΑ. |
| Alpha Delta | 1929–1941 | Mississippi State University | Starkville, Mississippi | Dormant | |
| Alpha Epsilon | 1929–1939 | University of Arizona | Columbus, Ohio | Dormant | |
| Alpha Zeta | 1929 | University of Tennessee at Chattanooga | Chattanooga, Tennessee | Merged | Became the Gamma Alpha chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Alpha Eta | 1930 | Presbyterian College | Clinton, South Carolina | Merged | Became the Beta Psi chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Alpha Theta | 1930 | University of Southern California | Los Angeles, California | Merged | Became the Beta Tau chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Alpha Iota | 1930–1940 | Denison University | Granville, Ohio | Dormant | |
| Alpha Kappa | 1930–1940 | Utah State University | Logan, Utah | Dormant | |
| Alpha Lambda | 1930–1935 | University of Florida | Gainesville, Florida | Dormant | |
| Alpha Mu | 1931 | Furman University | Greenville, South Carolina | Merged | Became the Gamma Beta chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Alpha Nu | 1931 | Case Western Reserve University | Cleveland, Ohio | Merged | Became the Beta Nu chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Alpha Xi | 1932–1933 | University of Utah | Salt Lake City, Utah | Dormant | |
| Alpha Omicron | 1933–1936 | Hamilton College | Clinton, New York | Dormant | |
| Alpha Pi | 1934–1936 | Cornell University | Ithaca, New York | Withdrew | |
| Alpha Rho | 1934–1941 | Western Colorado University | Gunnison, Colorado | Dormant | |
| Alpha Sigma | 1934 | Lehigh University | Bethlehem, Pennsylvania | Merged | Became the Beta Sigma chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Alpha Tau | 1935 | University of Akron | Akron, Ohio | Merged | Became the Beta Lambda chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Alpha Upsilon | 1935 | California State University, Fresno | Fresno, California | Merged | Became the Beta Upsilon chapter of ΘΧ. |
| Alpha Gamma | 1936–1942 | Michigan State University | East Lansing, Michigan | Withdrew | Became the Gamma Psi chapter of ΣΧ. |
| Alpha Chi | 1938–1941 | Kansas State University | Manhattan, Kansas | Dormant | |
| Alpha Psi | 1938 | Susquehanna University | Fresno, California | Merged | Became the Beta Omega chapter of ΘΧ. |

## Notable members

* Daniel Paul Rader