The Phoenix – S K Club

Last updated • 4 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
The Phoenix – S K Club
Founded1897;127 years ago (1897)
Harvard College
TypeFinal club
AffiliationIndependent
StatusActive
ScopeLocal
Chapters1
NicknameThe Phoenix, The P.S.K.
Headquarters72 Mt. Auburn Street
Cambridge , Massachusetts 02138
United States

The Phoenix – S K Club is an all-male final club at Harvard College, sometimes referred to as The Phoenix or The P.S.K. The society traces its earliest roots to 1897, forming from the amalgamation and reorganization of the Sphinx, Kalumet, and Phoenix Clubs. The Phoenix – S K clubhouse is located at 72 Mt. Auburn Street in Cambridge.

Contents

History

The Phoenix – S K Club is an all-male final club at Harvard College that formed from the amalgamation and reorganization of the Phoenix, Sphinx, and Kalumet clubs. [1] [2]

Phoenix Club

The Phoenix Club was formed in 1902 by a group of men who were members of Theta Nu Epsilon, a national sophomore society formed as an offshoot of Yale University's Skull and Bones. [3] The Alpha Iota chapter of Theta Nu Epsilon at Harvard College was chartered in 1895. [2] The members of T.N.E. organized the Phoenix Club for residential and dining purposes, yet still maintained ties as the Alpha Iota chapter to the rest of the society until 1913 when there was a division in that society. It is not known when members of the Phoenix Club ceased to meet as members of Theta Nu Epsilon.

Starting in 1902, the Phoenix Club occupied a series of houses, starting with the John Hicks House at 64 Dunster Street, then in 1906 it moved to 97 Mt. Auburn Street, then in 1920 it moved again to the northeast corner of Winthrop and Holyoke Streets.

Sphinx Club

The Sphinx Club grew out of a small secret society founded in 1897. Originally known by several names, in 1900, almost all the members of this organization joined together to form the Sphinx Club, located at 1172 Massachusetts Avenue, then 55 Mt. Auburn Street. In 1903, the Club moved to 72 Mt. Auburn Street, the current site of the Phoenix—S K Club.

Kalumet Club

The Kalumet Club was started by members of the Harvard chapter of Beta Theta Pi, [4] Many in the class of 1900, occupied a small house on the current Harvard Lampoon building site on Mt. Auburn Street. In 1900, the Club was formally organized as the Kalumet Club and moved to 1178 Massachusetts Avenue. In 1901 it moved to 104 Mt. Auburn Street, then three years later it moved again to 44 Church Street, where it remained until its amalgamation with the Sphinx in 1914.

S K Club

The adoption of the Inter-Club Agreement and other conditions made the union of these two Clubs desirable, so in 1914, members of both clubs voted that their undergraduate memberships should join the new S K Club. Construction was begun on a new clubhouse on the site of the Sphinx house at 72 Mt. Auburn Street, and the Kalumet house was employed in the meantime. The new building formally opened on April 1, 1916.

The Phoenix – S K Club


In 1925, negotiations for the amalgamation of the Phoenix and the S K were started, and in January 1925, undergraduate bodies of both clubs voted their approval. A new club, The Phoenix – S K, was formed, which occupied the S K clubhouse at 72 Mt. Auburn Street. With time, due to changing conditions within the university, it became advantageous for The Phoenix – S K to be classified as a final club, so on May 24, 1930, the Club became final.

S K Club house, 1916 S.K.Clubhouse.jpg
S K Club house, 1916

Clubhouse

The Phoenix – S K clubhouse is at 72 Mt. Auburn Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts. [5] It was built in 1915 for the SK Club on the site of The Sphinx Club clubhouse that was acquired in 1903. The SK Club first occupied the house on April 1, 1916.

Membership

The Phoenix – S K Club has been noted for the diversity present within its membership. [6] [7]

Activities

The club has been a hotspot for celebrities and Boston's local sports team members to participate in Harvard's nightlife. [8] In April 2011, American musician and DJ Steve Aoki performed at the club. [9] In February 2015, the club came back under the spotlight when pictures of New England Patriots players Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola, and several other teammates purportedly partying at the Phoenix - S K Club house following their Super Bowl XLIX victory surfaced on social media. [10]

On December 6, 2022, French Pianist Sofiane Pamart performed at the club. [11]

Notable members

NameInitiation yearNotabilityReference
Andre Akpan 2010Professional soccer player and two-time All-American first-team selection
Gaspar G. Bacon 1908 President of the Massachusetts Senate and Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
Robert L. Bacon 1907 United States House of Representatives
Hunter Bigge 2021Professional baseball pitcher
William Richards Castle Jr. 1900 United States Assistant Secretary of State, United States Under Secretary of State, and U.S. Ambassador to Japan
Philip Core 1973Pioneer of gay art and writing
Viet D. Dinh 1990 United States Assistant Attorney General (2001–2003), architect of the Patriot Act, and former chief legal and policy officer of Fox Corporation
Jeffrey D. Dunn 1977President and CEO of Sesame Workshop
Buddy Fletcher 1987Founder of Fletcher Asset Management; impeached as president of The Phoenix – S K Club
Christopher Ford 1989Former United States Assistant Secretary of State and Special Assistant to the President
Frederik X 1993 King of Denmark and Count of Monpezat
Michael K. Frith 1963Artist and television producer, former executive vice president and creative director for Jim Henson Productions
Lawrence Golub 1980Founder and CEO of Golub Capital
Ryu Goto 2011Concert violinist and child prodigy
Benjamin Apthorp Gould Fuller 1900Philosopher and academic
Noah Gray-Cabey 2016Television actor and pianist known for his roles in My Wife and Kids and Heroes
George Gund II 1909President of Cleveland Trust Bank (1941–1962), the predecessor of KeyBank
Kris Kobach 1988 Kansas Attorney General
Chris Lambert 2003Professional Sprinter, represented Great Britain in the 2004 Olympic Games
Abbott Lawrence Lowell 1877, honorary President of Harvard University from 1909–1933
Anand Mahindra 1978Chairman of Mahindra Group
Eric Mindich 1988Youngest partner in Goldman Sachs history and founder of Eton Park Capital Management
Thomas L. Monahan III 1988CEO of Heidrick & Struggles; former CEO and president of DeVry University
Samuel Eliot Morison 1908Rear Admiral of the United States Navy, historian, and three-time Pulitzer Prize Winner
Edwin Outwater 1993Conductor and music director of the San Francisco Conservatory of Music
Leverett Saltonstall 191455th Governor of Massachusetts
Eduardo Saverin 2006Co-founder of Facebook [12]
Theodore Sedgwick 1971U.S. Ambassador to the Slovak Republic
Kaleil Isaza Tuzman 1996CEO of KIT digital who was featured in the documentary film, Startup.com
Kosaku Yada 2007CEO of Westbrook; Chairman of Just Water by Jaden Smith

Member misconduct

In 2003, the club was the subject of unsubstantiated allegations of animal cruelty. [13]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Delta Kappa Epsilon</span> North American collegiate fraternity

Delta Kappa Epsilon (ΔΚΕ), commonly known as DKE or Deke, is one of the oldest fraternities in the United States, with fifty-six active chapters and five active colonies across North America. It was founded at Yale College in 1844 by fifteen sophomores who were discontented with the existing fraternity order on campus. The men established a fellowship where the candidate most favored was "he who combined in the most equal proportions the Gentleman, the Scholar, and the Jolly Good Fellow."

Dartmouth College is host to many fraternities and sororities, and a significant percentage of the undergraduate student body is active in Greek life. In the fall of 2022, 35 percent of male students belong to a fraternity and 36 percent of students belong to a sorority. Greek organizations at Dartmouth provide both social and residential opportunities for students and are the only single-sex residential option on campus. Greek organizations at Dartmouth do not provide dining options, as regular meal service has been banned in Greek houses since 1909.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hasty Pudding Club</span> Social club at Harvard University

The Hasty Pudding Club, often referred to simply as the Pudding, is a social club at Harvard University, and one of three sub-organizations that comprise the Hasty Pudding - Institute of 1770. The current clubhouse was desgined by Peabody and Stearns and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on January 9, 1978.

Harvard College has several types of social clubs. These are split between gender-inclusive clubs recognized by the college, and unrecognized single-gender clubs which were subject to College sanctions in the past. The Hasty Pudding Club holds claim as the oldest collegiate social club in America, tracing its roots back to 1770. The next oldest institutions, dating to 1791, are the traditionally all-male final clubs. Fraternities were prominent in the late 19th century as well, until their initial expulsions and then eventual resurrection off Harvard's campus in the 1990s. From 1991 onwards, all-female final clubs as well as sororities began to appear. Between 1984 and 2018, no social organizations were recognized by the school due to the clubs' refusal to become gender-inclusive.

The Fly Club is a final club, traditionally "punching" male undergraduates of Harvard College during their sophomore or junior year. Undergraduate and graduate members participate in club activities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theta Nu Epsilon</span> Student society at Wesleyan University, US

Theta Nu Epsilon is a sophomore class society. Founded at Wesleyan University in 1870 as a chapter of Skull and Bones, the society expanded into a new national organization. It accepts members regardless of their fraternity status.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A.D. Club</span> Final club at Harvard University, US

The A.D. Club is a final club established at Harvard University in 1836, the continuation of a chapter of the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity existing as an honorary chapter until 1846, and then as a regular chapter until the late 1850s. At that time, owing to the prevailing sentiment against such societies, it became a strictly secret society, known among its members as the "Haidee," the name of a college boat. The chapter surrendered its charter in 1865, and has since existed as the A.D. Club. It is an all-male organization. It held its first open punch or rush session in 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Owl Club (Harvard)</span> Final club at Harvard University, US

The Owl Club is an all-male final club at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, US. It was founded in 1896.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spee Club (Harvard)</span> Social club at Harvard University

The Spee Club is a final club at Harvard University. After voting to adopt a gender-neutral membership policy in September 2015, the Spee Club became the first Harvard final club to admit members regardless of gender. The clubhouse is located at 76 Mount Auburn Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tejas Club</span> Student group at University of Texas at Austin

The Tejas Club is one of the oldest student organizations at the University of Texas at Austin. It was founded in 1925, and only has male members. The official purpose of the club is "to allow our members to live a more complete life by sharing their personalities, abilities and efforts to promote good fellowship and a high standard of conduct among ourselves and our fellow students, to encourage loyalty and usefulness to our school, and to further good scholarship." The membership process of the organization is secretive and not open to the public.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Woods (American football)</span> American football player (1896–1978)

Thomas Smith Woods, Jr. was an American football player. He played for the Harvard Crimson football team and was selected as a consensus first-team All-American in 1920.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Delphic Club</span> Social group at Harvard University, US

The Delphic Club is an all-male social group at Harvard University founded in 1846.

References

  1. Tisch, Jessica, "History final: The story and lore of Harvard's unique social organizations", The Harvard Independent, November 29, 2001 (archived 2007)
  2. 1 2 Christopher Kylin. "Theta Nu Epsilon Society - History of the Harvard Chapter". thetanuepsilon.org. Archived from the original on March 13, 2012.
  3. "A History of Wesleyan College Fraternities" The Wesleyan Review, May 1990
  4. Morse, William Gibbons (1941). Pardon my Harvard Accent. Morse Farrar & Rinehart. Page 294. Also reference in Shepardson, Francis W. (1930). The Story of Beta Theta Pi. George Banta Publishing Co. Page 123.
  5. Cambridge Historical Commission, "City of Cambridge, Landmarks and Other Protected Properties" Archived 2010-06-05 at the Wayback Machine , 2009.
  6. Pham, Elyse D., "A Diversified Debauchery", The Harvard Crimson, Thursday, April 08, 2021
  7. The Social Network. 2010. Event occurs at 00:01:31. The Phoenix is the most diverse.
  8. Milord, Joseph., "The Patriots Raged With Harvard Kids At A Party And Broke A Girl's Arm (Photos)", Elite Daily, Friday, February 06, 2015
  9. @steveaoki (14 April 2011). "Harvard university tweeting continues. Doing the phoenix with the Phoenix S Club. Eduardo where u at now http://plixi.com/p/92420709" (Tweet) via Twitter.
  10. Wenerd, Brandon., "Did The Patriots Party At A Harvard Final Club Last Night?", BroBible, Monday, February 02, 2015
  11. Pamart, Sofiane., @sofianepamart (December 13, 2022). "Los Angeles was my last gig of the tour this year. I would like to thank each of you that came to my concerts. What an unforgettable debut tour in 15 different countries" via Instagram.
  12. "Flag Stolen From Phoenix, S.K. Club | News | The Harvard Crimson". www.thecrimson.com. Retrieved 2024-11-14.
  13. Morris, Laura A., "Phoenix Accused Of Animal Cruelty", The Harvard Crimson, Monday, December 08, 2003