Euphemian Literary Society/Temp
Encyclopedia : E : EU : EUP : Euphemian Literary Society/Temp
The Euphemian Literary Society is the oldest organization in South Carolina, est in 1839. Euphemian Hall is located in Due West, SC on the Erskine College campus. The Euphies (Euphemian Literary Society) are one of four literary societies at Erskine College. The Euphies are chartered by the State of South Carolina. Euphemian Hall is registered as a National Historic Site.
Euphemian Hall
Members
- President: Cody Polyak
- Vice President: Alex Gleason
- Secretary: Evan Frazier
- Corresponding Secretary: Kevin Handell
- Historian: Davey Morgan
History
In 1839, the Clark and Erskine Seminary became a four year institution with a preparatory department. Prior to 1839, John S. Pressly was the sole instructor of the Seminary. In October of that year, Pressly resigned his position as Principal of the Literary Department. Ebenezer Erskine Pressly, pastor of the Due West Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church, was chosen to succeed J. S. Pressly as head of the school. E. E. Pressly had been elected Professor of Divinity at the Erskine Theological Seminary in 1837.
E. E. Pressly was a native of Cedar Springs, South Carolina. He entered Miami University at Oxford Ohio in 1824, at the age of sixteen and graduated two years later. While at Miami, Pressly was a member of the Erodelphian Literary Society. This society, along with the Miami Union Literary Society, published the first collegiate publication west of the Appalachians in 1827. Literary societies were quite popular at this time. Most colleges had at least one literary society. As early as 1789, a literary society was at Hampden-Sydney College. The Euphradian and Clariosophic Societies were founded at South Carolina College (now the University of South Carolina) in 1806, and in 1837 the Eumenean and Philanthropic Societies were founded at Davidson . Therefore, it was natural for the Erskine faculty and students to desire to have a literary society.
October 1839 has traditionally been recognized as the date that the Euphemian Literary Society was founded. This date has been proven by the research of the Legislative Acts of South Carolina made during that time.
A question that has intrigued the society for years is the origin of the name Euphemian. Several different stories have existed explaining the name. One story claims that the name was derived from the Eumenean Literary Society at Miami University of which E. E. Pressly was a member. This cannot be true. First, E. E. Pressly was a member of the Erodelphian Literary Society. Second, Miami University does not have any records showing that the Eumenean Society ever existed. The most plausible story is one that is found in the 1910 Erskiniana. According to a historical sketch in that annual, the society was named for Mrs. Euphemia Young, wife of Professor John N. Young. The word is also derived from the Greek euphemismos which means "well spoken."
During the first years of the existence, the society’s badge consisted of a six inch piece of blue ribbon with the society’s motto, "Non Dicere, sid apti Dicere," written on it. In 1854, a committee was appointed to design a new emblem for the society. The committee submitted a rhombus with the letters E, L, S, in the left, upper, and right corners respectively with the new motto "Zh th patridi xai tw Qew" ("Live for your Country and your God") in the center. This is the emblem presently used by the society.
The by-laws of the society contained many rules and regulations by which members were to abide. These rules give great insight as to how meetings were conducted in the early years. Some of these laws were:
The secretary was to report all absences when the roll was called to the tribunal. Members not present would be fined twenty-five cents.
If a member left the hall for more than twenty minutes they would be fined fifty cents. Absence from meeting except in case of an emergency - fine of one dollar. Use of profane language during debate called for suspension. Entering the hall intoxicated during session called for expulsion.
The Euphemian Society grew at a rapid pace, and by 1841 it had fifty-eight members. However, there were some Erskine students who refused to join the Euphemians. Also some members desired to have the rivalries in debate that were known at Miami. Therefore, in 1841 twelve Euphemians broke away and started the Philomathean Literary Society (not associated with the Philomathean Society of the University of Pennsylvania). The Philomathean society was considered a "mission project" by the Euphemians. The societies met in the old main building with the
External link
- [Euphemian Literary Society]
- [Erskine College Official Site]
- [Erskine Pictures]
From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.