Seal and Serpent

American social society at Cornell University

Seal and Serpent

Founded| April 2, 1905; 120 years ago (1905-04-02)
Cornell University
Type| Social
Affiliation| Independent
Status| Active
Scope| Local
Member badge|
Colors|   Black and   Gold
Symbol| Shield, Serpent and Skull
Chapters| 1
Headquarters| 305 Thurston Avenue
Ithaca, New York 14850
United States
Website| www.sealandserpent.org

The Seal and Serpent Society () is a gender neutral local fraternity at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Founded in 1905, the society is one of the oldest at the university.

Seal and Serpent operates as a social club rather than a secret society or final club. In the fall of 2016, the society voted to terminate its membership in the Cornell Interfraternity Council, becoming an independent student organization. In 2020, Seal and Serpent became gender-neutral.

## History

[edit]

Seal and Serpent Society formed on April 2, 1905 by the merger of two Cornell University undergraduate groups: the Crooks' Club and the Senators.[1][2] Members of the two societies met during the Cornell Army ROTC's drill practice.[2] Although initially an informal group, the ten original members met in the fall of 1905 to formalize the fraternity, elect officers, and makes housing plans.[1] They called themselves the Society of the Seal and Serpent.[1] Alvin Ward "Gub" King was elected president as a sort of coalition man not involved too much with either of the two original groups.

The founders of Seal and Serpent in 1906 (From left to right: S. Blunt, Ruhlen, McConnell, Shepherd, Springg, A. Blunt, Kuehns, Zimmerman, and King)

The original "snakes" or founders of Seal and Serpent were:[2]

* Albert "Bert" Church Blunt Jr.[3]
* Stanhope Eccleston Blunt
* Charles “Dickie” Chester Byron Dickson
* Alvin "Gub" Ward King
* Romeo "Romey" Benvenuto Kuehns
* William Henry McCaully
* Benjamin "Stuzzie" Stuart McConnell
* George "Gus" Ruhlen Jr.
* Alfred "Shep" William Shepherd
* Frederic "Fritz" Sanford Sly[4]
* Carrollton "Twig" Crawford Sprigg
* Earl "Zim" William Zimmerman

When the society's first members graduated in 1907, they pledged $100 each to establish a building fund.[1] This allowed Seal and Serpent to purchase a remodel a house on West Avenue in 1908.[1] In 1913, the society purchased land at 305 Thurston Avenue for a purpose-built chapter house or lodge.[1][2] However, construction was delayed by World War I.[2] While its members were fighting in the war, Seal and Serpent's West Avenue house was used as ROTC barracks. Its new house or lodge was not constructed until 1926.[1]

Seal and Serpent was incorporated in 1919.[5] During the Great Depression, the majority of Cornell's independent social clubs merged into national fraternities, and the university purchased the property where many fraternities now reside. Seal and Serpent was one of two societies at Cornell that survived the Great Depression as an independent fraternity.[1] It 1940, it became the only local fraternity on campus.[1] During World War II, the society's lodge was used by the university.[1] After the war in 1946, Seal and Serpent only had six active members.[1] However, after a couple of years, it reestablished its prominence on campus with sixty active members.[1]

The society's membership declined in the 1970s.[1] In December 1971, the society's lodge became the host for Alpha House, a long-term rehabilitation center for drug addicts, allowing up to ten former heroin addicts to live on-site from twelve to eighteen months.[6] The fraternity's members provided supervision for participants in the independently operated rehabilitation program.[6] When its membership declined again in the 1970s and 1980s, the society began to admit women as associate members in the early 1980s.[2] This practice continued for twenty years, giving the female members various levels of involvement in the society's operations.[1][2]

2005 marked the Centennial Anniversary of Seal and Serpent Society. Hundreds of brothers from around the world returned to Ithaca for Homecoming to commemorate this major milestone, and a capital campaign coordinated with the event raised substantial funds for further renovation and upkeep of the Lodge.[1]

Today, Seal and Serpent is the only independent social society at Cornell University. It participated as a local men's fraternity within the Cornell Interfraternity Council until the fall of 2016 when the active chapter voted to terminate its membership in the IFC, becoming a fully independent student organization.[2][7] This decision stemmed, in part, over the university's new limits on the recruitment period for fraternities.[2] As a result, Seal and Serpent is no longer recognized by the university as a fraternity.[7]

In the fall of 2020, Seal and Serpent's active chapter and alumni board voted to become gender-neutral.[2] Since the vote, its former female associate members have been offered full membership.[2] In 2020, Past "associate members" that could not join due to their gender were given full member status henceforth. [1]

The Seal and Serpent Lodge[8]

## Symbols

[edit]

Rather than using Greek letters, Seal and Serpent uses the Sanskrit letters .[2] Its name was pulled from an ancient Sanskrit source.[9] The society's colors are black and gold.[1] Its symbols are the seal, serpent, and skull.[1] Its alumni newsletter is The Snake.[5]

## Lodge

[edit]

The Seal and Serpent Lodge is located at 305 Thurston Avenue.[1] The society purchased the land in 1913.[2] Construction began in 1926 on a Tudor style, half-timbered lodge with 23 bedrooms.[1][2] The lodge was formally dedicated on October 22, 1927.[1] Over 1,550 members have lived there.

Mark Kirk, president of Seal and Serpent in 1981.

## Notable members

[edit]

* Clift Andrus – U.S. Army general officer and commander of the 1st Infantry Division in 1944-5.
* Menas Kafatos – physicist and prolific writer on spirituality, science and religion
* Mark Kirk – United States Senator[2]
* Gligor Tashkovich [mk] – Minister of Foreign Investment, Republic of Macedonia (2006–2008)[10][11][12][2]
* Bob Saget (honorary) – actor and comedian[1][13]
* Timothy C. Slater – entrepreneur and trader who founded CompuTrac
* William Ryerson \-- former diplomat
* Edward Isley Tinkham -- first person to carry the American flag overseas during WWI[1]

## Popular culture

[edit]

In 2010, Seal & Serpent was featured in the A&E Network TV show Strange Days with Bob Saget in an episode exploring Ivy League fraternity life.[13]

## See also

[edit]

* List of Cornell University fraternities and sororities
* List of social fraternities

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w "History". Seal & Serpent Society. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Saulnier, Beth (2021-08-26). "Seal and Serpent Continues its Tradition of Independence". Cornellians. Cornell University. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
3. ^ "Obituaries: Blunt, Albert Church, Jr., 80". St. Petersburg Times. 6 January 1967. p. 25. Retrieved 8 May 2011.
4. ^ "Frederick Sly, Formerly of Fredonia, Dies". The Grape Belt and Chautauqua Farmer. 1 July 1952. p. 6. Retrieved 8 May 2011.
5. ^ a b "Guide to the Seal and Serpent Society of Cornell University Records,1906-2009". Rmc.library.cornell.edu. Retrieved 2012-01-31.
6. ^ a b "Drug Addict Center Opens". The Ithaca Journal. 1971-12-16. pp. 1, 15. Retrieved 2025-03-24 – via Newspapers.com.
7. ^ a b "Unrecognized Organizations | Student & Campus Life". Cornell University. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
8. ^ "305 Thurston Housing". Retrieved 2012-01-31.
9. ^ "Cornellians in the World War–The Seal and Serpent Society Does Its Bit". Roads to the Great War. 2024-08-07. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
10. ^ "Guide to the Gligor Tashkovich papers, 1983-2015". Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections, Cornell University Library. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
11. ^ Rashbaum, William K. (2020-05-26). "A Car Salesman, a Macedonian Ex-Minister and a $45 Million Mask Scheme". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
12. ^ Montijo, Julian (December 4, 2012). "Gligor Tashkovich '87 on being an unconventional entrepreneur". Cornell Chronicle. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
13. ^ a b Linhorst, Michael (2010-04-23). "Bob Saget Documents Cornell University Fraternity Life |". The Cornell Daily Sun. Archived from the original on February 23, 2012. Retrieved 2012-01-31 – via Wayback.

## External links

[edit]

* Official website
* Cornell OFSA Site

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