Excerpt from The Sigma Phi Epsilon Journal, Vol. 21: September 1924

It has been a source of great satisfaction to Billy Phillips to see the fraternity make its remarkable growth. Many times he has remarked that in the beginning the founders had hopes of a substantial growth but the reality has far surpassed their fondest expectations. This will be readily appreciated when 'one considers that few persons would believe that starting with a half dozen men this organiza tion in twenty odd years would have a membership of more than and fifty chapters. The competition was sharp from the first. Of recent years there have been a great many new fraternities organized but in those days it was a most unusual event and the newcomer in the fraternity field was subjected to no small amount of ridicule, rebuffs and discouragements. Being so few upstart fraternities were radicals. They were to be taken as a jest and ridiculed out of existence. We have it upon Billy's word that in its early years Sigma Phi Epsilon - the Sacred Hearts, to use the local Richmond epithet - received their full share of what has been more modernly termed razzing.

From the first the thought on the part of the founders was to make of the fraternity a national organization. But how to get a foothold was a problem. To establish branch chapters in the hands of well established locals seemed well nigh impossible. The aspiring local had but to consult Baird's Manual of College Fraternities to find a substantial number of strong, well-established fra temities whose constant growth indicated that they were inclined to favorable action upon worthy petitions. Why become the second, third or fourth chapter of a budding national when a charter could be had from one of the older national organizations? It was a difficult question to answer. But Billy and his col leagues realized that personal contact alone would build a good will for the then known Alpha Chapter of Sigma Phi Epsilon and enable it to establish other chapters. The chapter therefore set forth on a campaign within their own state Where small colleges abounded with the intent of winning the friendship and confidence of college men in other institutions. It was not until William Andrew Wallace, one of the founders, in the year after Sigma Phi Epsilon came into existence left Richmond College and matriculated in what was known as the University College of Medicine in Richmond that a second chapter was added, known as Virginia Beta. Chartered in the fall of i9oz with five mem bers, it never added another and its charter was later surrendered. But it served as a stepping stone and was useful in interesting the next chapter, Virginia Gamma, which likewise survived only a short time. It was chartered in i9o3 with seven members and the next year added a half dozen more before it gave up the ghost. But these two offshoots made it possible to charter West Virginia Alpha - the third chapter that was to expire before a really permanent chapter was annexed to the parent organization.

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