michigan+delta

I n 1926, six men who had been rooming together on Mason Street started thinking about joining under a common bond of friendship and brotherhood by forming a fraternity. With the help of Mr. Macking, the shop superintendent of General Motors Institute of Technology at the time, these and two other men formed Alpha Delta Fraternity, one of the first fraternities at General Motors Institute. It was not until 1928, however, that the charter was finally presented to these men. By 1929, the membership had begun to grow and Alpha Delta became affiliated with the Burr Patterson Company of Detroit and, with their cooperation, the coat of arms was designed and a motto was chosen. As the depression hit the country, so also did it hit Alpha Delta. The membership began to drop, but Alpha Delta was still able to remain involved on campus through sports and social events. In late 1935, membership was low enough to consider merging with another fraternity on campus, but the idea was abandoned when a large class of freshmen was enrolled. In May of 1961, the land adjacent to Phi Gamma Delta on Dupont Street became the property of Alpha Delta and the next step has for Alpha Delta to build a new house. Early in 1962, Alpha Delta accepted Gibbs, Tomblinson, and Harburn as the architects to design the new house. The first shovel of dirt was turned on August 25th, 1962 and the rest of the year was filled with reports of progress. On the weekend of February 10th, 1963, the Brothers of Alpha Delta moved into their first new home, built especially for fraternity life.

Becoming Phi Delta Theta
In June, 1963, Alpha Delta decided to petition to Phi Delta Theta, a prominent international fraternity. During the next two years, much of the effort of the Brothers was in working toward the goal of becoming affiliated with Phi Delta Theta. Six brothers represented Alpha Delta at the Phi Delta Theta Convention in Pasadena, California, from August 31 to September 4, 1964. They set up a booth at the convention and displayed the merits of Alpha Delta. The vote was taken on Friday night, September 4, 1964 and Alpha Delta was soon to become the Michigan Delta Chapter of Phi Delta Theta. On Friday, February 12th, 1965, the eighty charter members of the MI Delta Chapter were intiated. On Saturday, February 13th, Alpha Delta Fraternity was installed as the 128th Chapter of the Phi Delta Theta Fraternity.