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In September 1856, Monmouth, a three-year-old academy, opened as a coeducational college with the blessing of the Associate Reformed, later the United Presbyterian Church. Chapters of men’s fraternities Beta Theta Pi and Delta Tau Delta appeared in 1865, and Phi Gamma Delta in 1866. The I.C. Sorosis, founded for women in 1867, had not yet become Pi Beta Phi when Kappa Kappa Gamma was created. '''M. Louise Bennet (Boyd)''' and her future sister-in-law, '''H. Jeannette Boyd''', thought of organizing; considered first limiting membership to girls taking the classical course; but realized how much their choice of members would be narrowed; and “gave up that exclusive idea.”
== 1870 - 1880 ==
In January 1870, Kappa Alpha Theta had been founded in Greencastle, Indiana, at Asbury (later DePauw) University. Baird’s American College Fraternities, 1883, has it that “a proposition to establish a chapter of another fraternity suggested the idea of creating this new one.” But Louise Bennett insisted, “We had not heard of any other Greek-letter fraternity for girls at that time and always considered ourselves the first. … If any girl came from Greencastle … to invite our girls to join Kappa Alpha Theta … I never heard of it.”
Until 1879 or 1880, when fraternities at Monmouth were ordered to disband entirely, pins were concealed, to be “flashed” for trusted friends.
== 1880 - 1890 ==
In 1882, '''Minnie Stewart Nelson Field (then Mrs. Nelson)''' was Alpha delegate to Convention and gave a talk. “It was the desire of the Fraternity and the intention of Mrs. Nelson to have prepared a complete history … but owing to the death of a sister Kappa who had in her possession the earlier chronicles, she was unable to procure the necessary information. (''The Golden Key'', Volume 1, Number 2)