The Fly Club is a final club at Harvard College in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was established in 1836 and operated as a chapter of Alpha Delta Phi before becoming a local organization in 1906.
History
Fly Club was founded in 1836 at
Harvard College as a literary society by the editors of
Harvardiana. Its founding members were John Bacon, William Augustus Davis, John Fenwick Eustis,
Horatio Hale,
Nathan Hale, Charles Hayward, Samuel Tenney Hildreth, Rufus King, George Warren Lippitt, James Russell Lowell, Charles Woodman Scates, Charles Stearns Wheeler, and Henry Williams.
The club was granted a charter by the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity on .
In December 1906, the fraternity's charter was once again surrendered with the group continuing as a local fraternity.
Fly Club admitted its first African American members in the 1970s.
Symbols
The club's name was derived by combining the
"PH" from "Al
pha," the
"l" from "De
lta," and the
"i" from "Ph
i," to get "Phli," pronounced "Fly".
Its nickname is the "Fly".
The club motto, suggested by Prof. Morris H. Morgan (class of 1881) and adopted Feb. 1902, reads DURATURIS HAUD DURIS VINCULIS, an ablative absolute construction translated as "Bonds should be lasting, not chafing or hard."
The original crest of the club bore the Alpha Delta Phi star and crescent, later changing to the leopard rampant.
Fly Club Gate
The Fly Club Gate is located along the exterior of
Winthrop House. An
English Baroque structure, the gate was built in 1914 by a grant from members of the Fly Club. The Fly's symbol, a "leopard rampant gardant" (known as the "Kitty"), is centered within the ironwork above the entry. Inscribed below is a dedication: "For Friendships Made in College the Fly Club in Gratitude has Built this Gate."
[ "The Architecture" , Winthrop House (Facilities & History)]
Clubhouse
The Fly clubhouse is located at Two Holyoke Place, near Harvard Square, along the "Gold Coast" of formerly private residences.
[Cambridge Historical Commission, "City of Cambridge, Landmarks and Other Protected Properties" , 2009.] The Fly sits in front of Harvard's
Lowell House (1930), across Mt. Auburn Street from the Harvard Lampoon building (1909). It was constructed by the club in 1896.
Its brick facade added in 1902.
The Fly also owns the property at 45 Dunster Street, which is currently leased to the Hasty Pudding Club and restaurant Dig Inn.
In 2020, the Fly Club’s property holdings were valued at a combined $10,384,000, more than any other Harvard final club.
Membership
The Fly Club is a
final club, traditionally "punching" or inviting male undergraduates of
Harvard College during their sophomore or junior year. Its membership is all male.
Notable members
Controversies
Lisa Schkolnick, a Harvard student, sued the Fly Club for discrimination of women in 1987; however, a Massachusetts court rules that is lacked jurisdiction over private organizations such as the Fly Club.
In September 1993, the all-male club voted to admit women, but delayed punching women that year and reversed the decision in 1994.
However, this decision means that Fly Club became subject to university sanctions that prohibit members' access to some campus privileges, such as leadership positions, athletic captaincies, and some fellowships.
In addition, the university does not officially recognize Fly Club.
See also
