Collection Title: Phi Mu Alpha
Series Number: RG009-22-02
Processed and Cataloged by: Sarah Hardaway
Date Listed: July 15, 2022
Size of Collection: 2 linear feet
Number of Boxes: 1 oversized flat box.
Type of Material: Fraternity paddle and a music record of the National Convention in Cincinnati, OH on July 10, 1954.
Condition of Material: Good.
Arrangement: Size.
Historical Information: Campus Lights, "the longest running student produced and performed musical in the South," was founded by the Gamma Delta Chapter of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America in 1938. The show was originated as a fundraiser to pay for the fraternity's charter. After chartering the Gamma Delta Chapter, the brothers decided to continue the Vaudevillian performances as a means to raise scholarship money for deserving prospective music majors who would attend Murray State University. During World War II, the sisters of Sigma Alpha Iota, Iota Beta Chapter, stepped in to "let the show go on" while the brothers of Gamma Delta went off to serve our country. Upon return from the war, a partnership emerged in an effort to keep the rich tradition that had begun with a concept called Campus Lights.
Scope and Content: The fraternity paddle belonged to the donor, Cindy Barnett's father, Bill Williams. His name is found on the bottom of the paddle's handle. The National Convention in Cincinnati, OH on July 10, 1954 is recorded on a vinyl record.
