The Delta Chi Chapter of Delta Kappa Epsilon was founded at Cornell in 1870 as the 24th chapter of the international fraternity that was founded at Yale in 1844. Now, 137 years later, DKE National boasts over 64 active chapters in the United States and Canada. While this is not a large number compared to some other fraternities, the small number has helped keep DKE standards high and above the rest.

The DKE Chapter house was designed by William Henry Miller, the nationally renowned architect who was the first graduate of Cornell's School of Architecture. Opened in 1893, it was the first house at Cornell designed and built as a fraternity lodge. The DKE house is one of the two Greek houses at Cornell on the National Register of Historic Places.

Some of the more special aspects of the house are: the wide side porch, the basement bar and pool room, the paneled library with its immense fireplace, two memorial stained-glass windows above the staircase, and the third-floor tower from which there is an unparalleled view of the surrounding city of Ithaca and the Cornell area. Walking through the house gives each visitor and brother a sense of history about the building, the brotherhood, and our unique role in Cornell and Ithaca history.

The two mighty Norway spruces in front of the house were planted in 1899 by then New York State Governor Theodore Roosevelt (a Harvard Deke) in memory of a fellow Deke, Clifton Beckwith Brown, Cornell class of 1900, who died while under Roosevelt's command at the battle of San Juan Hill, thus becoming the first Cornellian to give his life for his country.

DKE is graced by a strong alumni association that helps maintain the lodge and build the brotherhood by supporting it in spirit and with contributions of time and resources. Cornell and national DKE alumni are prominent in all aspects of life including: the White House (five U.S. Presidents!), Congress, diplomacy, media and newspapers, finance, industry, banking, foreign heads of state, sports, acting, theater, music, and geographic exploration.

DKE welcomes the input and contributions of its members and friends who respect its goals, its programs, and our historic house. A 501(c)(3) charitable organization, all contributions are tax deductible.

For a thorough history of Delta Kappa Epsilon at Cornell, the Delta Chi Chapter Alumni Historian, H. William Fogle '70, has produced his masterwork. You can read this work, several deacdes in the making, here.