QEBH

QEBH
QEBH
	The winged sphere is the primary symbol of the QEBH Society.
Founded	November 1898; 125 years ago; University of Missouri
Type	Honor
Affiliation	Independent
Status	Active
Emphasis	Senior
Scope	Local
Symbol	Winged sphere
Chapters	1
Headquarters	Columbia, Missouri 65201; United States
Website	missouri.campuslabs.com/engage/organization/qebh

QEBH is a senior honor society at the University of Missouri. Founded in 1898, it is the oldest of six recognized secret honor societies that participate in the annual tradition of Tap Day on campus. The meaning of the society's name is known only to the members.^[1]

History

The society was founded in November 1898 by eight men. They were:

Gurry Ellsworth Huggins
Clarence Martin Jackson
Thomas Benton Marbut
Antoine Edward Russell
Royall Hill Switzler
William Frank Wilson
Horace Beckley Williams
Galius Lawton Zwick

Switzler organized the first class of the society and is therefore considered the founder of QEBH.^[2] QEBH's workings, purposes, and affairs are known only to its members.

Throughout its history, QEBH has maintained a rivalry with MU's Mystical Seven society. This rivalry has often involved the two societies playing pranks on each other. In one instance in 1985, members of QEBH disguised themselves as members of Mystical Seven and surprised Mystical Seven's yet-to-be-initiated candidates at 4:30 am one morning. The new candidates were convinced the activity was part of their initiation process, and they were taken to Jefferson City, Missouri where they were dropped off and abandoned by the disguised QEBH members.^[3]

Symbols

The primary symbol of QEBH is the winged sphere. The symbol's origin is that of the winged sphere that was once the distinctive mark of Jesse Hall. The wings broke from the top of the dome when a patriotic student scaled the dome one night around the time of World War I and fastened the staff of a large American flag to the structure. The flag caught enough wind to tear the wings from the dome, leaving only the golden sphere, which is still in place. The destruction of the wings from the dome was foreshadowed in the 1901 Savitar where mention is made of QEBH's secret meetings at the top of the dome, but it was later stated that "QEBH didn't take the wings off the dome."^[4]

The tradition of the Victory Bell originated in 1927. The bell was originally stolen from a church in Seward, Nebraska by Phi Delta Theta and Delta Tau Delta in 1892. The two fraternities shared housing at the time, but when the groups later acquired their own individual houses they began an annual tradition of awarding the bell as a trophy to the winner of a specified athletic or academic contest. When then Missouri athletic director Chester Brewer suggested a trophy be established for the winner of the annual Missouri–Nebraska Rivalry football game, the bell was chosen to fill the role. An "M" was then engraved on one side of the bell and an "N" was engraved on the opposite side. QEBH is the caretaker of the bell at Missouri, and the Innocents Society is the caretaker of the bell at Nebraska. Due to conference realignment, there has been a hiatus of the Missouri-Nebraska rivalry since 2010.^[5]^[6]

Notable members

Ben Askren (Chapter of 2006), 2006 NCAA individual national wrestling champion and Sports Illustrated collegiate wrestler of the year
Hardin Cox (Chapter of 1952), Missouri House of Representatives and Missouri Senate
Forrest C. Donnell (Chapter of 1904), former Governor of Missouri
Martin Frost (Chapter of 1964), U.S. House of Representatives
John R. Gibson (Chapter of 1950), Senior Federal Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
Kenny Hulshof (Chapter of 1999), U.S. House of Representatives
Tim Kaine (Chapter of 1979), United States Senator, Governor of Virginia, and U.S. Vice Presidential Candidate
Richard D. Kinder (Chapter of 1966), CEO of Kinder Morgan
Derrick Peterson (Chapter of 1999), US Olympic Track and Field Athlete in 2004
Ike Skelton (Chapter of 1957), U.S. House of Representatives
Steve Stipanovich (Chapter of 1983), professional basketball player
Jon Sundvold (Chapter of 1981), professional basketball player
Sam M. Walton (Chapter of 1940), founder of Walmart
Kellen Winslow (Chapter of 1987), professional football player and NFL Hall of Fame

Honorary members

Christopher S. "Kit" Bond, U.S. Senator
August Busch, Jr. (Chapter of 1969), American brewing magnate and former owner of the St. Louis Cardinals
Brady Deaton (Chapter of 1999), former University of Missouri chancellor
Thomas F. Eagleton (Chapter of 1964), former U.S. Senator^[7]
Chuck Graham (Chapter of 2006), Missouri State Senator^[7]
Warren E. Hearnes (Chapter of 1966), former Governor of Missouri^[7]
Darwin Hindman (Chapter of 2004), former mayor of Columbia, Missouri
R. Bowen Loftin (Chapter of 2015), former University of Missouri chancellor
Claire McCaskill (Chapter of 2003), United States Senator
Gary Pinkel (Chapter of 2016), University of Missouri head football coach from 2001–2015
Pinkney Walker (Chapter of 1962), former University of Missouri economics professor who served on the Federal Power Commission
Richard Wallace (Chapter of 1998), former University of Missouri chancellor
H. Clyde Wilson Jr. (Chapter of 1972), former University of Missouri anthropology professor and former former mayor of Columbia, Missouri