Eli Banana
FoundedNovember 30, 1878
University of Virginia
TypeSecret society
ScopeLocal
Chapters1
HeadquartersP.O. Box 400312
Charlottesville, Virginia 22904
United States
Websiteelibanana.org

Eli Banana, officially known as the Mystic Order of Eli Banana, is a secret society at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia.[1] Founded in 1878, it was the first and the oldest secret society at the university.[2]

History

Earlier groups

A secret political society of the same name existed in the nearby Shenandoah Valley in September 1877.[3] This early group was led by Major R. W. Hunter of the Winchester Times and the Hon. Peter Magill, a politician of Rockingham County.[3] In July 1879, the Ricmond Dispatch reported that a secret society called Eli Banana had formed at the Virginia Military Instiute and consisted of "very influential members."[4]

Another group called Eli Banana existed at Yale University in the 1870s. When students from Yale and the University of Virginia spent the summer at a hotel in western Virginia as dance partners for the daughters of wealthy guests, the Yale students initiated the Virginia students into Eli Banana. When the students returned to Charlottesville in the fall, they formed a Virginia chapter of Eli Banana.[1] The Yale group went defunct a few years later.[1]

University of Virginia

The Mystic Order of Eli Banana was founded at the University of Virginia on November 30, 1878.[5] Its purpose was to make its members leaders in the university community and to "create an association of congenial spirits among the students."[6] Its founders wanted a "social leadership club" that was not the typical Greek letter fraternity.[2] It was considered an honorary social society.[7]

The Washington Star reported, "There was a big crowd of devil-may-care young men [at the University of Virginia], most of them with plenty of money, and they made Charlottesville and Albemarle fairly hum. These kindred spirits formed a society, which took the name of 'Eli Banana.'"[8] In April 1874, Eli Banana had a boat crew that was training for the state competition.[9]

By 1887, Eli Banana was the most powerful student organization on campus.[2] It dominated the Jefferson Society and the Football Board and their semiformal affairs were reported to "outclass" those of the fraternities".[2][6] Although noted for recruiting the best students on campus, the society also became infamous for its "drunken revelry", "bacchanalian" Easter dance, and pranks, including its members interrupting a church service with a drunken performance of their drinking song.[6]

In 1894, the university's faculty required Eli Banana's members to sever their ties with the organization in writing before matriculating; this action was in response to complaints from both on and off the campus.[6][10] However, the society simply changed its name to Peter Magill and continued its operations with the same membership structure.[6] The university's board of visitors allowed it to reconstitute as Eli Banana in 1897.[11][6]

Symbols and traditions

Eli Banana is known as a ribbon society because its members wore organizational ribbons on their lapels.[1] Its apocryphal lore says that its name came from "the Japanese Order of Eli Banana, to which only citizens of the highest rank were admitted."[1] It student leader is called the Grand Banana.[1]

In the 1970s, the society's initiation included hooded men on campus who placed a cape over the shoulders and head of the initiate, followed by placing a bottle of wine to his lips and chanting:[2]

Eli! Eli! I yell like hell – Eli!

Eli Banana! Starry banner! We are drunk boys,

Every one! 'Tis not the first time, nor yet the last time,

That together we have been on one hell of a bum.

Activities

Eli Society's activities are rarely seen or known.[2] It installed a plaque in honor of member and former faculty member, William Holding Echols, on Pavilion VIII in 1949.[1] It established the Eli Banana Fund in 2003, consisting of more than $400,000 ($636324 in today's money) for university projects.[12][1] As of June 2021, the fund includes more than $2.5 million ($2699865 in today's money).[13]

Notable members

Notable members of Eli Banana include:

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Viccellio, Robert (Spring 2012). "Wrapped in Mystery: A guide to secret—and not-so-secret—student organizations at UVA". Virginia Magazine. Retrieved 2023-08-16.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Haunting U.Va. Historic Campus Secret Societies Thriving". Richmond Times-Dispatch. Virginia. 1975-01-26. p. 33. Retrieved 2023-08-16 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. 1 2 "The Following Items Appears in the Washington Republication". Alexandria Gazette. Alexandria, Virginia. 1877-09-20. p. 2. Retrieved 2023-08-16 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "Virginia Miliary Institute Commencement". Richmond Dispatch. 1878-07-06. p. 3. Retrieved 2023-08-16 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ Jacob, Katie (January 2004). "Looking back at years of Elis, Ravens". A&S Online. Archived from the original on 2011-07-20. Retrieved 2010-09-24.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Bruce, Philip Alexander (1921). History of the University of Virginia. Vol. IV. New York: Macmillan. pp. 97–99, 338. Retrieved 2008-01-27.
  7. ↑ "History". Eli Banana. Retrieved 2023-08-16.
  8. ↑ "He Cheated at Poker". The Boston Globe. 1898-03-27. p. 41. Retrieved 2023-08-16 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Charlottesville". Richmond Dispatch. Virginia. 1879-04-07. p. 2. Retrieved 2023-08-16 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "The Eli Banana Oraganization. No Official Action Taken, but Students Must Renounce Allegiance". Richmond Dispatch. Virginia. 1894-06-17. p. 7. Retrieved 2023-08-16 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "Eli Banana Restored: Famous Society of the University of Virginia". Washington Post. 1897-06-15. p. 3.
  12. ↑ "Eli Banana Fund". Retrieved 2008-03-31.
  13. 1 2 Eli Banana 2021 Annual Report. Charlottesville, Virginia.
  14. 1 2 3 4 The Honorary Society of Eli Banana Director 1878-1894 (PDF). Charlottesville, Virginia: The Honorary Society of Eli Banana. 1894. Retrieved August 16, 2023 – via Eli Banana.
  15. ↑ "William Holding Echols (1859-1934)". Archived from the original on 2008-07-07. Retrieved 2008-03-20.
  16. ↑ "Doug Gordon, Editor, Dies in Norfolk". The Bee. Danville, Virginia. 1944-05-03. p. 1. Retrieved 2023-08-16 – via Newspapers.com.
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