Alpha Tau Omega is a social fraternity founded at the Virginia Military Institute in 1865 by Otis Allan Glazebrook, Erskine Mayo Ross, and Alfred Marshall. Glazebrook’s plan was to use Christian brotherly love to facilitate reconciliation between the North and South in the aftermath of the American Civil War. Alpha Tau Omega represents one-third of the Lexington Triad, along with Kappa Alpha Order and Sigma Nu. The fraternity’s non-profit organization is The ATO Foundation, which provides scholarships to members. The fraternity has approximately 250 active and inactive chapters and colonies in the United States.
Alpha Tau Omega in the Archives
Bill Krahling was an integral staff member of the SLC Archives and obtained the Alpha Tau Omega National Archives in 1995. Initiated into ATO in 1954 at Mt.Union College in Alliance, Ohio, he later served as Mt.Union’s publicity director and as associate/managing editor of ATO’s journal, The Palm. In 1970, he became ATO’s director of publications and The Palm editor (1970-85), and he also served as interim executive director (1974-76, 1977). After his retirement in 1989, Krahling remained active at ATO headquarters and took a strong interest in preserving the fraternity’s historical records.
Alpha Tau Omega Archives Mission Statement
To collect, preserve, and make accessible an authentic record of the chapters, members, programs, and administration of the Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity and the ATO Foundation in support of fraternal administration, public relations, research, and scholarly inquiry.
Alpha Tau Omega Archives Access Policies
The Alpha Tau Omega Archives are maintained for ATO by the University of Illinois Archives at Urbana-Champaign. They are available for use at the UIUC Archives Research Center, 1707 South Orchard, Urbana, Illinois.
Access of ATO Archives materials is governed by the general University Archives policy and the deposit agreement between ATO and the University. New materials enter the collection on a biannual basis; processing these files takes considerable time and effort. Consequently, not all of the collection may be available to ATO Archives visitors.
In general, ATO publications and photographs may be viewed without requiring special permission from the ATO National Headquarters. This also applies to chapter files more than seven years old. Either the ATO Headquarters or the ATO Archives can approve such uses. If you request specific articles from ATO publications or specific portions of the “open” chapter files, the Archives can copy and send up to twenty pages to you at no charge. The same applies to photocopies or faxes of photographs. Duplication of photographs is more complicated; you will be charged for any and all reproduction costs unless you bring your own camera for private study. All uses of the ATO Archives will be recorded on a standard University Archives reference card.
Use of other materials in the collection requires advance permission from the ATO National Executive Director, those offices will then relay your request to the Archives. You will have to complete and sign a User Agreement Form.
Special restrictions govern access to correspondence files less than seven years old and to materials concerning the Ritual and Secret Work. For more information, contact the ATO National Executive Director (or his designee).
Users of photos and other items from the ATO Archives agree not publish any portion of them without the express written permission of the Alpha Tau Omega Fraternity. Further, they assume sole responsibility for any infringement of the copyright, literary, or other rights which pertain to this material.
Types of Use
Looking at original materials in the ATO Archives
Requesting photocopies and faxes of items in the collection.
Requesting and using photographs
Forms and Policy Statements
ATO Archives User Agreement Form
ATO Archives Photographic Use Policies:
University Archives reference card
UIUC Archives Photographic Use Form
UIUC Agreement on Duplicating Textual Archival and Manuscript Materials
Please visit the Archives database for detailed information on the contents of the Alpha Tau Omega Archives:
- ATO National Fraternity Board of Directors (Record Subgroup 41/90)
- ATO Foundation (Record Subgroup 41/91)
- ATO Administrative Staff and Services (Record Subgroup 41/92)
- ATO National Officers (Record Subgroup 41/93)
- ATO Congresses, Conferences, and Workshops (Record Subgroup 41/94)
- ATO Chapters (Record Subgroup 41/95)
- ATO Alumni Associations (Record Subgroup 41/96)
- ATO Personal Papers (Record Subgroup 41/97)
Researchers interested in viewing archival material must complete an ATO Archives user agreement form and return it to the SLC Archives.
