The Jewel Founders of
Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity,
Inc.
The founders of the nation's first Black collegiate fraternity were no ordinary achievers. Given the racial attitudes in 1906, their accomplishments were monumental. They were not fortunate to have such programs as affirmative action or Upward Bound or such organizations as the NAACP. Yet they set outstanding examples of scholarship, leadership, and career success. The seven founders, affectionately called "Jewels" were:
| Jewel Brother Henry Arthur Callis, M.D., who became a practicing physician, Howard University Professor of Medicine, and a prolific contributor to medical journals. Often regarded as the philosopher of the founders and a loving force in chartering the course of the Fraternity's development, he was the only one of the "Cornell Seven" to become General President. Prior to moving to Washington, he was the medical consultant to the Veterans Hospital in Tuskegee, Alabama. Upon his death in 1974 at the age of 87, the Fraternity entered a period without any living Jewels. His papers were donated to the Howard University Moreland-Springarn Research Center. |
 | Jewel Brother Charles Henry Chapman, who entered the field of higher education and eventually became Professor of Agriculture at what is now Florida A & M University. When he became the first Jewel to "enter the Great Beyond" in 1934, a campus funeral was held with considerable Alpha participation. Described as a "brother beloved in the bonds", Chapman was a founder of FAMU's Beta Nu Chapter. During the organizational stages of Alpha Chapter, he was its first chairman of the Committees on Initiations and Organization. |
 | Jewel Brother Eugene Kinckle Jones, who became the first Executive Secretary of the National Urban League. His 20-year tenure in the organization has thus far exceeded that of all his successors in office. A versatile leader, he organized the first three chapters that branched out from Cornell--Beta at Howard, Gamma at Virginia Union, and the original Gamma at the University of Toronto in Canada. In addition to becoming Alpha Chapter's second President and joining with Callis "in working out the name", he was a member of the first Committees on Constitution and Organization and helped write the ritual. Jones also has the distinction of being one of the first initiates of Alpha Phi Alpha. |
 | Jewel Brother George Biddle Kelley, who became the first Black engineer registered in the State of New York. Not only was he the strongest proponent of the Fraternity among the Founders, the civil engineering student became the first President of the Alpha Chapter. He also served on the committee that worked out the fraternal grip and the ritual. Kelley was very popular with the brotherhood. He resided in Troy, N.Y. and was very active with Beta Pi Lambda Chapter in Albany. He died in 1963. |
 | Jewel Brother Nathaniel Allison Murray, who pursued graduate work as well as undergraduate studies at Cornell. He returned home to Washington D.C., where he taught in the public school system, mostly at Armstrong Vocational High School. He was a member of Alpha Chapter's first Committee on the Organization and on the fraternal grip committee. The charter member of Washington's Mu Lambda Chapter was a very frequent attendee at General Conventions. He died in 1959. |
 | Jewel Brother Robert Harold Ogle, who entered the public affairs field, had the unique privilege of being attached, as a profesional staff member, to the U.S. Senate's Committee on Appropriations. He was a Black pioneer in his Capital Hill position. He proposed the Fraternity's colors and was the first secretary of the Alpha Chapter. He joined Kelley in working out the first ritual. Later he became a charter member of Washington's Mu Lambda Chapter. He died in 1936. |
 | Jewel Brother Vertner Woodson Tandy, who became the first Black registered architect in the state of New York, with offices on Broadway. The designer of the Fraternity pin holds the distinction of being the first Black to pass the military examination to be commissioned as a First Lietenant in the 15th Infantry of the National Guard of New York State. He was the first Treasurer of Alpha Chapter and took the initiative to get the Fraternity incorporated. Among the buildings designed by this highly talented architect was St. Phillip's Episcopal Church in New York City and Villa Lowero, Madame C.J. Walker's historic landmark estate in upstate New York. He died in 1949 at the age of 64. |
