Gold medals for the honour and merit of literary achievement

Today in History: Phi Beta Kappa

Today in History–December 5–the Library of Congress features America’s first university honor society, Phi Beta Kappa, founded on this day in 1776 at the College of William and Mary. Six years prior, the Governor of Virginia had proclaimed the intention to “give, annually, two gold medals for the honour and merit of literary achievement” to students of the…