April 17, 1920, a group of Ripon College men formally banded together as Phi Kappa Pi with three ideals: scholarship, participation in college activities and decent conduct. Conversations between two of the founding members led them to think more of the organization as a men’s fraternity with primary interest in scholastic achievement. In the summer of 1920, the fraternity secured residence in a house adjacent to campus. In this building hung a portrait of William E. Merriman, Ripon College’s first president. The building was called Merriman, and the group soon became known as Merriman Club.

For 20 years, through times of economic prosperity and the great depression, Merriman Club remained housed in this building. In 1939, Ripon began building new residence halls for men. Merriman Alumni provided funds to help build the house that the organization lives in today. It inherited the name Merriman House, and Merriman’s portrait still hangs in the Formal Lounge. The “club” is now called Merriman House, or Phi Kappa Pi.