Bishop James Madison Society
From Free net encyclopedia
The Bishop James Madison Society is a secret society of the College of William and Mary in Virginia. Students founded the society in the year 1812 as a tribute to the life of the late Bishop James Madison, eighth president of William and Mary and cousin to the U.S. president James Madison. If the society lasted past the Civil War, which is doubtful, it became inactive when William and Mary closed in the 1880s.
During the twentieth century, students started a new society based on the old, and it remains active today. Membership in the society is exclusive and confidential and honors those most dedicated and vibrant members of the student body. During the school's annual commencement exercises, members identify their involvement by wearing medals featuring the society's symbol, an elongated quatrefoil.