Orophilian Lyceum

This beautiful Seth Thomas clock (patented in 1876) once belonged to the Orophilian Lyceum at Alfred University. Organized in September, 1850, the group was one of four student literary lyceums on campus for over six decades. Each lyceum had a meeting space; the “Oros” met in Alumni Hall and the clock can be seen on the far wall in their room in this 1890s photo. The Orophilian and the Alleghanian lyceums were for male students while the Alfriedian and the Athenean provided a place for female students to learn and practice their oration skills. The University Archives collection contains many of the lyceums’ ledger books documenting their meetings as well as many of their printed programs showing the variety of topics under discussion.