Dwight Ireneus Douglass

...was born and raised in the small McLean County community of Colfax, Illinois. He was the son of physician Dwight Ireneus Douglass and entered Miami University in September 1902 to study chemistry. In addition to his academic work, Douglass was active in Miami Eridelphian Literary Society, belonged to the tennis and golf clubs, played varsity football and was a member, as a senior, of the Athletic Board of Control.

Douglass has been characterized by his contemporaries as the real leader in development of the Fraternity in the early years. As the "Golden Jubliee History" points out: "It was his ability to plan and organize and to anticipate the future, along with his commanding personality, that welded friends to him, which motivated others and made his new organization a fact."

Douglass continued his studies at Colorado College of Mines following graduation from Miami in 1906. He received a degree in mining engineering from that Colorado institution and worked in the mining field for some time. During World War I he served in France with 28th Engineers, and was gassed and wounded in the final days of hostilities. Following his discharge in 1919, he lost touch with the Fraternity for a period of time.

Because of poor health, due to his war service, Douglass accepted a position with the Veterans Administration in New Orleans in 1922. He retired in 1937, moving to nearby Hammond, Louisiana, where he spent his remaining years as a short story writer. He died on February 12, 1940.