What Was The Golden Branch Society?

By CARLY CANSECO, LYDIA KUHNERT, ALEXA MOREL, THEA VAUGHAN, and JADE YOO

Founded in 1818 by student Charles Soule and Instructor in Mathematics and Natural Philosophy Hosea Hildreth, the Golden Branch Society was one of the most distinguished debating societies in the nation and the oldest among the prep schools. For years, rumors about the Golden Branch’s history have floated about without any certainty. This week, through research in the Exeter archives, The Exonian has discovered the Society’s true history and clarified its ambiguities.

At first, the Society maintained a membership of 15 and sought to cultivate eloquent Exonians by hosting debates and literary discussions among members. Exclusive admission into the secret Society required the unanimous agreement of all current members and a secret oath, breeding resentment and jealousy from those unable to join. The Society underwent several comprehensive changes throughout its two-centuries-long existence and manifests today as the Daniel Webster Debate Society (DWDS) and Kirtland Society. 

Along with the establishment of the Academy in 1781 was the foundation of several societies within the Exonian community: the Golden Branch Society, the Christian Fraternity, the Dramatic Society, the Athletic Association, and more, outlined The Exonian, vol. 4, no.8. The Golden Branch resembled an academic fraternity — they had their own Constitution and by-laws, owned a collection of 2,500 volumes in a single library, and fostered brotherhood. A text detailing the 125th Anniversary Banquet of the Society described it as “aristocratic and domineering,” allowing only fifteen members out of a student body of 70. 

The Society endeavored beyond oratory practice and had its own publication, The Golden Leaf. According to a Golden Branch Society constitution pamphlet, three students served as officers of the Society and editors for the paper throughout the nineteenth century. Members were appointed to write pieces for the paper, which was then read aloud at meetings throughout the term. Failure to remind members of their papers for editors and failure to produce work as a member resulted in fines.

The Golden Branch Society primarily held parliamentary impromptu debates, modeling the current DWDS format. According to invitation records in the archives, it held annual banquets with lavish food and hosted anniversary events with notable speakers, such as Sherman Hoar, who donated a substantial sum of money to the Academy as a prize fund.

Eventually, in 1841, the discontented student body members formed the Gideon Lane Soule Literary and Debating Society, named after the third principal of the Academy. Onward, the two communities held inter-society debates and propagated fierce rivalries, similar to our current Exeter-Andover one. They debated various resolutions in front of large crowds, such as, “The United States should fortify the Panama Canal” or “This institution, Phillips Exeter Academy, is worthy of its prestige.” Several records of these invitations were found in the archives.

Sometime in the Golden Branch Society story, the members, culture, and lifestyle began to dwindle. This could potentially be attributed to World War II — as military drafts, economic pressure, and employment opportunities substantially increased, several Exonians left the Society. Potentially, as clubs and societies like the Golden Branch Society died down during the war, afterward, Golden Branch failed to revive itself. The dwindling mention of the Society in PEAN, The Exonian, and the archives would support this.

In 1925, after falling into debt, the Golden Branch Society merged with their nemesis, the G.L Soule Debating Society, into the Branch-Soule Society. This community faced several membership ebbs and flows, sometimes barely staying afloat and other times populating their abode in Merrill Hall. In 2000, Exonians expressed a desire to “combine the Debate Team, Branch-Soule Society, Mock Trial team, and Junior Statesmen of America into ‘the new Golden Branch Society,’” according to The Exonian archives. Sometime between 1990-2000, it developed into two different societies. 

Today, the Society’s legacy may be easily observed in the Assembly Hall on a Tuesday night—the Daniel Webster Debate Society, often known as DWDS, meets each week to teach and engage in parliamentary debate, much like how the Golden Branch once did. While DWDS has focused more on the competitive aspect of the debate in recent years, they are beginning to transition back to a more traditional format of hosting debates, as Golden Branch did. Leading the remnants of this Society is both an honor and a challenge — co-head of debate Joonyoung Heo commented on the experience, saying, “It’s very cool to say you can lead the oldest surviving secondary school Society. That comes with a lot of responsibility and it pushes you to do the job the best you can.” 

The other splinter club meets in the Latin Study on a Friday night at around 7 p.m. — Kirtland Society, whose founding date of 1818 refers to the founding date of the Golden Branch Society, meets to discuss the classics every week. The Golden Branch Society had deep ties to the classical world—its name is derived from the Aeneid, from the ‘golden bough’ Aeneas uses to guide his way through the underworld. 

The list of former Golden Branch Society members is nothing short of star-studded. The namesakes for multiple dorms are Society alums — Christopher Columbus Langdell and Charles Franklin Dunbar, to name a couple. Langdell was the first dean of Harvard University, and Dunbar was the Dean of Faculty at Harvard. Other notable members include Uriah Smith, born in 1832, a vice-president of the Society and a famous inventor, author, minister, and theologian. Records are limited, however, making tracking down more recent notable alumni a daunting task.

The Golden Branch Society, despite its forgotten existence, has endured. The vast records in the archives, PEAN, and The Exonian attest to the Society’s influence throughout the community. Although initially built on ideals of exclusivity and aristocracy, the Golden Branch Society has evolved into communities where intellect and curiosity flourish. The lasting limbs of the Golden Branch, the Daniel Webster Debate Society, and the Kirtland Society still strive to cultivate Exonians’ intellectual and oratory prowess.