The Cliosophic Society was born on June 7, 1770, from the remnants of an earlier Princeton student club, the Well Meaning Club. The adjective "Cliosophic" seems to have been invented by William Patterson, the 1763 graduate of the College of New Jersey (Princeton) and, later, governor of New Jersey, who had remained in Princeton to study law. Signifying "in praise of wisdom," it bears no relation to the muse of history. The club served as a major political, debating, and literary force both on the Princeton campus where it was founded and in the nation, where members such as Aaron Burr became future leaders. Merging with its campus rival, the American Whig Society, in 1941, the organization became the American Whig-Cliosophic Society.
From the description of Cliosophic Society archives, 1789-1941. (Princeton University Library). WorldCat record id: 78495045
