The Speaking Club was founded at Harvard on September 6, 1770. It was a private club and students were allowed to join by invitation only, after having been "sounded" by current members. The goal of the society was to provide an opportunity for its members to practice and refine their oratorical skills and elocution. The club has undergone numerous mergers with other clubs and name changes in the years since its establishment. On March 8, 1773, it merged with another student organization, the Mercurian Club, but maintained the name of Speaking Club. In 1801, the members decided to change the club's name to the Patriotic Association, to maintain the privacy of the supposedly "secret" nature of the club (i.e. that it was a club for speaking). It was later renamed the Social Fraternity of 1770. In 1825, after uniting with the Hermetic Society and the Akribologoumenoi, the club was renamed the Institute of 1770. In 1848, the Institute of 1770 merged with the I.O.H. (Imitatores Omnium Honestarum), another secret society founded for the purpose of debating and practicing elocution. The club's final merger was with the Hasty Pudding Club in 1924.
From the guide to the Early records of the Speaking Club, 1770-1813, (Harvard University Archives)
