When Davidson College was founded in 1837, English was not a formal part of the curriculum. In 1855, the college created a professorship in Belles Lettres with a focus on composition rather than the teaching of literature. Victor Barringer was elected the first Troy Professor of Belle Lettres in 1860 but soon went on leave to serve in the Confederate Army until 1865. The Rev. John Anderson replaced Barringer, teaching English from 1866 to 1874. He was replaced by the Rev. Andrew Hepburn, who would serve as both college president and English professor fro 1875 to 1885. English expanded within the curriculum with the appointment of William Currell in 1886. Still, it was not until 1920, that the college had 2 faculty teaching English classes. Edwin Shewmake and Edward Erwin were assisted by part-time instructors in public speaking. English had the highest enrollment of any department in 1925. Prof. Erwin, a Davidson alumnus, was also instrumental in establishing a student theatre group. By 1930, the department had grown to 4.5 faculty, sharing one professor with Latin. The department grew to 6 professors in the 1950s and 9 by 1964. The McGeeVisiting Professorship of Creative Writing was added in 1989 and by 1996, there 12 faculty in the department, expanding again to 16.