The bulk of the records of the Department of English Language and Literature are from the years 1960 to 1979 and generally coincide with the chairmanships of Warner Rice, Russell Fraser, John Styan, and Jay Robinson. The records primarily document the internal workings of the department and its relationship with other units in the university. The majority of the records were created by the department itself and consist of minutes of committee and faculty meetings, correspondence, department reviews, course outlines, position requests, and newsletters and publications.
The records of the Department of English Language and Literature are divided into seven series: Correspondence, Topical Files, Photographs, Executive Committee, Chair's Files, Presentations, and Faculty Files.
The origin of the study of English language and literature at the University of Michigan can be traced to the 1840s. From 1841 to 1852 the university curriculum of traditional college courses included classes in both rhetoric and English grammar. A course in English composition was added in the academic year 1852/1853. The instruction in English and rhetoric was shared by professors from various disciplines.
English literature was first studied at the university following the appointment of Erastus Otis Haven in 1854 as Professor of History and English Literature. Professor Haven resigned in 1856, and courses in English literature were suspended until the professorship was filled by Andrew Dickson White in 1857. White held the position until 1863. He later became the first president of Cornell University and ambassador to Germany. It was not until the appointment of Moses Coit Tyler in 1867 as Professor of Rhetoric and English Literature and as the first chairman of the department that studies in English literature truly flourished.
Professor Tyler, who served as chairman until 1881, was one of the first and foremost scholars of American literature in the country. He authored a number of works on the subject, including The History of American Literature, 1607-1765 and The Literary History of the American Revolution. According to The University of Michigan: An Encyclopedic Survey:
His [Tyler's] desire was that students might 'come to know for themselves the exhilaration of original research.' By 'research' Tyler did not mean quite what we now understand by the word, nor what he himself practiced. His first hope was only to escape from 'the difficulty of interesting young people in critical estimates of books which they had never before seen or heard of.' Nevertheless, the assignment of readings in original sources led not only to the introduction in 1875 of the senior course announced as the Study of Masterpieces but also to the offering of graduate seminars ... By 1881, when Tyler left for Cornell, the main course for future programs in English was set at the University of Michigan and also at other American universities, as the result largely of the pioneering work of Tyler. (Volume II, page 549)
Under Tyler, a course of study in English leading to the Bachelor of Letters degree was established in 1877/1878, which led to a twenty percent increase in the number of students enrolled in the department in the following year.
Under the chairmanship of Isaac Newton Demmon (1881 to 1920), the department experienced a period of steady growth. The number of English courses offered doubled by the turn of the century. Professor Demmon is perhaps best remembered for his work as editor of a number of university publications and for his acquisitions of important literary collections for the university, such as the McMillan Shakespeare Library. Fred Newton Scott was also very active in the department in the area of rhetoric. In 1890/1891, he taught the first college course in journalism in the country. He attracted gifted students to the department from all over the country, many of whom became well known in their field. In 1903, he became head of the Rhetoric Department upon its separation from the English Department. The new department continued the teaching of linguistics, composition, journalism, and creative writing. The two departments were reunited in 1930 and renamed the Department of English Language and Literature.
Under the leadership of Louis A. Strauss (chairman, 1920-1936) and Louis Ignatius Bredvold (chairman, 1936-1947), the number of both students and faculty continued to increase and professors became more specialized in their teaching and scholarship. The expansion of the department was reflected in the establishment of an executive committee in 1926. Prior to this time, the department had always met as a whole, but with the increase in faculty, this was no longer possible. The first meeting of the executive committee took place on October 19, 1926, and consisted of the full professors in the department.
Among the most notable events which occurred during the Strauss/Bredvold years were the introduction of the Freshman Composition Program in 1930, the establishment of the Hopwood Awards, and the commencement of the Dictionary Projects. The latter two activities continue to this day. The annual Jule and Avery Hopwood Awards were first presented in 1930/1931 and were intended to encourage work in creative writing among students. The competitions are limited to students at the University of Michigan who are enrolled in at least one course in English composition. As early as 1931 publishers were interested in the results of the contests, and many winners have had their works published. Regarding the origin of the Hopwood Awards The University of Michigan: An Encyclopedic Survey states:
No one knows when he [Avery Hopwood] conceived the highly dramatic idea that resulted in the Hopwood awards, but one may surmise that his own experience as a struggling young writer on the Michigan campus had something to do with his desire to make the path of the talented student an easier road to travel. Upon his death in 1928 he left one-fifth of his large fortune to his alma mater with the proviso that the income from the bequest should be given away each year 'to students ... who perform the best creative work in the fields of dramatic writing, fiction, poetry, and the essay.' (Volume II, page 573)
The project of editing the Early Modern English Dictionary, a dictionary of the English language as used from 1475 to 1700, began at the University of Michigan in 1927 under the direction of Professor Charles C. Fries. Its work was suspended during World War II and later resumed in 1966. In 1930, the Middle English Dictionary project, a dictionary of the English language as used from 1100 to 1475, was transferred from Cornell University to the University of Michigan so that the two dictionary projects might benefit each other. Publication of the Middle English Dictionary began in 1954. In the mid 1970s, responsibility for the Middle English Dictionary was transferred from the Department to the Vice President for Research. (Work on the Early Modern English Dictionary was suspended; for more information, the researcher should contact Professor Richard Bailey of the Department of English Language and Literature.)
The chairmanships of Warner Grenelle Rice and Russell A. Fraser were marked by the development of a number of specialized programs of study within the university in which interested faculty were encouraged to participate. The chairmanship of Professor Rice from 1947 to 1968 witnessed the introduction of the American Culture program, the Comparative Literature program, the Great Books program, and the university's first film courses. Professor Rice was also very active in administering the university libraries and served as director from 1941 to 1953. Professor Fraser (Chairman, 1968-1973) was very supportive of research and scholarly activities of the faculty. As a result, faculty from the department were active on university committees which formed such programs as the Medieval and Renaissance Collegium and Women's Studies. In 1971, a new graduate program leading to the degree of Doctor of Arts in English was initiated. The program was designed to prepare teachers for two-year or community colleges and focused on teaching methods rather than research.
From 1973 to 1974, John L. Styan served a brief tenure as chairman; Jay L. Robinson was appointed Styan's successor in 1974. Professor Robinson was instrumental in acquiring funding for continued work on the dictionary projects and also for the creation of the English Composition Board (ECB). The ECB was created to oversee the composition requirement for students enrolled in the College of Literature, Science and the Arts and to foster effective writing among undergraduates. During Robinson's chairmanship renewed attention was given to student interests and the department began offering courses in such areas as popular culture and science fiction. In 1982, Ejner J. Jensen served as chairman for the first six months; John R. Knott took over the duties of the chairman in September. Under the chairmanship of Professor Knott, the Executive Committee dealt with such issues as graduate student recruitment and revising the department's salary policy. After years of planning, a program leading to the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing degree was instituted in 1983. Professor Knott was succeeded as chairman by Robert Weisbuch in 1987.
For additional information on the history of the department, the researcher should read the essays in The University of Michigan: An Encyclopedic Survey, Volume II and Volume VI.
Chair of the Department of English Language and Literature
| Date |
Event |
| 1867 - 1881 | Moses Coit Tyler |
| 1881 - 1920 | Isaac Newton Demmon |
| 1920 - 1938 | Louis A. Strauss |
| 1938 - 1947 | Louis Ignatius Bredvold |
| 1947 - 1968 | Warner Grenelle Rice |
| 1968 - 1973 | Russell A. Fraser |
| 1973 - 1974 | John L. Styan |
| 1974 - 1981 | Jay L. Robinson |
| 1982 | Ejner J. Jensen |
| 1982 - 1987 | John R. Knott |
| 1987 - 1994 | Robert Weisbuch |
| 1994 - 1998 | Martha J. Vicinus |
| 1998 - 1999 | Tobin A. Siebers (Interim) |
| 1999 - 2002 | Lincoln B. Faller |
| 2002 - 2003 | Patricia Yaeger (Interim) |
| 2003 - 2009 | Sidonie Smith |
| 2009 - 2010 | David Porter (Interim) |
| 2010 - 2015 | Michael C. Schoenfeldt |
| 2015 - | David Porter |
Department Name History
| Date |
Event |
| 1867 - 1902 | Department of English |
| 1902 - 1929 | The Department of Rhetoric and Department of English (two departments) |
| 1930 - present | Department of English Language and Literature |
