McKendree Presidents
Click the image below to learn more about all the presidents' legacies:
The following is a list of McKendree’s presidents and the years they served:
Daniel C. Dobbins
2020-Present
The seventh alumnus to serve as president of McKendree, Dan has continually served
his alma mater over the years as a former Alumni Association Board President and Chairman
of the Board of Trustees. He has been recognized with the Peter Akers Award and an
Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters.
He met his wife, Mickey ’81, while a student at McKendree.
James M. Dennis
1994-2020
For 26 years, longer than any other sitting president in McKendree’s history, “Dr.
D” kept on giving. From pizza with the president to ice cream in the quad, his focus
was on the student experience.
Under his leadership, McKendree College rose from a small liberal arts college to
a nationally accredited University in 2007. The Marion K. Piper Academic Center, The
Hett, New Residence Hall, Fitness Center, McKendree West, the Entryway Monument, Inspiration
Statue and the Bearcat Statue are just a handful of Dr. Dennis’ contributions to McKendree’s
landscape.
Gerrit J. TenBrink
1979-1994
In 1985, McKendree introduced its Honors Program, designed to formally recognize our outstanding students and their academic achievements. Under Dr. TenBrink’s leadership, the Tanaka partnership started and the first annual W. Norman Grandy award was presented to a faculty member by the McKendree Alumni Association. The McKendree Suites and MPCC were also built.
Adolph Unruh (AP)
1978-1979
Julian H. Murphy
1975-1978
At McKendree, he started the criminal justice, religious studies, management and marketing
degree programs.
Walton Hall became coed and Clark Hall renovation was completed during his tenure.
Eric N. Rackham
1968-1975
Under his tenure, the North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools
announced on April 8, 1970 that McKendree College had qualified for accreditation.
In 1969, the Holman Library construction was completed and volunteers of students, faculty,
staff, and friends of the college carried 20,000 books from the old Benson Wood Library
to Holman Library. A new Fitness Center was also built and the Scott Air Force and the Radcliff, Kentucky Centers opened.
Edwin E. Voigt
1964-1968
Prior to becoming president at McKendree, he was a pilot in WWI, president of Simpson
College and the first bishop of the Illinois Great Rivers Conference.
During his tenure, campus expansion included Voigt Science, Deneen Center, Barnett
Hall, Baker Hall, Walton Hall and Ames Dining Hall. Enrollment increased by almost
50% under his leadership.
He was the oldest president inaugurated at 72.
Max P. Allen
1960-1964
As president, he was instrumental in the Bothwell Chapel renovation. He also saw an increase in residential students that overcrowded student housing. He raised over $100,000 in a Circuit Riders Campaign that resulted in additional building upgrades, including the restoration of Eisenmayer Auditorium.
William Norman Grandy (AP)
1960
Webb B. Garrison
1957-1960
Prior to arriving at McKendree, he was director of press and publishing for the Methodist Church and an accomplished author. His presidency focused on major changes to the Board of Trustee structure, increased ties to the Methodist Church, tightened academic requirements, eliminated extension programs, and created a long-range plan that included a $2.5 million building fund - the Bearcat Gymnasium was the first building completed.
Harry "Russell" Grow
1950-1957
He was the first non-clergy president. He started the McKendree evening school in response to the educational needs of the Air Force. He doubled the endowment, made improvements to the physical campus - Old Main was renovated, and the Library remodeled - and focused on expanding and strenthening the College in its attempts to achieve full accreditation.
Carl C. Bracy '1913
1945-1949
An alumnus of McKendree, Dr. Bracy returned nine years later to serve as the 24th President. While a student, he was viewed as a leader on campus, serving as yearbook
editor, president of the YMCA and Student Government Association. As president, he
spearheaded a major fundraising campaign, increased enrollment under the GI Bill®, and grew the faculty and curriculum.
He reinstated the keeper of the bear and remodeled Stevenson House.
Clark R. Yost '1913
1935-1945
After graduating from McKendree, he served as a Methodist minister. He became president
of McKendree following the Great Depression and during WWII. He held the University
together during a period of decreased enrollment and funding shortages. He established
the Peter Akers Award, the most prestigious honor the McKendree Alumni Association bestows on an alumnus.
Under his presidency, the Homecoming Queen became a tradition.
Cameron Harmon '1903
1923-1935
Many of his contributions, such as the time-honored tradition of McKendree Homecoming,
can still be experienced on campus today. As a student, Cameron was the captain of
the McKendree football team and when he returned to campus in 1923 to serve at president,
a football game was played to mark his inauguration.
Purchased a $50 bear cub for school mascot.
George E. McCammon '1894
1919-1923
Stevenson House became the home of the president in 1919 and he received an automobile
for use as president.
The McKendree Review (seventh college newspaper) and the Student Government Association
were both organized under his tenure.
The George E. McCammon Memorial Distinguished Speaker Series was established by his
son as an endowed gift in his honor.
Edwin P. Baker (AP)
1917-1919, 1923
Huber William Hurt
1915-1917
Under his presidency the science hall was enlarged and added to making it a three
story building.
He made and published a survey for McKendree which was one of the most elaborate and
thorough pieces of work in the field of statistics to be found anywhere.
James C. Dolley (AP)
1915
John F. Harmon
1908-1915
He served on Board of Trustees and received Doctor of Divinity from McKendree in 1900.
Under his tenure, Clark, Carnegie, and Pearsons Hall were built. After McKendree,
he was president of Kansas Wesleyan University.
McKendree Hypes Chamberlin '1859, '1862
1894-1908
He was born on the college grounds, where his father Rev. David Chamberlin was head
of the College’s boarding department.
He graduated from Harvard Law School and in 1872 was selected as a presidential elector
for Illinois, but was removed from the electoral ticket in lieu of becoming the congressional
candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives. As president, he spearhead the construction
of Eisenmayer auditorium in 1903 and undertook a major fundraising campaign.
Morris Lincoln Barr
1893-1894
He was the youngest president inaugurated at 28.
After two years as professor of Greek and German, he became President under unusual
circumstances. He didn’t ask for the position but through the influence of his student
friends the position was offered to him.
Thomas H. Herdman (AP)
1890-1893
Albert "A.G." Jepson (AP)
1889-1890
Isaiah Villars
1887-1889
He was unanimously elected President of McKendree and then was notified of the appointment,
never having been to McKendree.
He was a Corporal in an Illinois Regiment of Volunteers during the Civil War, after
which he joined the Illinois Conference in 1865. He was an ardent advocate of prohibition
and a worker for the Anti-Saloon League. He also wrote several books.
(Photo not available) Edward A. Whitwam
1886-1887
Served as President and the chair of the Science department at the same time.
Mrs. O. A. Whitwam, his wife, was made ‘the preceptress’ to assist in whatever department
needed her most.
After McKendree, he held several positions, most notably as president of North Nebraska
Normal College at Madison for eight years and district superintendents of the Children’s
Home Society of Illinois and Missouri.
William Fletcher Swahlen
1883-1886
He had musical and literary training and occasionally played the organ and led the choir at church services.
After three years, he declined re-election as president and went on to become a Professor of Greek in DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. After McKendree, he went back to ministry before becoming president of Kansas Wesleyan University and then a faculty member at DePauw University.
Daniel W. Phillips '1862, '1865
1879-1883
He was the first alumni to become president of the college.
He was responsible for the organization of the music, business and elocution departments.
Before serving as president, he served as pastor in several churches in the Southern Illinois Conference and was a member of the Conference’s Joint Board. He was also the president of the Illinois Agricultural College.
Ross Clark Houghton
1878-1879
He was a member of the Society of American Authors and wrote several books, including “At the Threshold” and “Women of the Orient.” He served Methodist churches in several cities in New York State, St. Louis, Mo., Indianapolis, Ind., and Portland, Ore.
He had a plan for relieving the financial stress of the college during a period of low enrollment, but it was unsuccessful.
John W. Locke
1874-1878
After four years, in which McKendree College reached the highest point of attendance it had attained up to that time, he became presiding elder of the Lebanon District.
He came from a long line of ministers and was the president of Brookville College in Indiana before arriving at McKendree. He had been unanimously elected and was notified by telegraph, he agreed immediately. His salary was put at $1,500 a year, and professors at $900 regardless of college income.
Robert Allyn
1863-1874
Before Robert Allyn’s presidency, McKendree College was primarily an all-male campus with no indoor exercise space.
The McKendree College Athleteon Association, a student organization, spearheaded the construction of a small one-story gymnasium using donated funds and student labor. In 1868, the Athleteon was completed (and is now Wildy Hall).
Prior to becoming president, he was elected to the Rhode Island Legislature and served on the state commission of education. After McKendree, he became the founding president of Southern Illinois State Normal School in Carbondale (now SIUC).
Nelson E. Cobleigh
1858-1863
His most memorable accomplishment at McKendree was obtaining the Bothwell Chapel bell for $60 at the Illinois State Fair. Bothwell Chapel was completed during his presidency.
Before becoming president he was the chair of Ancient Languages. He went on to become the editor of the Zion Herald, Methodist Advocate and president of Tennessee Wesleyan College.
(Photo not available) Werter R. Davis (AP)
1857-1858
(Photo not available) Anson W. Cummings
1850-1852
His salary was only $600 a year, $100 more than other professors.
He was the author of “Early Schools of Methodism” and the faculty advisor to the student
newspaper, “The Lebanon Journal.” A resolution passed in 1852, permitting two boys’
literary societies to be formed on campus, Philo and Plato.
After McKendree, he became president of Holston Conference Female College in North Carolina and then chairman of the faculty at the University of South Carolina from 1875-1877, which essentially made him the President since the University did not formally have one until 1880 and the chair of the faculty performed the duties of the office.
Erastus Wentworth
1846-1850
A Methodist minister in Vermont, he was chosen president of McKendree without previous consultation and accepted because his consumptive wife needed to leave Vermont due to the cold weather. Upon arriving at McKendree, the institution was still dealing with financial woes so professors were placed on allowances paid by the churches and President Wentworth was paid $300 a year. However, the College also seized the opportunity to partner with the local churches during this time to raise
money to build “Old Main.” The building, which still exists today, was completed in 1850. After he served as President, he was appointed as the missionary to China from 1854-1862.
(Photo not available) James C. Finley
1841-1845
He started his career as a doctor in Cincinnati, Ohio and Jacksonville, Ill., before abandoning his practice and becoming a minister in the Methodist Church. The Methodist Church in Lebanon has a memorial window in his honor, which shows that he held the degrees of A.M. and M.D. During his presidency, money was a major issue. He reduced fees 25 percent to retain and attract students and accepted a reduced salary of $400 a year.
John Wesley Merrill
1838-1841
Named after the founder of Methodism, he grew up the son of a Methodist circuit rider
on the east coast.
His brother, Professor Annis Merrill, was delayed moving his family from New England
to Lebanon to teach, so he filled in and taught his classes. A week after arriving
on campus, he came down with the bilious fever and was bedridden for five weeks. While
sick, he was brought water from the McKendree well. He had fond memories of the well
water and in 1896 he was shipped several gallons of the well water from the president
at the time. He responded by writing a poem, entitled “The College Well,” which was
set to music and copies were furnished to the McKendree music department. Once he
recovered, he continued to teach his brother’s classes until the Trustees elected
him as a professor and President three months later on Jan. 2, 1838.
(Photo not available) John R. Dew
1836-1838
It was under his leadership that McKendree first began to assume the character of a college rather than a preparatory school. At the time McKendree had one main school building and three or four log cabins attached where students were boarded. A Methodist circuit rider and an original member of McKendree’s first board of managers, Dew returned to the ministry after his presidency.
Peter Akers
1833-1836, 1845-1846, 1852-1857
Reverend Peter Akers is recognized as McKendree’s first official president who, at the time, claimed an annual salary of just $500 per year. McKendree was officially chartered as the first College in Illinois and President Akers received its first degree, an honorary doctor of divinity, in 1839.
Edward Raymond Ames
1828-1833
(AP) Acting President
