January 24, 1722 - Edward Wigglesworth Appointed First American Professor of Divinity

Edward Wigglesworth was appointed the first professor of divinity in America on January 24, 1722. He was quickly named to the Hollis Chair, the oldest endowed professorship in the entire United States. However, he soon began to question the Calvinistic views held by those at Harvard. Because of the more liberal nature of these values held by professors at Harvard, Wigglesworth and several of his colleagues formed Yale College to counter the liberalism of Harvard.