Converse College is a liberal arts women's college in Spartanburg, South Carolina, USA. It was established by a group of Spartanburg citizens and named after Dexter Edgar Converse. Converse College opened on October 1, 1889 with a student body of 168 and 16 faculty members. The College operated as a "stock company" with the board of directors composed entirely of citizens of Spartanburg. Dexter Edgar Converse, a native of Vermont who had settled in Spartanburg before the American Civil War and had become a successful pioneer in the cotton mill industry, served as the head of the first board of directors. On January 2, 1892 fire destroyed the College's main building. The building was enlarged during its reconstruction. In 1896, the College was incorporated in South Carolina and a self-perpetuating board of trustees was named. In 1964, the College introduced graduate programs. It has an undergraduate enrollment of approximately 750 women who come from throughout the United States. The graduate enrollment of approximately 1,200 students is made up of both men and women.