Located in the historic Moravian community of Old Salem, Salem College was originally a girls' school established by the Moravians, who believed strongly in equal education for men and women. The idea for the school began in 1766, when (at the age of 17) Sister Elisabeth Oesterlein walked from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania to Salem. On April 22, 1772, the Little Girls' School was founded. Her influence led the school to be among the first to accept non-white students. It became a boarding school in 1802 and in 1866 it changed its name to the Salem Female Academy. The school began giving college diplomas in 1890.