#Salem October 7

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Most North Carolinians know that the University of North Carolina is the oldest public university in the state. Yet SALEM College was founded some 17 years before UNC opened its doors and is the oldest college in the Tar Heel State.

Salem Academy and College began as a school for young girls in 1772 in the Moravian town of Salem, North Carolina. That community was created in 1716 by Moravian missionaries. That school has endured the Revolution War, Civil War, WW I, the Great Depression, WW II and the pandemic and never closed their doors.

Salem NC History

Appreciating what is located in Salem you need context. The founding of Salem came about because of religious protest that occurred 100 years before Martin Luther’s Reformation of 1517. In 1415, John Hus of Bohemia was burned at the stake for heresy after protesting several Roman Catholic Church practices. After his death Hus’ followers formed the Unity of Brethren which became the Moravian Church.

The Moravians were persecuted in Europe and established sects in England. From England they eventually moved to create settlement in Bethlehem PA. From that base in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, they expanded their footprint by sending missionaries south, including to the interior of North Carolina.

Back in England a group of Moravians in 1753 purchased 100,000-acre tract of land. The tract was called Wachau, after an estate of Count Zinzendorf, the group’s patron in Saxony. The name was later anglicized to Wachovia. The first settlements in Wachovia were Bethabara and Bethania.

Eventually the Moravians decided that their 100,000 acres needed a central location and Salem was chosen as that site. In 1766 a group of eight men began clearing trees for the new settlement. Salem was carefully designed with a broad main street, narrower side streets and a central square. Interestingly, the square today was not where it was originally situated in 1766. After 150 fruit trees were planted on the site, it was decided to move the square to the south toward a better source of water for the community.

Moravian Church Rules for Salem

Residents of Salem could not own land. Instead, they built the homes they owned on lots leased from the church. Money paid to the church was used to pay for community expenses. The church governed all other aspects of life in Salem. It set price controls on goods, regulated pay rates and allowed only church members to open shops.

According to church practice, people worshipped together according to similar life experiences. In Old Salem, unmarried men lived together in the Single Brothers House. Unmarried women lived together in the Single Sisters House. It was those sisters that created SALEM Academy and College.

Here is a short video

In 1849, the church sold a tract of land adjacent to Salem for a new colony. The new colony grew rapidly, and in 1850 was named Winston in honor of Major Joseph Winston, a local Revolutionary War hero. Winston eventually grew to be three times the size of Salem. The two towns merged in May 1913 after a vote of the towns’ eligible residents to create Winston-Salem NC