In 1841, Ohio residents Adam Poe and Charles Elliott decided to establish a university "of the highest order" in central Ohio. To that end, they purchased the Mansion House Hotel, a former health resort in Delaware. Ohio Wesleyan University, named (like several other U.S. colleges and universities) after John Wesley, founder of Methodism, opened on November 13, 1844 as a Methodist-related but nonsectarian institution, with a College of Liberal Arts for male students. During the mid-19th century, Ohio Wesleyan focused on attracting students, adding fields of study, and fundraising, by which it significantly increased its endowment. Sturges Hall was constructed as the University's first library in 1855. In 1873, the school added the Department of Natural History housed in Merrick Hall. The Ohio Wesleyan Female College, established in 1853, merged with the university in 1877. Between 1876 and 1888, enrollment tripled and music education greatly increased, yet no major buildings were built in this time.