Camp Meeting History
Camp Meeting History
August 2, 2018
In the Grove
Another week has passed, and the readers of the Gazette will probably expect something from the Grove.
August 1, 2018
One Hundred Fifty Years of Keeping the Camp Meeting Faith
One hundred fifty years ago this year, by an act of the Massachusetts legislature, the Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association was incorporated to manage what had become one of the largest camp meetings in New England.
August 3, 2017
Camp Meeting
“Hear ye! Hear ye! Hear ye!,” shouted the town crier after ringing a large brass bell at the end of Pier 44, Vineyard Haven.
August 2, 2017
Building Community Through Song
On a recent Wednesday evening over 200 people followed the winding paths of the Camp Ground to the Trinity Park Tabernacle for the Community Sing, a tradition for more than 100 years.
June 25, 2016
New Camp Ground Director Has Long History in Hospitality
After a long career in hospitality CJ Rivard is the new executive director of the Martha's Vineyard Camp Meeting Association.
April 18, 2016
Seats of History: If These Chairs and Benches Could Talk
For many Islanders, the chairs and benches at the Oak Bluffs Tabernacle are synonymous with the place itself. Now the iconic 19th century seating will be restored.
July 15, 2014
Camp Ground Pink House Is One of a Kind
The famous Pink House on the grounds of the Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association is once again for sale. It is the most photographed of all the many photogenic houses in the Camp Ground.
July 29, 2013
Life's a Porch in the Oak Bluffs Camp Ground
On a summer day in Oak Bluffs, Circuit avenue can sometimes feel like a circus. If you’re looking for some relief from the hot pavement and bustling crowds, follow the road down to the end of the main shopping area and turn right. You’ll stumble into Wesleyan Grove, a shady oasis filled with colorful cottages pulled straight from the pages of a storybook. This is the Camp Ground of the Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association.
July 11, 2013
Beating Back the Ravages of Nature on This Old House is a Bittersweet Tale
Over the years I have wondered what form the end will take for our Camp Ground cottage. Since I began seeing the cottage through adult eyes, I’ve eyed it with the trepidation of watching a truck turn off Main street in Vineyard Haven. It’s not going to make it.
July 22, 2010
Begun of a Preacher Man, 175 Years Ago
It was 175 years ago next month that six devout Edgartown Methodists decided to establish a summer religious community of their very own and selected the largest oak grove in New England, near Eastville, to be its site. Camp meetings that provided prayer, preaching, hymn-singing and repentance had come into vogue in America at the turn of the 19th century. In 1827, one had been established at West Chop in the community of Holmes Hole — today’s Vineyard Haven.
