CAREY'S CAMP

CAREY'S CAMP

Carey's Camp is west of Millsboro, near the crossroads at Conaway Road and Caey's Camp Road, the location being called Mudford in early times. This was a revival encampment, the bush

meetings, of two groups of Methodist Societies which were many about the peninsula. They were the Phillips Hill and the Mission School societies. There were no buildings at the 'bush meetings' the people slept and ate in tents under canvas sheets held up by timber poles or wagons.

There was a strong desire to have a church, and in 1884, a Carey family, Elijah and Levenia,

donated an acre a bit east of Mudford and Carey's Church was begun. Progress was slow, money

was none, but in 1891 the church was dedicated.

There was an elderly gentleman, more than a hundred years of age, Joe Ben Husdon, living in the 1980's who watched the construction.

Since the summer revival meetiings were a popular event it wasen't long before a permenent

campground was built. Forty seven small crude sheds, they called them tents, with open fronts constructed, facing a large cross shaped tabernacle .

These early camp meetings were evanglistic revivals and attended by thousands , the sermons were long and had 'after service' when all the saved christians gave witness testomoials , and last until after midnight. . A 'love feast' early morning service was held every morning, fllowed by more testimony, was led by a layman.. Childrens Bible School was held in the mornings.

A social viewpoint was very important. Transportation, the horse and buggy, posed limitations of friends in ones social circle. To renew old friendships and romantic relationshipa posed another atmosphere.

Abstract by Harrison H., 16 October 2017. Source is “Carey's Church and Camp” writen by

Don Ward, Berta Smith and Niel Carey, for the March 2006 issue of “Shoreline Magazine” of the Nabb Research Center, Salisbury.