Item 70024 - Red Campground sign, Old Orchard Beach, ca. 1935

Item 70024 - Red Campground sign, Old Orchard Beach, ca. 1935
Contributed by Boston Public Library
Item 70024
Red Campground sign, Old Orchard Beach, ca. 1935
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The entrance shown here leads to the campgrounds of the Old Orchard Beach Campmeeting Association. The Association was formed by a group of Methodists in 1873 with the intent of spreading moral and religious influence. In 1880, the Association designed an oceanfront subdivision of 1,800 cottage lots and 400 20-foot square campground lots. The campground included a gazebo and set in a pine grove that featured wooden benches accommodating up to 7,000 people.

Many conferences and conventions were held at the campgrounds, including those by the National Temperance Camp Meeting Association and the Salvation Army. Meetings at the campground attracted large quantities of visitors, with as many as 10,000 people coming into the Boston and Maine Railroad’s Campground Station daily, with Campground tickets offered at a reduced price in the summer months. The Association offered attendees accommodations on or near the grounds.

The caption reads, "Entrance to the camp grounds, Old Orchard Beach, Me."

The Tichnor Brothers printing company published this type of postcard circa 1930-1945.

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