New Haven District Campground facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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New Haven District Campground
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 Location in Connecticut
Location in the United States
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| Location | Camp St. and Gladding Ave., Plainville, Connecticut |
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| Area | 17.1 acres (6.9 ha) |
| Built | 1865 |
| NRHP reference No. | 80004065 |
| Added to NRHP | May 19, 1980 |
The New Haven District Campground is a special historical place in Plainville, Connecticut. It's also called the Plainville Campground. This site was first used in 1865 for "camp meetings" by people who followed the Methodist faith.
Imagine a big outdoor gathering where people would meet for religious services and also for fun! That's what a camp meeting was like in the 1800s. Today, this campground is a neighborhood of summer homes. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 19, 1980. This means it's an important historical site.
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What is the New Haven District Campground?
The New Haven District Campground is in the northwest part of Plainville. It covers about 17 acres of land. You can enter it from Gladding Avenue.
The campground has many roads that spread out from a central area. In the middle of this area is the main pavilion. Small wooden houses, called cottages, are built closely together along these roads.
What do the cottages look like?
These cottages are usually one or two stories tall. Many of them have unique "gingerbread decoration." This means they have fancy, carved wooden trim. It looks a bit like the icing on a gingerbread house! This style was very common for buildings at camp meeting sites.
Why were camp meetings popular?
In the 1800s, camp meetings were not just for religious reasons. They also became popular places for middle-class families to relax. People liked them because they were seen as good, moral places to visit. They were also very affordable.
How did the campground grow?
The campground has 89 cottages today. These cottages were built to replace the tents that people first used at the site. They are arranged in a circle around the main preaching area. This circular pattern was traditional for camp meetings.
When the campground was most popular, it even had its own train station! This helped the local economy in what was then a rural area. The campground stopped being officially religious in 1957. However, the cottages are still used as summer homes today.
