One of the most photogenic historical locations I shoot. Completely different also.  The first camp here was around 1801 – 1810.  People gathered to hear the preaching from circuit evangelists, revival meetings.

Current grounds are from 1848 to have more permanent structures.  The design of the campground (and other camps) was taken from the Book of Leviticus in the Bible. A Tabernacle surrounded by 99 tents (now old wooden cabins).

Below was taken from inside the open air building, the ground is covered by straw.

Next is a view of the Tabernacle with the most recent repairs. It’s likely an ongoing project.

A view of the tents (cabins) from one of the benches. The tents are owned by families and passed down through the generations.

Once a year each fall camp meetings are held by the local Methodist Churches. There are several other camp grounds also in South Carolina.

Indian Fields Methodist Campground, St. George, South Carolina.

Note; we have been photographing the camps for a number of years. When there we are respectful and have met church members, been kindly invited into their cabins, and shot the local churches associated with these camps. Search for Camp on this web site for other series of photographs.

Indian Field Methodist Campground is a camp meeting site for the Methodist Church in Dorchester County, South Carolina.

Started in 1787, the camp was built and repaired 1801, 1810, 1886.  Meetings are held yearly, storms, wars, and pandemics don’t get in the way of the meeting.

Before moving to the Lowcountry I had never heard of old camp meetings still being held. While only used a week each year, the camps are small permanent (uninhabited) settlements.

These are some of the most incredible locations for a photographer. It’s important to be respectful and remember this is private, church, property.

For the monochrome users;

• OM Systems OM-1 (1)
• OM 12-40
• Lightroom / DxO NIK Silver Efex Software

These photographs were taken from inside the Indian Fields Methodist tabernacle, looking out at the surrounding ‘tents’, the communities cabins.

The tabernacle is opened sided and surrounded by 99 cabins (tents). The circular design of 99 tents around the tabernacle comes from the descriptions in Leviticus (and Exodus) in the Bible, from the old testament.

The camps were built in 1787, 1819, and 1886.

‘The internal layout of each tent varies, but typically each has two upstairs bedrooms with a central stairway. The downstairs usually has a dining area towards the front and another bedroom at the rear. Historically the occupants of the upstairs bedrooms were divided by gender, while the downstairs bedroom was reserved for the older members of the family. The downstairs rooms may be connected with a hallway, or the rooms may have individual exterior doors. The downstairs areas have dirt floors that are typically covered with straw during camp meetings. The cooking area is below a shed attached to the rear of the tent. There is a wood-burning brick or cinderblock fireplace under the cook shed, and usually a small room for the cook’s quarters.’ (Wikipedia)

Indian Fields, St. George, South Carolina.