Anderson Camp Ground
Also known as: Brushy Creek Arbor and United Methodist Church
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Why it's listed
Anderson Camp Ground is a wooded 5.6-acre religious site in rural Anderson County, Texas, centered on a wooden arbor built in 1874 and a frame church completed in 1894. The arbor is an open-sided, post-and-lintel structure with exposed rafters and hand-worked timbers, some joined with pegged rabbet splices. The one-story weatherboard church has simple Gothic Revival details, including lancet windows and a small belfry. An artesian spring nearby supplied water for drinking, cooking and baptisms. Methodist camp meetings here drew families by wagon each summer for days of preaching and socializing. Arbors like this were rarely built to last, and most in Texas have been lost, which makes the survival of this one notable. The last formal camp meetings took place in the early 1930s, but the church still holds services twice a month and the arbor is used for revivals and singing. The site has changed little since the nineteenth century.
Significance in brief: The Brushy Creek Arbor is argued to be one of the few surviving arbors in Texas from the 1870s, a once-common structure type used to shelter Protestant camp meetings. The arbor, church and landscape retain their 19th-century character. The camp meetings were important social and religious gatherings for surrounding farm communities.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 82001735, listed December 27, 1982. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | W of Brushy Creek on SR 837, Brushy Creek |
|---|---|
| County | Anderson County |
| Listed | December 27, 1982 |
| Reference number | 82001735 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1800-1899 |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival (church); open-sided post-and-lintel arbor |
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Religion |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Occupied and in use; church services are held twice a month and the arbor is still used for revivals, singing and other activities. Condition is listed as good to fair. |
| Acreage | 5.6 |
| Coordinates | 31.95422, -95.62320 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
National Register listing is honorary: it recognises significance and does not restrict what a private owner may do without federal money or permits. It unlocks the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit for income-producing buildings, state credits in many states, and Section 106 review when federal agencies are involved. See what listing means in practice.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 82001735.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q4754034
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.