Byerlys Camp Ground Cemetery

Adam Byerly migrated to Texas from South Carolina in 1833 with his father and two younger brothers. He received a Mexican land grant of one-quarter league in 1835. Shortly afterward, he invited the Rev. Henry Stephenson, early Methodist missionary, to preach under a brush arbor on his property and initiated the first of many camp meetings at this site. Pioneer families traveled by wagon and camped here for a week or longer to worship and socialize. At one meeting about 1837, the Rev. Stephenson's daughter Edith (1814-1858) married Adam Byerly's brother William (1805-1884). In 1843 Adam and his wife Nancy deeded 10 acres, including the camp ground site, to the Methodist Episcopal Church. About 1850 the Methodists erected a frame church building and opened this cemetery for community use. Earliest known grave is that of Edith Stephenson Byerly. Several faiths shared use of the church building, from 1898 to 1937, the structure also housed the community school. Camp meetings ended in the 1930s. The Methodist congregation erected a new church in 1948 on land donated by William Byerly's grandson Adam, and the old building was razed. A cemetery association, formed in 1970, maintains the burial ground.

Byerlys Camp Ground Cemetery is a historical marker in Jasper, Jasper County, dedicated in 1977. It is one of 43 historical markers documented in Jasper County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 104 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 30.9082, -94.0743 near Jasper. The nearest cataloged historic site is Byerly Campground (White) (cemetery), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Campground Cemetery, Bevilport, and West Oak.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5241010437. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.