After the American Revolution, a wave of Protestant revival known as the Second Great Awakening swept across the young United States, finding especially fertile ground in the South. It fueled rapid growth among Baptist, Methodist, and Presbyterian congregations in Georgia. One lasting result was the rise of the camp meeting ground—special gathering places for extended revival services. Many of these sites still exist today, and Poplar Springs Methodist Camp Ground in Franklin County is one of them, established in 1832 on 50 acres purchased for just 25 cents an acre.

The earliest camp meetings were simple affairs, held outdoors with worshipers camping on-site. Over time, permanent features developed: a large open tabernacle or “arbor” for services, surrounded by rustic cabins known as “tents,” often passed down through generations. Choosing a site depended heavily on the land’s natural features, with shade trees and reliable water sources being essential. Poplar Springs had both. According to a history written for its centennial celebration, the name came from “the six big poplar trees which grew at these springs. The springs are still in place but hardly so good and cold as then, while the big poplar trees are felled and gone.”

Camp meetings were already a well-established tradition in Georgia by the time Poplar Springs began. One of the earliest recorded took place in February 1803 on Shoulderbone Creek in Hancock County, drawing more than 3,000 attendees. These gatherings typically lasted five days, with multiple services each day. As described in the centennial history:

“The trumpet blew at 8:00 am, and at 11:00, and at 3:00 pm, and at early candlelight. The tent doors were opened at the sound of the trumpet, and all went to the arbor to hear the gospel by the old veterans of the Cross with the old-time religion in their hearts. And God was in it, and some were saved at every service.” Nearly two centuries later, Poplar Springs continues that legacy, offering a living connection to Georgia’s revival tradition and the faith community that grew from it.