We boarded the coach for the short trip from Falmouth to the ferry terminal at Woods hole before embarking on the ferry to Edgartown and Martha’s Vineyard. Once on the island we headed for Wesleyan Grove, a historic settlement in the town of Oaks Buff. 

Known as the Campgrounds, it began as a Methodist Church campground in the 1860’s. Church members would camp there in the summer months and hold open air revival meetings. Over time people started to build small cottages, at one time there were up to 500, today there is just over 300. The vast majority are very ornate and quant, painted in bright colours, because of their size and design are referred to as ‘gingerbread cottages’.  Wesleyan Grove is now a designated National Historic Landmark District.

Today the Campground is a community of summer residents and a smaller number of year-round residents. Many of the cottages have been owned by the same families for generations. 

After a walk round the Campgrounds we headed back to Oaks Bluff and the ferry back to Falmouth.