William Benjamin Bloys was born January 26, 1847 in McLemoresville, Tennessee to Mordecai Dowell Bloys and Amelia Patterson Yeargain Bloys. He was the second son and second child of the couple. By the time the 1870 federal census was taken, the family had moved to near Marion, Illinois located in the southern part of the state. W. D. was 23 years old, single and was the oldest son or daughter still living at home. His father’s profession was listed as saddler and W. B.’s profession was listed as farmer. He also had shown a strong interest in becoming a minister and he attended Lane Theological Seminary, graduating in 1879. The Presbyterian Church had conceived the idea in the early 1800s to create a seminary in a western location. Cincinnati was chosen as the site for Lane Seminary. The institution became known for its emphasis and focus on the question of slavery, hosting student debates on the subject as far back as the 1830s. Bloys was ordained as a minister in April, 1879 and was married one month later to Isabella Catherine Yeck, also of Illinois.
Rev. Bloys wanted to be a foreign missionary, but a chronic lung issue resulted ultimately in his being assigned in the mid 1880s instead to Fort Davis in far West Texas. There he would serve for the next 32 years. For his service, he became known with great respect as “Little Father of the Hills.” Once in Texas, Rev. Bloys served as pastor of a small church in Fort Davis. Rev. Bloys soon came to appreciate the beauty of the area and also grew to love the western and cowboy life. He struggled to find a way to minister to other interested people living in the sparsely populated area who had no access to churches. There were many who lived where there were no sizeable settlements large enough to support a church of any kind. He did not expect them to come to his location, so he began to think of ways that he might minister to them and worship in the outdoors, as many of them might prefer.
In 1890, Rev. Bloys organized the first camp meeting at a place called Skillman Grove in the Davis Mountains about 16 miles out of Fort Davis. The elevation is roughly 6,000 feet above sea level. It was a beautiful area featuring some 640 acres of live oak trees. The concept was to periodically host services where people could gather once a year for about a week at a time. Some of the attendees would have to travel for two or three days to reach the location. These services generated increasing interest over the years. Rev. Bloys put together a coalition of ministers and other interested people from various Protestant denominations to provide the teaching each year.
Little by little, improvements were made including a large tabernacle, a water system supplying each arbor, a storehouse, electric lighting, concrete floors for the open air meeting places and sidewalks. Attendees would get there by walking, riding in buggies or horseback. Support was provided by area individuals whose names might be familiar to the Big Bend: W. Wash Evans, Bill Jones, John Z. Means, George Medley, C. O. “Ote” Finley, W. L. “Bill” Kingston, Captain J. B. “Jim” Gillett, Andrew G. Prude and others who contributed funding, donated beef cattle and other supplies for the meetings. Women were invited to come. The earliest service only had a few people in attendance, but soon grew to a crowd that would number well over 1,000. Meetings lasted five days.
Back in 1923, a Fort Worth Star-Telegram reporter named Max Bentley was assigned to tell the story of the camp meetings. He and staff artist Wallace Simpson traveled to West Texas to research the history of Rev. Bloys and the camp. Bentley quoted a cowman who described the late Rev. Bloys as having been “no bigger than a bullfrog” and added that he was dearly loved by those who came to know him. By that time, Bloys had passed away some six years earlier. Bentley’s article began by describing the blue-gray granite monument placed on the grounds to honor Rev. Bloys. The inscription on it read “In memory of our beloved brother, Dr. W. B. Bloys, founder and for 17 years the faithful leader of this camp meeting.”
Bentley reported that the 34th meeting of the Bloys Camp Meeting Association had just ended and noted that attendees included members of the second and third generation of people who had come to the first meetings. The location was described as being at the center of a triangle whose points were Fort Davis, Marfa and Valentine attracting people from an area that is larger than most states.
Giving more background about Rev. Bloys, he noted that the minister was 38 years old when he first settled in Coleman in 1879. There he met Bill Jones and Jesse Merrill. Eight years later they moved to far West Texas and Bloys was able to move as well, in his capacity as a Presbyterian home missionary. Though he worked for the Presbyterian denomination, he exhibited great warmth and had a knack for engaging people of all Christian denominations by emphasizing the basic truths of “the Book,” as some referred to the Bible.
Bentley noted that there were two basic rules for the meetings: denominational differences were to be erased and everything was to be free, down to tents, bedding, meals, water, lights and food. No one needed to leave hungry. No offering was taken; no collection plates were passed. The whole cost of the meeting was borne by members of the Association. On the last day of the meeting, the Association held a business meeting to discuss the cost. Someone had apparently told the writer that if a cowman had to leave early, it would not be unusual for him to leave a signed check and for the treasurer to write in the amount later. The Association had no dues.
Bentley reported that at the most recent meeting about 1,500 people had been counted at a morning service. An observer noted that there were around 100 tents and 200 automobiles. Several of the named early founders were still in attendance, Means, Evans, Gillett, Jones, Finley and Kingston. Many had rarely missed a meeting. Means, for example, had only missed two meetings in over 30 years. Means told him a bit more about his early meeting with Rev. Bloys, and how they had been talking about a way to get people together. Means mentioned the grove as being a good place to gather and the rest of the planning seemed to naturally spring from the idea. They cleaned out an area and built a brush arbor. The first meeting lasted two days. A few years later they were offered the land for $2 per acre, $640 down and the balance payable whenever they wanted to pay. Mr. Means went on to discuss the early growth of the camp and how instrumental Rev. Bloys was to the whole operation.
Rev. and Mrs. Bloys had seven children, five sons and two daughters. He was awarded an honorary doctorate degree by Centenary College. Rev. Bloys died on March 22, 1917 and Mrs. Bloys survived him another 18 years. Both are buried in Hillcrest Cemetery in Fort Davis. On the occasion of his death a newspaper writer paraphrased the familiar “mousetrap” quote attributed to Ralph Waldo Emerson to say that “Dr. Bloys built a hut of love, and the cowboy world beat many a path to its door.”
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