Editing Rehoboth Beach, Delaware (section)

===19th century===
By the mid-19th century, the descendants of these landholders were farmers attempting to make a living off the relatively poor sandy infertile land.<ref>Meehan, p. 19</ref> The town was founded in 1873 as the '''Rehoboth Beach Camp Meeting Association''' by the Rev. Robert W. Todd, of St. Paul's [[Methodist Episcopal Church]] of [[Wilmington, Delaware]], as a site for [[Methodist Episcopal Church]] [[camp meeting]]s in the spirit of similar resorts further north on the [[New Jersey]] shore, such as [[Ocean Grove, New Jersey|Ocean Grove]]. The Camp Meeting Association disbanded in 1881, and in 1891, the location was incorporated by the [[Delaware General Assembly|General Assembly of Delaware]] ([[State legislature (United States)|state legislature]]) as "Cape Henlopen City". In 1893, it was renamed to Rehoboth Beach.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://archives.delaware.gov/markers/sc/SC-90.shtml|title=State of Delaware – Delaware Public Archives – Sussex County Markers|website=archives.delaware.gov}}</ref>

The first boardwalk in Rehoboth Beach was constructed in 1873 and has seen changes in configuration from weather and storms over the years.<ref name=aboutrehoboth/> The Junction and Breakwater Railroad constructed a line from [[Lewes, Delaware|Lewes]] south to Rehoboth Beach in 1878, running down the center of today's Rehoboth Avenue. The arrival of the railroad allowed visitors to come in from northern Delaware and [[Pennsylvania]] and its cities and towns, leading to the beginning of Rehoboth Beach as a tourist destination.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.capegazette.com/affiliate-post/rehoboth-beach-history-riding-iron-horse-nations-summer-capital/122164|title=Rehoboth Beach History – Riding an "Iron Horse" to the Nation's Summer Capital|author=The Oldfather Group|date=December 14, 2016|newspaper=Cape Gazette|access-date=February 7, 2018}}</ref> After the railroad came to Rehoboth Beach, the center of camp meetings and city life moved to nearby Baltimore Avenue. The original Henlopen Hotel opened in 1879, being replaced with another hotel of the same name on the current site.