pamclawson

Hot Springs National Park

It took me two days to drive from San Antonio, Texas to my final stop, Hot Springs, Arkansas (567 miles). I spent the night northeast of Dallas then finished the drive to Hot Springs on Sunday, November 3.

On Monday I “took the waters” at the Quapaw Baths. It is a beautifully modern, remodeled bathhouse. For about $20 all day I had my option of four very large “pools”, actually very large “Jacuzzi” type tubs each potentially holding 20 – 30 people. One pool was set at 95 degrees, another 98 degrees, a third 102 degrees and the fourth 104 degrees. There were 30 or so chaise lounges surrounding the pools. I spent 10 – 15 minutes in each of the first three pools (104 degrees is too hot for me!) with a 10 minute rest on a lounge between each pool dip. I added to the basic package with a private mineral bath and a 30 minute massage. This bathhouse did not offer traditional spa services (body wraps, body polishes, facials, etc.) other than massages and no salon services (waxes, hair styling, manni/pedi etc.) either. I was very relaxed at the end of the day!

People have known about the healing and relaxing properties of the hot springs in this area for thousands of years. The first Europeans to visit the springs were said to be Father Marquette and Jolliet who claimed the area for France in 1673. Other Europeans visited the springs intermittently but the first settlers arrived in the early 1800’s. When Arkansas became a territory in 1819 it requested the hot springs area and the adjacent mountains be set aside as a Federal Reservation to protect the thermal waters. In 1832 the Hot Springs Reservation was created by the US Congress and in 1921 the reservation was renamed Hot Springs National Park.

About 700,000 gallons of 143 degree water flows from 47 springs on the western slope of Hot Springs Mountain per day. The flow is not affected by rainfall fluctuations in the area. Radiocarbon dating has shown that the water that reaches the surface actually fell as rainfall 4,400 years earlier. Surface water gradually trickles down through the earth’s crust about 8000 feet until it reaches a super-heated area and then rushes up to emerge from the springs. It takes less than 100 years for the water to reach the surface after it is heated.

Unlike some hot springs this water has no distinct odor. It has a relatively low mineral content. The rock it flows through is mainly made up of silica, calcium and bicarbonate. Only traces of magnesium, potassium, sulfate, chloride, iron and zinc are present in the thermal water. The average pH of the hot springs is neutral, at just over 7.

To keep the springs free of contamination as early as the late 1800’s piping and wooden trough structures were built to route the spring water directly to the bathhouses. The current underground collection system has been in place since 1974. The National Park Service is responsible for routing the water to the bathhouses, hotels and drinking fountains.

Hot Springs is also known for nearby Oaklawn horse racing track and gaming (January thru April). Historically, Hot Springs hosted Baseball Spring Training and also attracted gangsters. Those days are over but tourists can visit the Gangster Museum.

Left: I stayed two nights in the tired, old Park Hotel in Hot Springs, Arkansas. It was completed in 1930. It is said to be the favorite Hot Springs Hotel of President Harry S. Truman. I like quaint hotels with lots of history and personality but this hotel, unfortunately, was just old. Middle: Layout of “Bathhouse Row”. The old bath houses are shown in blue. The street is shown to the left of the baths and the carriage road (white) and trails (dotted lines) are shown to the right of the baths. A hillside rises sharply behind (to the right as shown) the bath houses. The hot springs flow out of that hillside. Right: The Grand Promenade runs along the hillside behind the bath buildings.
The Grand Promenade passes several natural hot springs as they exit to the surface. The Promenade also passes by many hot springs that have been capped off and directed to the baths, hotels and drinking fountains.
The spring above was left as is so the public can see what springs originally looked like.
  • Prior to becoming a National Park this area was protected as a US Reservation
  • Layout of Bathhouse Row
  • Hale Bathhouse
  • Superior Baths – now used as a brewery and restaurant
  • Fordyce Bathhouse used now as the National Park Service Visitor Center
  • Quapaw Baths – still used as a bathhouse – I “took the waters” here
  • Maurice Bathhouse, closest, then Hale Baths, looking up Central Avenue
  • Looking up hillside between Maurice and Fordyce Bathhouses
  • Fordyce Bathhouse, closest, then Quapa Bath, looking down Central Avenue
Superior Baths was established as early as 1829 but the current building was constructed in 1916 and closed in 1983.
The Hale Bathhouse was built in 1892 but was drastically altered in 1914 and 1939.
The Fordyce Bathhouse opened in 1915 and closed in 1962. While no longer a functioning bathhouse, the renovated building has served as the NPS Visitor Center and museum since 1989.
The Quapaw Bathhouse is one of two bathhouses in operation on bathhouse row. It has been modernized and it the one I enjoyed.
The Maurice Bathhouse opened in 1912 and closed in 1974. In its peak year, 1946, it gave 67,587 baths. Currently closed to the public.
There are three additional bathhouse buildings on Bathhouse Row I don’t have pictures of: the Ozark, used as a cultural center; the Buckstaff that is still an active bathhouse and offers more traditional style baths and the Lamar, currently functioning as a shop offering spa products.
  • Lobby of Fordyce Bathhouse and National Park Visitor Center & Museum
  • Dressing Room – men’s on 2nd floor, women’s on first floor
  • Women’s beauty shop – only women allowed
  • Third floor parlor – and example of women’s exercise clothing
  • Third floor parlor
  • Third floor parlor
  • Third floor parlor and men’s casual resort clothing
  • Tub for rehabilitation patients
  • Elevator – men and women could not ride together – operator controlled access
  • Men’s dressing area was much more ornate than women’s
  • Men’s Gym – Babe Ruth worked out here
  • One of the bath tubs
  • A needle shower
  • Stained glass window ceiling
  • Men’s side of the parlor – note the victrola to provide music. There was also live piano music.
Between 1896 and 1951 a bandstand sat on a hillside between the Maurice and Fordyce Bathhouses. This was the centerpiece of the Hot Springs Park.
  • Across the street from the baths were many shopping opportunities
  • Many of the bathhouses had deep porches to sit and watch the traffic
  • One of many shops across from Bathhouse Row
  • Need to know your fortune?
  • The Ohio Club – built in 1905 – served as bar, restaurant and casino.
  • Al Capone, “Lucky” Luciano, “Bugsy” Siegel, Frank Constello and other mobsters and baseball players
  • Arlington Resort & Spa – opened 1924
  • Buildings on Central Avenue

On Tuesday, November 5 I began the drive home. I got as far as Elizabethtown, Kentucky and on the 6th I drove through Portsmouth to see Dad and ended up in Columbus Wednesday evening.