In the1880s, elegant frame bathhouses were erected along Bathhouse Row on the east side of Central Avenue. First to appear was the Ozark Bathhouse, built on bathhouse sites no.4, taking over the previous spot of the Weir and George’s Iron and Magnesia Bathhouse after it burned down in 1878. The Independence, Rammelsburg, and Palace Bathhouses were built the same year.

By 1887, the Lamar, Superior, Horse Shoe, Magnesia, Rector and Hale bathhouses opened. Because of the wooden structure of the bathhouses, fires plagued Bathhouse Row until 1911, when several of the bathhouses were leveled to rebuild structures of concrete, brick, stucco, and steel. As Hot Springs grew, Hot Springs Creek soon became a small open sewer. The government enclosed part of the creek with a masonry arch, additional sidewalks, and fountains adjoining the hotels. Eventually, Magnolia trees were interspersed among the Lombardy poplars lining the sidewalk, as well as grass, clover, and three hundred or so young shade trees to Bathhouse Row.

 

In the early 1900s, people sipped at almost every seep in Hot Springs National Park. People felt that the hot springs had medicinal characteristics and bathed to cure illnesses like syphilis, insomnia and nervousness. Massage services were added in some bathhouses by 1893. Originally called a "masseur" or "masseuse,” those giving massages were not called massage therapists until the 1960s. The work did not directly involve the hot spring water, so the massage business was not monitored as closely. By the early 1900s, all bathhouses offered massage services.

Mercury was the primary treatment for syphilis until the advent of penicillin in the 1940s. The mercury rubber applied an ointment containing mercury to the bather as directed by their physician to treat syphilis. It was applied using a glove or brush. Before the park hired a medical director to supervise bathhouse operations, bath attendants were required to rub the mercury and to supply the necessary ointment.

 

When medical science of the 20^th century no longer saw hot bathes as the cure all for illness, it caused a decrease in business. The Fordyce Bathhouse closed in 1962, then the Maurice, Ozark, and Hale in the 1970s. The Quapaw, Superior, and Lamar closed in 1984, leaving Buckstaff as the only hot springs in existence today.

Credits and Sources:

Shugart, Sharon. “The Hot Springs of Arkansas Through The Years: A Chronology Of Events -Excerpts-.” Department of the Interior, 2004. http://www.nps.gov/hosp/learn/historyculture/upload/chronology.web.pdf. (accessed June 15, 2015).

“Hot Springs National Park-African Americans and the Hot Springs Baths.” National Park Service, http://www.nps.gov/features/hosp/feat0001/african_americans_baths/phototour25.html (accessed June 18, 2015).

Hunt, William J. Jr. “More Than Meets the Eye: The Archeology of Bathhouse Row, Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas.” Lincoln, Nebraska: Midwest Archeology Center, 2008. http://www.nps.gov/mwac/publications/pdf/tech102.pdf (accessed June 18, 2015).

Quinn Evans Architects, Mundus Bishop Design, and Woolpert, Inc. Hot Springs National Park, Cultural Landscape Report and Environmental Assessment. National Park Service, 2010.