America's Best History ... Hot Springs, Arkansas
Hot Springs, Arkansas, 1901

The remnants of a lost age, when Victorian baths at 143 degrees would draw visitors from the midwest and southern stratus of society to the town in the Ozarks known for those pure and healthful hot baths.  Today we wouldn't necessarily think of Arkansas as the place where the rich, as well as other classes, would spend their summer days, but that's just where they went, and still do, with over one million visitors to the national park each year.  And today, the actual remnants of those baths sits in one of the most unique national parks in the nation, Hot Springs National Park.  Picture above, Hot Springs Reservation from Tower of Eastman Hotel, 1901.  Courtesy LOC.

Although many think of the park as the row of bathhouses, you'd be surprised to know how large a national park Hot Springs is.  Nearly 5,000 acres are owned by the Park Service and it includes twenty-six miles of hiking trails, a great amount of places to take a leisurely drive, plus a tower that rises above the area and gives out a great view.  But of course, the most unique part about this place is those baths and bathhouses, and in some of them, you can still partake in one.  In 2008, the Quapaw Bathhouses reopened, joining the Buckstaff on Bathhouse Row as places to enjoy the present and past.  Several of the other bathhouses are under restoration, too.  You can take a ranger guided tour of them, see park staff for times, as well as view the exhibits in the visitor center, which is housed in the Fordyce Bathhouse.
Timeline of Bathhouse Row

Late 1700s - Local Indian tribes used the hot springs water to bath.  The origins of the waters are reported to be 4,000 years old.
1803 - The United States purchases the Louisiana Territory and sends an expedition by William Dunbar and George Hunter to explore the springs.
1832 - U.S. Government buys hot springs land as the first federal area protecting a natural resource.
1877 - Private claims to land settled.
1884 - Hot Springs Creek is channeled and now runs under Central Avenue.
1921 - Hot Springs Reservation is made a National Park.


Things You Should Not Miss

1. Take a bath along Bathhouse Row.  Both the Buckstaff, which has been open since 1912, and no reservations are necessary.  Reopened in 2008, the Quapaw was built in 1922, and is the newest option for a leisurely bath in the park.

2.  Take the Fordyce Bathhouse or one of the other Ranger guided tours, including the Bathhouse Row Insider's Tour, and Discovering the Waters Tour.  They may be the best source of information about the Victorian era and the height of bathhouse days.  Lots of famous people have visited the Fordyce, including FDR and his wife.

3. Take a drive or hike through the hills above the bathhouses and explore what the rest of Hot Springs National Park has to offer.

4. Take a stroll down the promenade.  There are eight bathhouses in the historic district of the park, although I'm not sure you want to dress like that fellow and his girls below today.

Victorian beach crew


Lodging and Camping

Hot Springs National Park has one campground within the park, the Gulpha Gorge Campground, but no other lodging.  Plenty of lodging is available in the town of Hot Springs and camping opportunities abound in the Ouachita National Forest, Lake Ouachita, and state parks nearby.

Hot Springs Links

Hot Springs National Park
Hot Springs Visitors Bureau


Nearby Attractions

Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism
Central High School National Historic Site
Arkansas Post National Memorial

Hot Springs Then and Now

Bath Houses of Hot Springs, Arkansas

Hot Springs Then
Take a gander at the print above, from Woodward and Tiernan in 1888, showing what Hot Springs looked like then.  It was a resplendent Victorian resort with an Ozark mountain backdrop, glorious hotels, and those bathhouses. You can almost feel the old-time guys and gals walking from the houses.  The first bathhouses were crude, wood, and hovered over the springs themselves.  All of these are gone, replaced in the early part of the 20th century by the larger and more elaborate structures which remain today.

The springs have been used for nearly two hundred years and during a period of time from 1880-1940, were also a top spring training site for the baseball teams of the Chicago White Stockings, Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, and others.
   

Hot Springs Now
Hot Springs Bath House

Bathhouse Row and the Bathouse Row Historic District - Eight historic bathhouses, a visitor center, orientation movies, and guided tours.  Photo above of one of the bathhouses today, NPS.

Hot Springs Mountain Tower - Located on Hot Springs Mountain Drive, this is the third tower to occupy the sight since 1877 and provides a great view of the mountains.
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Visitor Statistics

Hot Springs National Park
1,396,354 Visitors

#48 Most Visited National Park Unit

Park Size
Hot Springs National Park

4,937 acres (Federal)
5,550 acres (Total)

Source: NPS 2011, Visitor Rank among 367 units.

Hot Springs National Historic Park
 Entrance Fees

Free

Hot Springs National Park Weather
In summer expect hot and very humid with mild springs and fall. Winter temps can be cold, but vary.

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