Mineral Wells
Mineral Wells is about 45 minutes west of Ft. Worth and located off of highway's. 180 and 281. Mineral Wells located in the far south-east corner of Palo Pinto County which borders: Parker County, Earth County, Stephens County, Jack County and Young County.
The Baker Hotel | Crazy Water Hotel | Famous Mineral Water Company
Lake Mineral Wells State Park & Trailway | National Vietnam War Museum
The Baker Hotel
Mineral Wells has a
rich history and many historic places as well as around Palo Pinto
County. The most notable feature in Mineral Wells, has to be the Baker Hotel.
When traveling to Mineral Wells from Hwy. 281 the view of the Baker Hotel can
be seen at least 8 miles from town. The Baker is the highest structure in the
skyline and one can not but help notice it in the distance. The hotel was owned
by T.B. Baker, who owned The Baker in Dallas and Saint Anthony in San Antonio.
Wyatt C. Hendrick and Company Architects designed and built the Baker Hotel,
which was to resemble the Arlington
Hotel (now Arlington Resort Hotel & Spa) in Hot Springs, Arkansas, which
is still open today.
The Baker Hotel in Mineral Wells was a grand hotel
with 14 stories and 450 rooms and a rooftop solarium for rooms on the
11th floor. Mr. Baker actually had his own suite on the 11th floor.
It opened its doors in 1929, but the owners filed for bankruptcy in 1932, but
many people have managed to keep the hotel going until 1972. For a brief
period, 1941 to 1944, the hotel was used by the military to house military
families. Since the 1970's, the hotel has stood and the city of Mineral Wells
as well as the new owner hope to restore the hotel in the next several years,
according to reports as of January 2007. Many movie stars of the era graced
their presence at the Baker, such as, the Three
Stooges, Helen Keller, Will
Rogers and Jean Harlow and many entertainers performed there as well, such as,
Lawrence Welk, Judy Garland and Pat Boone.
The Baker Hotel also played
host to the Republican State Convention in 1952 and the Democratic State
Convention many times.
The Crazy Water Hotel
People
flocked to Mineral Wells prior to the opening of the Baker. Another attraction
was the Mineral Springs and mineral water that could cure anything! My
Grandfather, who lived in Central Texas, had heard of Mineral Wells because of
the mineral water and the majestic Baker Hotel. The Crazy Water Hotel was built
in 1914 near well No. 3., which was dug in 1888. The history of the Crazy Water
Hotel is that a well was dug by James A. Lynch because his family need fresh
water as well as his farm, so he dug a well near his home. When Lynch went to
drink the water he found that is was "too foul smelling to be drinkable"
(Hopkins). After awhile they needed the water so badly that Lynch's wife drank
the water. Eventually, after drinking the water for little while, she said her
arthritis was cured due to the mineral water.
The well water had enriched
minerals which made it "prime medicinal value", of course this was way before
the FDA (Federal Drug Administration) was created (Hopkins). In a small town
word gets around and of course, the claim was that the mineral water had
"healing" powers. So, The Crazy Water Hotel was built near well No. 3 upon the
discovery of Lynch and the need of a hotel in the town. According to Bob
Hopkins' article, "Ghosts of the Crazy Water Hotel", he has researched that well
No. 3 was actually called "the Crazy Water Well", but the children referred to
the well as "the Crazy Well". The word "Well" was dropped from the name and was
thus, called "Crazy Water". Hopkins' also has found that the original name for
Mineral Wells was actually "Endaville" which was established a short time after
the changing of well No. 3's name (Hopkins). The Crazy Water Hotel was four
stories tall but a fire destroyed the hotel in March 1925.
In 1927, the
hotel was rebuilt by Carr and Hal Collins from Dallas. The new Crazy Water
Hotel was built on the original foundation of the first with seven stories and
two bathhouses. Electric elevators were even installed in the new hotel with
200 rooms. Many people visited the Crazy Water Hotel as well as Mineral Wells
but things simmered down from the hype of miraculous mineral water and the hotel
in the 1940's. Today the Crazy Water Hotel is a retirement home and great place
to visit for the nostalgic era.
The Famous Mineral Water
Company
This business is still going strong in downtown Mineral Wells
where you can taste free samples of the famous mineral water as well as buy it.
Ed Dismuke, pharmacist from Waco, started the company in 1904. Dismuke came to
Mineral Wells for the healing power of the mineral water since he had a stomach
ailment and eventually moved permanently to Mineral Wells. Dismuke's diagnoses
was not good since doctors told him that he didn't have long to live, (he was in
his 40's) and he lived a long life to his late '90s!
Dismuke started a
business where he would sell mineral water to visitors in town by the cup. He
partnered with Cicero Smith, a banker, and they bought property on West Mountain
where they had a recreational area around Lake Pinto (called at the time).
They
dug a well around the lake and found mineral water, so they pumped it to the now
infamous, Famous Water Company.
According to literature from the Mineral
Wells Chamber of Commerce, in the '60s, A.D. Stone and his wife dug a deeper
well and "the deep well produces portable water with a mineral content about
one-third as high as the original 'Crazy Water'" (MW Chamber of
Commerce).
The mineral water is safe to drink and comes in three
varieties: Premium (no minerals), Natural Deep Well Mineral Water (medium
mineral content) and Natural Crazy Mineral Water (high mineral content). The
mineral water goes through a process where it is "ozonated and treated with
ultra-violet light to kill" bacteria and it is filtered in reverse
osmosis.
Live entertainment on Friday nights are at the Famous Mineral
Water Company located at the Famous Pavilion. Current owners are the Elder
& Arnesons families. To learn more about the Famous Mineral Water Company
please visit their website.
Lake Mineral Wells State Park &
Trailway
Nature at its best. There are so many activities at the Lake
Mineral Wells State Park & Trailway...from fishing to nature trails to
biking on the nature trail. The park even hosts many activities from Night
Sounds, where people can take in the sounds of nature and survival classes for
children in the wilderness. Located off US-180 on the East side of town, over
3,200 acres of Lake Mineral Wells and nature trails.
The park has the
new "Lone Star Amphitheater" where events take place. Permitted in the park
are: horses for horseback riding, hiking, bicycling as well as available
campsites for over night stays. The fees are: $5 a day per person age 13 or
older; Free for children 12 and under. Group sponsored trips are permitted, but
contact the park for fee's and rules. The park is open year round and the hours
are 6 AM to 10 PM.
This is one place to visit in Mineral Wells if you are
looking for a great place to take family or to camp. To learn more please visit
the Lake Mineral Wells State Park & Trailway link located on the Texas
Parks & Wildlife Department website.
The National Vietnam War
Museum
This attraction will be the first in the United States
dedicated to the veterans of the Vietnam War. When this site is complete it
will have 11 exhibits that will go chronological through the war. The ground
work has already been broken with a foundation for the Service Center as well as
the Mediation, Contemplation and Vietnam Memorial Garden. The museum site is
located off Highway 180 (Mineral Wells Hwy.) on the East side of Mineral Wells,
for directions, please
click here.
The project was started in 1998 and the following year
the 12-acre site was purchased. This museum will be based on an "unbiased story
of the more than 5 million servicemen and women who served" in this war. The
culture of the Vietnamese as well as their history will also be told and how
the United States viewed this war. To learn more about this historic museum or
to become a supporter, please visit their website here.
******
Sources: Hopkins, Bob. "Ghosts of the Crazy Water
Hotel". Texas Escapes. Jul.
2002. 09 Mar. 2007 <http://www.texasescapes.com/TexasPanhandleTowns/MineralWellsTexas/
GhostsofCrazyWaterHotel.htm>; Mineral Wells Chamber of Commerce. Pamphlet.
<http://www.mineralwellstx.com>; Stucco, Johnny. "Baker Hotel:
Rooms with a Past". Texas
Escapes. Aug. 2002. 09 Mar. 2007 <http://www.texasescapes.com/Texas
PanhandleTowns/MineralWellsTexas/BakerHotelMineralWellsRWP.htm>; The National Vietnam War Museum, Inc. 09 Mar.
2007 <http://www.nationalvnwarmuseum.org./
index.htm>