Forts Trail Region

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A WELL FULL OF MINERALS

Mineral Wells founder (and first well digger) J. A. Lynch claimed that drinking and bathing in the local mineral waters cured his “rheumatism”, a 19th century term that described no real medical disorder other than “aches and pains”. Lynch capitalized on the nation’s health craze - a late 19th century phenomenon that swept the country - and spread word of his claims, drawing both famous and common folk from all over the country seeking the water’s advertized curative properties. Mineral Wells benefitted as well as bathhouses and resort hotels began to populate its streets. The resort business remained lively through the first decades of the 20th century, an era of growth and construction that included the Baker Hotel. The hotel, host to celebrity guests, opened two weeks after the Wall Street crash of 1929, a matter of timing that has perhaps haunted the landmark edifice. Mineral Wells also hosted Camp Wolters, a World War II military installation that, after a brief closing after the war, became Wolters Air Force Base and training ground for helicopter pilots. A Texas Main Street city, Mineral Wells continues to capitalize on its mineral-rich waters today, a heritage tourist attraction headed by the one hundred year old Famous Mineral Water Company.