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Washington Heritage Trail
 
 
Jefferson County, WV
About Jefferson County
Harpers Ferry
Harpers Ferry National Historical Park
Jefferson Rock
Shenandoah Canal
Shepherdstown
Entler Hotel
Rumsey Monument and Tobacco Warehouse
Morgan's Grove Park
Peter Burr House
Charles Town
Jefferson County Courthouse and Museum
Zion Episcopal Church
Happy Retreat
St. George's Chapel Ruins
Harewood
Cedar Lawn
Claymont Court/Blakeley
Middleway Historic District
Berkeley County, WV
About Berkeley County
Martinsburg
B&O Roundhouse & Station Complex
Belle Boyd House
Berkeley County Courthouse
Triple Brick Museum
General Adam Stephen House
Green Hill Cemetery
Van Metre Ford Bridge
Bunker Hill Mill
Morgan Chapel
Morgan Cabin
Gerrardstown Historic District
Hays Gerrard House
Mill's Gap
Sleep Creek Wildlife Management Area
Hedgesville Historic District
Mt. Zion Episcopal Church
Snodgrass Tavern
Morgan County, WV
About Morgan County
Spruce Pine Hollow Park
Berkeley Springs
Dutch Cemetery
Throgmorton's Inn
Bath Historic District
Berkeley Springs State Park
George Washington's Bathtub
Roman Bath House & Museum of the Berkeley Springs
Washington's Lots
Sir John's Run
Panorama Overlook
Great Cacapon
Camp Hill Cemetery
Paw Paw
Paw Paw Tunnel
Coolfont Manor House
Cacapon State Park

Washington Heritage Trail

 

BERKELEY SPRINGS
STATE PARK
in the heart of town


Thomas Lord Fairfax, colonial owner of the warm springs, always allowed their public use, and a “park” has surrounded them since the first bathers came in the 1740s. George Washington visited “ye fam’d warm springs” for the first time as a 16-year-old surveyor working for Fairfax in 1748. He returned nearly a dozen times, often for weeks with his family. Over the centuries, countless visitors have followed Washington and strolled, bathed and been entertained in the area that has been known as Bath Square and The Grove. In 1925, it was turned over to the state of West Virginia and now is its smallest state park.

The warm mineral waters of Berkeley Springs continue to be prized—used for baths, as the municipal water source, and bottled commercially. The 74-degree temperature, more than 1000-gallon-per-minute flow and mineral composition of the water remain unchanged from Washington’s day. A Poor People’s Bath House, rumored to have been built in 1784 and shown on a 1787 sketch, was bricked in the early 19th century and is used today as the park superintendent’s office. A millstone monument to inventor James Rumsey is located along the Washington Street side of the park.

There have been a succession of other park buildings ranging from a pagoda-like bandstand over the Ladies Spring at the south end of the park to extensive covered bathhouses for both men and women built in the 1880s. As early as 1787, there were large covered swimming baths. The park itself has grown since Washington’s time adding land along its eastern and southern borders.

To this day, water from the springs remains free for the taking from two public fountains under the Gentlemen’s Spring House built in the early 19th century. The water is also freely available in a series of open pools along the west wall of the park.

An outdoor swimming pool is open daily through the summer.

Located in the center of town, Berkeley Springs State Park is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Today it is the site of popular spa treatments, summer concerts and the annual Apple Butter Festival on Columbus Day weekend in October.

“Said Warm Springs . . . shall be vested in the said trustees, in trust, to
and for the public use and benefit, and for no other purpose whatsoever.”

An Act Establishing a Town at Warm Springs — December 6, 1776

For More Information: 304-258-2711



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