Hot Springs in Garland County, Arkansas — The American South (West South Central)

A Landscaped Resort

— Hot Springs National Park —

Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, November 5, 2022

1. A Landscaped Resort Marker

Inscription. Setting plays a significant role in the Hot Springs spa experience. The magnolia-lined avenue and landscaped lawns of the bathhouses create a pastoral atmosphere in the midst of the city. Just a few steps behind Bathhouse Row the Grand Promenade offers strollers an encounter with the lower slopes of Hot Springs Mountain.

Exercise has long been part of the spa regimen. In the past, the park's trails provided a natural outdoor counterpoint to the vigorous mechanics of the bathhouses' hydrotherapy and gymnastics equipment. Today, their quiet beauty still offers opportunities for renewal of the spirit.

[Captions (top to bottom)]
• Gymnasium in the restored Fordyce Bathhouse.
• Steam cabinets in the Fordyce Bathhouse, 1950s.
• Concert on Arlington Lawn in the 1940s.

Erected by National Park Service.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Horticulture & Forestry.

Location. 34° 30.969′ N, 93° 3.188′ W. Marker is in Hot Springs, Arkansas, in Garland County. Marker is at the intersection of Central Avenue (Arkansas Route 7) and Fountain Street, on the right when traveling north on Central Avenue. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Hot Springs National Park AR 71901, United States of America. Touch for directions.

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At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. DeSoto Camp (a few steps from this marker); “A Modern and First Class Hotel” (within shouting distance of this marker); Hot Action in Hot Springs (within shouting distance of this marker); The Arlington Hotel (within shouting distance of this marker); Hot Springs' Postwar Boom (within shouting distance of this marker); 260 (within shouting distance of this marker); Bathhouse Row (within shouting distance of this marker); 304 (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Hot Springs.

Regarding A Landscaped Resort. Excerpt from Hot Springs National Park: A Brief History of the Park by Sharon Shugart (National Park Service, 2003):

The Secretary of the Interior appointed U.S. Army Captain John R. Stevens to oversee a number of ambitious landscaping and building projects in the 1890s. The Secretary originally planned to retain Frederick Law Olmsted’s personal landscaping services, but after a series of misunderstandings and mutual dissatisfaction, the Olmsted firm withdrew. The Secretary then authorized Stevens to salvage what he could from the Olmsted firm’s designs and complete other enhancements as he saw fit. The resulting improvements included a formal entrance, mountain drives, a lake park on Whittington
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, November 5, 2022

2. A Landscaped Resort Marker
Avenue, fountains, and a brick bathhouse for the indigent.

Credits. This page was last revised on November 24, 2022. It was originally submitted on November 22, 2022, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 61 times since then and 13 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on November 22, 2022, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.