Harlandale in San Antonio in Bexar County, Texas — The American South (West South Central)

Movie Stars, Baseball & Fancy Feathers

Photographed By James Hulse, December 27, 2022

1. Movie Stars, Baseball & Fancy Feathers Marker

Inscription.

Movie Stars, Baseball and Fancy Feathers. . Visitors To Hot Wells Hotel enjoyed nearby attractions, including sightseeing at the Spanish colonial missions and San Antonio International Fair and Exposition, held from 1888 until 1907. As Hot Wells' popularity grew, recreation and amusement activities were added to entertain visitors. During the 1890s, the spa maintained a small zoo featuring a black bear sent by famed West Texas Judge Roy Bean. Baseball fans could catch a game at Charlie Carr's baseball school on the grounds of the hotel. But perhaps the greatest sensation was created in 1910 when French filmmaker Gaston Méliès established Star Film Ranch (the first movie studio to locate in Texas from outside the state) across the river from Hot Wells. The starring actors stayed at the Hot Wells Hotel and crossed the river on a swinging bridge to the studio where early silent movies including The Immortal Alamo were filmed., Captions , Upper Left: , (L) Actor and humorist Will Rogers 1879-1935 , (M) Screen actress Clara Bow 1905-1965 , (R) Screen actor Rudolph Valentino 1895-1926, Lower Middle: A swinging footbridge across the San Antonio River provided a shortcut to Star Film Ranch for visitors and cast members during their stay at Hot Wells Hotel. , Star Film Ranch was established in 1910 by French filmmaker Gaston Méliès, brother of Georges Méliès. , Hollywood celebrities Will Rogers, Clara Bow, and Rudolph Valentino visited Hot Wells. , Courtesy: San Antonio Conservation Society Foundation , Courtesy: Frank Thompson, Encino, California, Will Rogers, courtesy Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., Clara Bow, Alamo stock photo, Rudolph Valentino, source Wikimedia Commons , Upper Right: An ostrich farm near Hot Wells offered ladies a chance to purchase feathers, all the rage for fashionable hats of the era. , Courtesy: Gregg Eckhardt, San Antonio , Source: Shutterstock, Lower Right: The Hot Wells Lodges, like many other large and small businesses, sponsored an amateur baseball team. In addition to supplying uniforms and equipment for the players, the resort provided a field for the team to use for practice and league games. It was located south of the bathhouse and cabins near the river. , Hot Wells Lodges Baseball Team. Courtesy: James Hughes, Devine, Texas

Visitors To Hot Wells Hotel enjoyed nearby attractions, including sightseeing at the Spanish colonial missions and San Antonio International Fair and Exposition, held from 1888 until 1907. As Hot Wells' popularity grew, recreation and amusement activities were added to entertain visitors. During the 1890s, the spa maintained a small zoo featuring a black bear sent by famed West Texas Judge Roy Bean. Baseball fans could catch a game at Charlie Carr's baseball school on the grounds of the hotel. But perhaps the greatest sensation was created in 1910 when French filmmaker Gaston Méliès established Star Film Ranch (the first movie studio to locate in Texas from outside the state) across the river from Hot Wells. The starring actors stayed at the Hot Wells Hotel and crossed the river on a swinging bridge to the studio where early silent movies including The Immortal Alamo were filmed.

Captions
Upper Left:
(L) Actor and humorist Will Rogers 1879-1935
(M) Screen actress Clara Bow 1905-1965
(R) Screen actor Rudolph Valentino 1895-1926

Lower Middle: A swinging footbridge across the San Antonio River provided a shortcut to Star Film Ranch for visitors and cast members during their stay at Hot Wells Hotel.
Star Film Ranch was established in 1910 by French filmmaker

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Gaston Méliès, brother of Georges Méliès.
Hollywood celebrities Will Rogers, Clara Bow, and Rudolph Valentino visited Hot Wells.
Courtesy: San Antonio Conservation Society Foundation
Courtesy: Frank Thompson, Encino, California, Will Rogers, courtesy Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., Clara Bow, Alamo stock photo, Rudolph Valentino, source Wikimedia Commons

Upper Right: An ostrich farm near Hot Wells offered ladies a chance to purchase feathers, all the rage for fashionable hats of the era.
Courtesy: Gregg Eckhardt, San Antonio
Source: Shutterstock

Lower Right: The Hot Wells Lodges, like many other large and small businesses, sponsored an amateur baseball team. In addition to supplying uniforms and equipment for the players, the resort provided a field for the team to use for practice and league games. It was located south of the bathhouse and cabins near the river.
Hot Wells Lodges Baseball Team. Courtesy: James Hughes, Devine, Texas

Erected 2019 by Bexar Heritage and Bexar County. (Marker Number 5.)

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Entertainment • Industry & Commerce • Parks & Recreational Areas. A significant historical year for this entry is 1888.

Location. 29° 21.934′ N, 98° 28.265′

The Movie Stars, Baseball & Fancy Feathers Marker in front of the ruins image. Click for full size.

Photographed By James Hulse, December 27, 2022

2. The Movie Stars, Baseball & Fancy Feathers Marker in front of the ruins

W. Marker is in San Antonio, Texas, in Bexar County. It is in Harlandale. Marker can be reached from the intersection of South Presa Street (State Highway 122) and Koehler Court, on the right when traveling south. The marker is located western section of the ruins. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 5503 South Presa Street, San Antonio TX 78322, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Popular Pastimes at Hot Wells (a few steps from this marker); A Luxury Getaway for the Rich & Famous (within shouting distance of this marker); Hot Wells Timeline (within shouting distance of this marker); Hot Wells Hotel (within shouting distance of this marker); Hot Wells Hotel & Bathhouse (within shouting distance of this marker); Fray Antonio Margil de Jesús (approx. half a mile away); The Convento / El convento (approx. 0.6 miles away); Rose Window / Ventana de Rosa (approx. 0.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in San Antonio.

Also see . . . The Hot Wells Hotel and Spa. The Edwards Aquifer Website

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the Hot Wells site on the San Antonio River was home to several versions of a health spa and resort that piped sulfurous water from a hot Edwards well to health-inducing swimming pools and baths. Much of the site's history has been defined by fire. The first structure
Photographed By James Hulse, December 27, 2022

3. The view of the ruins
burned to the ground in 1894 after only one year of operation. The most famous version of the spa was its replacement, a lavish Victorian style structure built in 1900 that became a renowned, world-class vacation destination for celebrities, world leaders, and wealthy industrialists. Some of its visitors were Will Rogers, Charlie Chaplin, Teddy Roosevelt, Porfirio Diaz, Tom Mix, Douglas Fairbanks, and Cecil B. De Mille (Fox and Highley, 1985). The legendary hotel burned in 1925, and the bath house burned twice, in 1988 and 1997. But the remains of the bath house are still standing for decades there were hopes the site could be revitalized. In 2018, they are becoming the center-piece of a new county park.

(Submitted on January 1, 2023, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.)

Credits. This page was last revised on February 2, 2023. It was originally submitted on January 1, 2023, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas. This page has been viewed 120 times since then and 28 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on January 1, 2023, by James Hulse of Medina, Texas.