Bankhead Highway Association meeting, 1919. Partial image. (Palo Pinto County Historical Association)
Downtown Mineral Wells (TxDOT)
Parade of automobiles (Boyce Ditto Public Library, Mineral Wells)
Mineral Wells welcome sign (Boyce Ditto Public Library, Mineral Wells)
On the Broadway of America Highway (Boyce Ditto Library, Mineral Wells)
Mineral Wells
Billed as “the South's greatest health resort,” it’s no surprise that early Good Roads advocates chose Mineral Wells as the location for their conventions. The town, founded in 1877, became a booming health resort in 1885, when the Crazy Well was dug. The water that sprang forth contained lithium and was bottled and shipped all over the country. Hotels, spa resorts, restaurants, souvenir shops, and casinos sprang up around town. People came to Mineral Wells from all over to bathe in the healing waters and be cured of their ailments. The Texas Highway Commission was no exception, holding one of its earliest official meetings in the resort town on June 21, 1917, when it designated the state’s first official highway. The Bankhead National Highway Association also met in Mineral Wells in 1919 and finalized the route through Texas. While you’re here, be sure to pick up some of that Crazy Water on your way to Lake Mineral Wells State Park.
Looming large on the Mineral Wells skyline, the Baker Hotel seemingly pops out of the surrounding farmland when first seen by those traveling into the city. Many likely hoped to find the cure to their ailments at the hotel built to attract those seeking the healing and restorative benefits of the town’s mineral waters. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Mineral Wells Area Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Bureau
511 E.
Hubbard
800-252-6989
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