|
The Eureka Springs area had a reputation as a destination for people seeking health well before the first European American pioneers reached Arkansas. Several old Native American legends tell of a Great Healing Spring in the Eureka Springs area.
This reputation continued as Europeans arrived and the waters of the springs gained a reputation of having magical powers. Within a short time Eureka Springs was transformed into a flourishing city, spa, and tourist destination. Dr. Alvah Jackson first located the spring and claimed that the waters of Basin Spring had cured his eye ailments in 1856. Dr. Jackson established a hospital in a local cave during the American Civil War and used the waters from Basin Spring to treat his patients. After the war Jackson marketed the spring waters as "Dr. Jackson's Eye Water." The Ozarka Water Company was later formed in Eureka Springs in 1905.
In 1879 Judge J.B. Saunders, a friend of Jackson, claimed that his crippling disease was cured by the spring waters. Saunders started promoting Eureka Springs to friends and family members across the State and created a boomtown. Within a period of little more than one year, the city grew from a rural spa village to a major city of 10,000 people, most of which were visitors.
There are stories of Jesse James and his gang using the area as a hideout. Carry A. Nation moved here towards the end of her life and founded Hatchet Hall on Steele St., which is closed as a museum today. Bonnie and Clyde also went through Eureka Springs. The only bank robbery Eureka Springs had was September 27, 1922, when five outlaws from Oklahoma tried to rob the First National Bank, three of which were killed, and the other two wounded. None of the five was either Bonnie or Clyde.
On 14 February 1880 Eureka Springs was incorporated as a city. Thousands of visitors came to the springs based on Saunders' promotion and covered the area with tents and shanties. The U S Census never exceeded 5,000 people, and in 1880 it was 3,984; in 1890 it was 3,706; in 1900 it was 3,572; and went down from there. A special census was done in the 1880s showing 5,000 people, in addition to thousands of visitors. In 1881 Eureka Springs enjoyed the status of Arkansas's fourth largest city, and in 1889 it was the second largest city behind Little Rock.
After his term as a Reconstruction Governor, Powell Clayton moved to heavily Unionist Eureka Springs and began promoting the city and its commercial interests. Clayton promoted the town as a retirement community for the wealthy. Eureka Springs soon became known for gracious living and a wealthy lifestyle.
The town's most famous citizen was Claude Albert Fuller, who rose from one of the poorest families in town to become one of the most powerful politicians, not only in Arkansas, but in the United States of America from 1898 to 1938. A book has been written about his life story, "Backwoods Baron" by Frank L. Beals, and he is also in the Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture (encyclopediaofarkansas.net).
In 1882 the Eureka Improvement Company was formed to attract a railroad to the city. With completion of the railroad, Eureka Springs established itself as one of the premier vacation resorts of the Victorian era. It had thousands of homes and commercial enterprises constructed in only two years. The Crescent Hotel was built in 1886 and the Basin Park Hotel in 1905. These many Victorian buildings have been well preserved, forming a coherent streetscape that has been recognized for its quality.
The city is also the site of Thorncrown Chapel, an award-winning contemporary building designed by E. Fay Jones and constructed in 1980. The chapel was selected for the 2006 "Twenty-five Year Award" by the American Institute of Architects, which recognizes structures that have had significant influence on the profession. Because of the special nature of its high quality of architecture, the chapel was also listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000
Source: Wikipedia
|
