Castle Hot Springs (Arizona)

Visitors next to the Palm House at Castle Hot Springs, Arizona, in 1908

Castle Hot Springs is a former resort in Arizona that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is located within the Hieroglyphic Mountains.

History

The Apache Wars discouraged development of the area until the 1880s when the springs and the adjacent land were purchased by Frank Murphy for the construction of a health resort. The resort was completed in 1896 and the newly renamed Castle Hot Springs were heavily advertised to potential clients. During the resort's heyday in the 1920s the resort was visited by celebrities such as Zane Grey, as well as famous families such as the Rockefeller family.

The resort was also used by the United States military as a rehabilitation center from 1943 to 1944 to treat injured veterans of World War II. Future president John F. Kennedy spent three months at the resort during this period to recover from his wounds suffered during the sinking of his ship, PT-109.

The resort continued to be commercially operational until the main building was heavily damaged in a fire in 1976. Since then the resort still features its swimming pool, tennis courts, administrative building and guest house along with the springs, which still produce 180,000 gallons of hot water a day.

In media

Castle Hot Springs Resort was the subject of a 1994 documentary film by Mike Smith and a fellow student.

See also

• Arizona and California Railroad
• Bradshaw Mountains
• Congress Mine
• Hells Canyon Wilderness (Arizona)
• Lake Pleasant Regional Park
• Morristown, Arizona
• Oakes Murphy
• Sasco, Arizona
• Treasures from American Film Archives: Treasures 5: The West, 1898-1938 (2011) (disc 3)

External links

• Castle Hot Springs: Unique 118° Natural Hot Springs & Former World Class Resort Retreat - CBRE Group listing document about the property
• Castle Hot Springs – Jewel of the Bradshaws! (December 31, 2011), from SonoranTreeSvc.com
• Castle Hot Springs, at DailyJFK.com