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In addition to the known richness and wealth of the resort built in 1910, the hotel itself was better known for its spring’s therapeutic waters. The Hampton Springs Resort Hotel was built on the Hampton Springs site because of this.
People came to the hotel seeking a cure for their ailments in the spring’s sulfurous waters. Hampton Springs became famous for its healing ways. The scan of the postcard on this page shows the Hampton Springs Resort Hotel. It was advertised as follows: “Guaranteed for Rheumatism, Indigestion, Dyspepsia, Stomach, Kidney, Bladder Troubles, Gastritis and Skin Diseases.” This postcard calls Hampton Springs “The National Health Resort” and is dated 1910. A twelve page booklet also existed during that time which also spoke of the spring’s healing properties. Another website source says that the hotel was “modeled after the lavish spas frequented by affluent northerners, the beautiful winter resort was built on the site of a sulfurous spring. …The hotel had its own train depot, so wealthy travelers could be delivered right to the doorstep. Upon their arrival they could immediately begin enjoying a vacation in the lap of luxury: wide verandas, tennis courts, an indoor swimming pool, a golf course, and landscaped grounds decorated with relaxing pools and fountains teeming with exotic fish.”
The hotel was destroyed by a fire in 1954 and was never rebuilt. In the 1970s the sulfur springs were part of the Taylor County Recreation Center . The pool was filled with water in the summers so people could swim. Visitors could also hike on the trails and canoe in nearby Spring Creek. Please be sure to look at the photo of the Spring Creek boat ramp. According to an October 2001 article on Tallahassee Freenet, “Hampton Springs has great potential as an historical site and as a restoration project. The land immediately around the old hotel is beautiful, as is Spring Creek. However, the site is sorely abused and neglected at present. In addition, the nearby landscape is an ugly jumble of use and misuse. Any efforts at restoration will need strong community support and buy-in.” The same article explains the set up: “A spring is located on the site of the old Hampton Springs Hotel and flows from the foundation of a building that was constructed around it.”
The author visited the site in February of 2001 during a draught and mentions that there was no water flow. The author visited again in October of 2001 and noted that the water was flowing at about 2 gallons per second. The author noted that the pool was clear and had about one foot of water in the bottom. “There is a sulfurous odor at the spring, and there are deposits and algae in the pool and spill area into Spring Creek. Spring Creek flows directly behind the old hotel structure and spring. There are remnants of other structures and an old boat ramp on the site. The land is partially cleared, but includes mature live oaks, palmettos, and sabal palms.” My last visit to the site was in the summer of 2004. Bo and I had been talking about stopping there, as we drove by it multiple times per day, weekend after weekend, but hadn’t stopped in a very long time. We stopped one afternoon that summer and spent about twenty minutes walking around. Bo pretty much had the layout figured out just from observing the existing structures, or what was left of them. We were shocked by the garbage and the graffiti. It was hard to understand why anyone would abuse and neglect such an interesting and historic part of Taylor County ’s history. We agreed that this site would make a great historic spot, maybe a park of some type, complete with signs telling the story of what it once was. Looking back on this visit, I can still see Bo and I exploring the area and discussing our finds. It is astonishing to think of the energy and life that existed in that very spot just one hundred years ago. I can only hope that one day the locals and the government will step up and decide to push forward with making the site of the Hampton Springs Resort Hotel into the historic landmark it should be – one that can be visited and appreciated by future generations. I think I am somewhat fascinated by the hotel because if you have ever been to Perry or if you have even heard of it, you know there is just a not a whole lot there. Certainly not any grand spas or upscale resorts. There are some motels out on U.S. 19 – or “in town” as we say. And we do have more than one traffic light; but this is the closest thing to a small town that I have ever known or experienced and I hope it stays that way for as long as possible. We just recently got a Wal-Mart, about two years ago, if that counts for anything. Though Wal-Mart brings convenience and decent shopping hours and selection, it’s also slowly put many of the small local mom and pop type businesses out of business. Bo would have been saddened by this, he was dreading it really, and I think the rest of us that care about that little town feel the same way. But this is change, development and growth in modern times. Bo used to always comment that someday U.S. 19 in Crystal River and Chiefland and Perry will some day look like U.S. 19 in Clearwater – dirty, congested, loaded with retail and subdivisions, full of traffic jams and frustration – with no woods or lakes or wildlife left to speak of. I hope he is wrong about that, but from the way things look, we are already headed there. I did find some great pictures of the Hampton Springs Hotel, but because of copyright the photos can not accompany this article. I hope you will take the time to visit http://www.floridamemory.com/PhotographicCollection. Search “Hampton Spring.” Websites Cited and Interesting Reading :
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I always pictured the inside of the famous old hotel to look like one of the fancy and lavish dining rooms aboard the Titanic (at least how the movie depicted it). I have not been able to find too many old photographs to back up the images my mind has created, but the few stories I have read have me convinced. This place had to have been really something in its day. What amazes me most is the site of this once prosperous and busy resort: Just minutes from our hunting camp in Perry on U.S. 98, just five miles north of town…Hampton Springs.
According to an article by Mike Woodfin, “The story on Hampton Springs goes that Joe Hampton, an early Taylor County settler whose wife suffered from rheumatism, was directed by an Indian to these springs. When the water eased her pain and stiffness, Hampton obtained a government grant to the spring area for $10.00. A descendant built a hotel here in 1904 to accommodate visitors to the springs….Hampton Springs was developed into a winter resort in 1910 when the Hampton Springs Hotel was built. The hotel was built over the Hampton Spring and the spring bubbled up into an indoor swimming pool.”
An excerpt from "Florida: Empire of the Sun," published by the Florida State Hotel Commission, Tallahassee, Florida, 1930, says this about Hampton Springs and Perry, Florida: “Southeast of Tallahassee, on the west branch of the Dixie Highway, is the town of Perry, where hunting and fishing are at their best. Sportsmen will find excellent accommodations for either a short or extended visit. Game such as geese, ducks, wild turkey, squirrel and deer are plentiful here. Near Perry is Hampton Springs, a delightful resort with a club house, and a splendid mineral spring. Golfing, tennis, horseback riding and other sports are available. Hunting and fishing in the virgin wilderness, through which flows the rock-ribbed Fenholloway River , attracts many a sportsman.” A current picture of the Fenholloway River can be found on this page.
The article goes on to explain that the “water flows from a small circular concrete enclosure and passes immediately into a rectangular concrete enclosure, then spills (when flowing) into a rectangular concrete pool with the dimensions of approximately 24 by 15 feet. The pool is 10 feet deep and is on the bank of Spring Creek. There is a drain hole in the bottom of the pool, through which the spring empties into Spring Creek.”