Sulphur Springs

First, let me address the spelling of “sulphur”. In American English, “sulfur” is the preferred spelling of element number 16. “Sulphur” is the spelling found most often in the non-scientific literature outside North America. Because the places I address in this essay use the spelling noted in the title, I will use “sulphur”.

For centuries, sulphur water has been considered healthful and restorative. Recent research seems to indicate that there is some scientific basis for believing this to be true. The American Medical Association does not yet recognize the benefits of bathing in sulphur water. European medical practitioners seem to be a little more broadminded, and balneotherapy (the treatment of disease by bathing in thermal mineral waters) is widely accepted there. Generally, bathing in sulphur water is supposed to be very good for skin diseases, allergies, inflammation, arthritis, and “detoxification”. I maintain a neutral position on the question, although I am convinced that my morning soak in the hot tub is good for my joints.

The ingredient that modern researchers credit with whatever wonders sulphur water might possess is hydrogen sulfide, or H2S. That is also the odorous compound in rotten eggs. If you have ever driven through White Sulphur Springs, WV, you know the smell well. The smell is not that onerous, as both George Washington and Thomas Jefferson are alleged to have benefited from the waters of that town, as well as other presidents in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Nearby, in Virginia, are the towns of Warm Springs and Hot Springs, also renowned for springs of sulphur water and visits by presidents, potentates, and lesser creatures, such as members of Congress.

Asheville, North Carolina, is in a geologically similar region to these three famous towns, so it did not surprise me completely to discover that Asheville once had a sulphur spring that, for a brief while, attracted tourists seeking the waters for rejuvenation. And thanks to Asheville Junction: A Blog by David E. Whisnant, I know more of the history of Sulphur Springs and where to find what is left of it. If you have any interest in this sort of history, I encourage you to read his blog. What follows is a very brief summary, including some pictures.

(Note: the picture at the beginning of this post was taken by Dr. Whisnant, and is about seven years old. The other pictures in this post were taken by me yesterday.)

The spring itself was discovered in 1827 by landowner Robert Henry, or by his slave, Sam. About seven years later, Henry’s son-in-law, Robert Deaver, constructed a wooden hotel near the spring and opened Deaver’s Sulphur Springs. It catered to the South Carolina plantation owners who visited Asheville in the summers to escape the heat of the low country. This successful health resort came to a fiery end just before the War Between the States.

Around 1887, Edwin Carrier bought the land and built a brick hotel on the ruins of the first hotel. Though constructed of brick, the Belmont (earlier known as Carrier’s Springs) also succumbed to fire in 1892. But the spring remained.

The neighborhood of Malvern Hills grew up around the spring, and during 1925 - 1926 the Malvern Hills Country Club was built over the spring. When the country club was demolished in 1980, the concrete pavilion over the spring was all that remained of Robert Henry’s discovery.

As you can see from Dr. Whisnant’s picture at the top of this post, and my photos below, the pavilion is in bad shape, covered with vines and tagged with graffiti. You can see that the spring yields very little if any water. The water you see may have been from recent rains. I could not detect the least bit of hydrogen sulfide in the air.

After our visit to the spring, Kathy and I lunched at a restaurant on Haywood Road, in West Asheville, where I happened across the small monument marking the end of the line for an electric railway that connected West Asheville to Sulphur Springs. According to the dates on the monument, it ran for only two years before Carrier’s hotel burned to the ground. The line continued to run for another 42 years after the fire. The fare was five cents.

Sulphur Springs is designated a Historical Landmark. If you wish to see it for yourself, enter 233 School Road, Asheville, NC, 28806 into your GPS. A little parking spot will hold one or two cars, maximum across the street from the spring.

Sulphur Springs may be just a small piece of Asheville’s history, but no part of history is insignificant.