Berkeley Springs, WV

Berkeley Springs' proximity to our nation's capital led to its rise as a retreat for weary politicians and soldiers in the early years of the American experiment. The medicinal value of the waters at Berkeley Springs was known to Indians prior to George Washington's first visit in 1748. Indians were known to travel from as far as Canada, the Great Lakes, and Florida to seek its healing waters. The native Americans of the area established a truce so that "all might be free to enjoy the beneficent provision of the Great Spirit in peace and security".

By 1772, the community had grown to allow the area to split off to become a part of Berkeley County, Virginia, from land held by the sixth Lord Fairfax. The Commonwealth of Virginia signed an act creating the town of Bath on Fairfax's grant just three months following the Declaration of Independence. The town plan was for the community to be laid out in a pattern like that of Bath in England.

James Rumsey, the developer of the first working steamboat, was the town's most prominent citizen. It was Rumsey who built the buildings that would house the healing baths of Berkeley Springs, making it the first spa in the new nation. Two of the original buildings still stand near the springs in the park. The Roman Bath House has been in continuous use since it was first built. In 1802, the town was renamed to Berkeley Springs after the third governor of Virginia, Lord Berkeley, to resolve the issue of another Virginia community also being named Bath.