Museum of the Berkeley Springs

In America, 18th century towns were formed along rivers, around harbors or at a crossroads. Not so Berkeley Springs. It has been a settlement since the 1750s and a formal town since 1776 because of the healing waters of the warm mineral springs. Once established as the country’s first spa, Berkeley Springs experienced a rich and colorful history with cycles of notoriety and decline. Patterns of growth were interrupted and redirected by a string of wars from the French and Indian War and American Revolution to the Civil War and World War 1. Destructive downtown fires were a more local cause of the down times. Rebuilding was a constant indicator of unshakeable destiny.