Hot Springs State Park

Hot Springs State Park is a public recreation area in Thermopolis, Wyoming, known for its hot springs, which flow at a constant temperature of 135° Fahrenheit. The state park offers free bathing at the State Bath House, where temperatures are moderated to a therapeutic 104 °F.[4] The petroglyph site at Legend Rock, some 25 miles away, is also part of the park.[5] The park is managed by the Wyoming Division of State Parks and Historic Sites.

Hot Springs State Park
IUCN category III (natural monument or feature)[1]
Location in Wyoming
LocationThermopolis, Wyoming, United States
Coordinates43°39′19″N 108°11′57″W[2]
Area1,108.67 acres (4.4866 km2)[3]
Elevation4,363 ft (1,330 m)[2]
DesignationWyoming state park
Established1897
AdministratorWyoming State Parks, Historic Sites & Trails
WebsiteHot Springs State Park

History

The land on which the state park sits was a cession agreement, and the ceded portion was purchased from the Eastern Shoshone by the federal government in 1896, when Indian Inspector James McLaughlin negotiated a purchase price of $60,000 for a 100-square-mile portion of the Shoshone reservation. A square-mile section of that land was released to the state in 1897 which became Wyoming's first state park, known as Big Horn Hot Springs State Reserve.[6][7]

Features

The park features a managed herd of bison, a suspension foot bridge across the Big Horn River, picnic shelters, boat docks, flower gardens, and terraces made of naturally forming travertine (calcium carbonate) caused by a flowing mineral hot spring.[4] The park area encompasses commercial hotels and several state-run and privately operated entities including the Gottsche Rehabilitation Center, Hot Springs County Memorial Hospital, the historic Callaghan Apartments/Plaza Hotel, the Star Plunge waterpark, the Tepee Pools waterpark, and the Wyoming Pioneer Home, a state-run, assisted-living facility.

  • Big Horn Hot Springs, c. 1914
  • Travertine formation
    at Hot Springs State Park
  • Winter view of the suspension footbridge over the Big Horn River
  • Hot spring, Thermopolis, WY

References
  1. "Hot Springs State Park". Protected Planet. IUCN. Retrieved May 1, 2018.
  2. "Hot Springs State Park". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey.
  3. "Table 1. Facilities managed by Wyoming State Parks, Historic Sites and Trails" (PDF). SOAR 2021. Wyoming Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources. p. 12. Retrieved August 30, 2017.
  4. "Hot Springs State Park". Wyoming State Parks, Historic Sites & Trails. State of Wyoming. Retrieved August 30, 2017.
  5. "Hot Springs State Park Brochure". Wyoming State Parks, Historic Sites & Trails. State of Wyoming. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  6. Hein, Annette. "Hot Springs County, Wyoming". Wyoming State Historical Society. Retrieved January 7, 2016.
  7. "Hot Springs State Park". Wyoming Places. Wyoming State Library. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
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