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Difference between revisions of "Bath/Bathhouse"

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(Bath-house, Bathing house)
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==History==
 
==History==
The bath and bathhouse in America had many forms, including private versions attached to houses or separately constructed in a garden, and public baths at resorts, in public gardens, and at the seaside. The term “bath” referred both to the structure covering the water and to the watering receptacle or pool itself. The structures were sometimes called bathhouses or bathing houses. Baths at natural sources of mineral waters were also referred to as spas and springs.
 
  
Although garden treatise literature contains few references to garden baths, other evidence indicates that the bathhouse held a prominent position in American ornamental landscapes. Baths were situated in public gardens, such as a public bath and garden in Norfolk, Va., or Bathsheba’s Bath and Bower in Philadelphia, and in many private gardens, such as John Donnell’s Willow Brook in Baltimore and Charles Willson Peale’s Belfield in Philadelphia. Baths at private estates might be simple, as suggested by the note in the South Carolina Gazette in 1733, of “frames, Planks, &c. to be fix’d in and about a Spring . . . intended for a Cold Bath.” They also could be quite substantial, as was Charles Carroll of Carrollton’s stone-lined bath, which he ordered in 1778 to measure ten by eight feet with a depth of four-and-ahalf feet. Few detailed descriptions of the architecture of these bathhouses survive, however. At Monte Video in Connecticut, the bathhouse was described merely as Gothic. More is known about the architecture of public baths, where the structures were larger and often quite elaborate. Many textual descriptions and images of baths survive because they were considered civic amenities, such as the bath at Castle Garden in New York [Fig. 1]. Samuel Vaughan’s 1787 plan for the town of Bath included “baths [at a] for company 5 by 18 feet that fills in 5 minutes & emties [sic] in four,” dressing rooms [b], two piazzas with seats [bb], a  
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[[File:0487.jpg|thumb|left|Fig. 1, William Wade, ''Castle Garden: From the Battery'', 1848.]]
large bath for swimming [f], and a separate “Bath for Poor People [g]” [Fig. 2]. Sophie Madeleine du Pont in 1837 described and sketched a bathhouse at Warm Springs (Berkeley Springs), Va. (later W.Va.), with a thirty-foot octagonal masonry basin and four separate bathing rooms [Fig. 3].  
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The bath and bathhouse in America had many forms, including private versions attached to houses or separately constructed in a garden, and public baths at resorts, in [[public garden]]s, and at the seaside. The term “bath” referred both to the structure covering the water and to the watering receptacle or pool itself. The structures were sometimes called bathhouses or bathing houses. Baths at natural sources of mineral waters were also referred to as spas and springs.
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[[File:0461.jpg|thumb|right|Fig. 2, [[Samuel Vaughan]], Plan of Bath [[Berkeley Springs|[Berkeley Springs]]], VA [detail], 1787, from the diary of Samuel Vaughan, June–September 1787. “f. a large Bath for swimming” and “g. a Bath for Poor People.”]]
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Although garden treatise literature contains few references to garden baths, other evidence indicates that the bathhouse held a prominent position in American ornamental landscapes. Baths were situated in public gardens, such as a public bath and garden in Norfolk, Virginia, or Bathsheba’s Bath and Bower in Philadelphia, and in many private gardens, such as John Donnell’s Willow Brook in Baltimore and [[Charles Willson Peale|Charles Willson Peale's]] [[Belfield]] in Philadelphia. Baths at private estates might be simple, as suggested by the note in the ''South Carolina Gazette'' in 1733, of “frames, Planks, &c. to be fix’d in and about a Spring. . . intended for a Cold Bath.” They also could be quite substantial, as was Charles Carroll of Carrollton’s stone-lined bath, which he ordered in 1778 to measure ten by eight feet with a depth of four-and-a-half feet. Few detailed descriptions of the architecture of these bathhouses survive, however. At Monte Video in Connecticut, the bathhouse was described merely as Gothic. More is known about the architecture of public baths, where the structures were larger and often quite elaborate. Many textual descriptions and images of baths survive because they were considered civic amenities, such as the bath at Castle Garden in New York [Fig. 1]. [[Samuel Vaughan|Samuel Vaughan's]] plan of 1787 for the town of Bath included “baths [at a] for company 5 by 18 feet that fills in 5 minutes & emties [''sic''] in four,” dressing rooms [''b''], two [[piazza]]s with [[seat]]s [''bb''], a large bath for swimming [''f''], and a separate “Bath for Poor People [''g'']” [Fig. 2]. Sophie Madeleine du Pont in 1837 described and sketched a bathhouse at Warm Springs (Berkeley Springs), Virginia (later West Virginia), with a thirty-foot octagonal masonry [[basin]] and four separate bathing rooms [Fig. 3].  
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[[File:1781.jpg|thumb|right|Fig. 3, Sophie Madeleine du Pont, Octagonal Bath at Warm Springs ([[Berkeley Springs]]), 1837.]]
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Mineral springs were visited as early as 1669 when Massachusetts colonists took the waters at Lynn Red Spring, but it was not until the end of the French and Indian War that springs began to be developed widely as commercial establishments.<ref>Carl Bridenbaugh, “Baths and Watering Places of Colonial America,” ''William and Mary Quarterly'' 3, no. 2 (April 1946): 152, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/FDI9CBAU view on Zotero].</ref> A bath at Stafford Springs in Connecticut opened in 1765 and became, in the words of Samuel Peters, “where the sick and rich resort to prolong life, and acquire the polite accomplishments.”<ref>Samuel Peters, ''A General History of Connecticut'' (London: Printed for the author, 1781), 174. A detailed description of a visit to Stafford Springs is recorded in John Adams’s diary in 1771, although he does not use the term “bath,” [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/BCM4IVP7 view on Zotero].</ref> In addition to bathing, spas, such as Yellow Sulphur Springs, near Philadelphia, often included a variety of entertainments such as dining, dancing, and overnight lodging.<ref>Barbara G. Carson, “Early American Tourists and the Commercialization of Leisure,” in ''Of Consuming Interests: The Style of Life in the Eighteenth Century'', ed. Cary Carson, Ronald Hoffman, and Peter J. Albert (Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1994), 390, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/AFZV62H8 view on Zotero]; Carol Shiels Roark, “Historic Yellow Springs: The Restoration of an American Spa,” ''Pennsylvania Folklife'' 24 (autumn 1974): 28–38, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/I6S7GIT3/ view on Zotero].</ref> Bathing, as a general practice, was argued to have healthful effects. J. B. Bordley wrote in 1798 that “[e]very family in this fine climate ought to have its bath. . . Bathing moistens, soaks, washes, supples and refreshes the whole body.” At the age of 95, Charles Carroll of Carrollton credited his longevity to daily cold baths. When bathed in and imbibed, mineral waters rich in sulfur and iron were particularly renowned for their curative properties for ailments such as rheumatism, cholera, malaria, hysteria, gout, and digestive disorders. Du Pont, seeking relief from a back and knee ailment, took the waters of Warm Springs, and she described vividly the sulfur-rich water’s “odour of half spoiled eggs.”
  
Mineral springs were visited as early as 1669 when Massachusetts colonists took the waters at Lynn Red Spring, but it was not until the end of the French and Indian War that springs began to be developed widely as commercial establishments.1 A bath at Stafford Springs in Connecticut opened in 1765 and became, in the words of Samuel Peters, “where the sick and rich resort to prolong life, and acquire the polite accomplishments.”2 In addition to bathing, spas, such as Yellow Sulphur Springs, near Philadelphia, often included a variety of entertainments such as dining, dancing, and overnight lodging.3 Bathing, as a general practice, was argued to have healthful effects. J. B. Bordley wrote in 1798 that “[e]very family in this fine climate ought to have its bath. . . . Bathing moistens, soaks, washes, supples and refreshes the whole body.” At the age of 95, Charles Carroll of Carrollton credited his longevity to daily cold baths. When bathed in and imbibed, mineral waters rich in sulfur and iron were particularly renowned for their curative properties for ailments such as rheumatism, cholera, malaria, hysteria, gout, and digestive disorders. Du Pont, seeking relief from a back and knee ailment, took the waters of Warm Springs, and she described vividly the sulfur-rich water’s “odour of half spoiled eggs.”  
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[[File:0460.jpg|thumb|left|Fig. 4, Charles Varlé, ''Project for the Improvement of the [[Square]] and the Town of Bath'' [detail], 1809. “F. addition of Bath.”]]
  
As their popularity grew, accommodations and other facilities were built at many of the springs to cater to the travelers seeking rest and refreshment. These resorts often included elaborate gardens. In 1775, the Virginia Assembly laid out the town of Bath around a spring that had been owned by Lord Fairfax. Lots sold at 25 guineas each, and Bath included a theater, inns, and places to ride and play billiards. Charles Varlé’s landscape design for the town in 1809 [Fig. 4] included a reservoir or fountain “covered with a vine treliage in a form of a dome or copula,” a jet d’eau, a bowling green, and two labyrinths “contrived so as to be different in their issues and windings.” The town became a fashionable resort; visitors included Baron and Baroness de Riedesel and Mrs. Charles Carroll of Carrollton.4
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[[File:0703.jpg|thumb|right|Fig. 5, Lewis Miller, “The Yellow Sulphur Springs, Montgomery County,” n.d.]]
  
The Bath resort community declined in popularity with the rise of the other Virginia springs in the Allegheny highlands described by Thomas Jefferson as “medicinal springs.These springs became part of a social tour that lasted from July through mid-September. The tour generally started at Warm Springs, and continued on to Hot Springs, White Sulphur Springs, Sweet Springs, Salt Sulphur Springs, and Red Sulphur Springs.5 Lewis Miller’s sketch of Yellow Sulphur Springs illustrates accommodations, walks, benches, lighting, and other features for the recreation of the bathers [Fig. 5]. Historian Carl Bridenbaugh credits these resorts, at least in colonial times, with “promoting colonial union and . . . nourishing nascent Americanism.He argues that, in addition to the springs’ appeal as salubrious escapes from humidity, heat, and noise, they offered the “most significant intercolonial meeting places. . . . [and] provided a powerful solvent of provincialism.”6 As some of the most elaborate landscape designs of the period suggest, resorts may also have done much to disseminate the fashion for baths and bathhouses in residential gardens as well.  
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As their popularity grew, accommodations and other facilities were built at many of the springs to cater to the travelers seeking rest and refreshment. These resorts often included elaborate gardens. In 1776, the Virginia Assembly laid out the town of Bath around a spring that had been owned by Lord Fairfax. Lots sold at 25 guineas each, and Bath included a theater, inns, and places to ride and play billiards. Charles Varlé’s landscape design for the town in 1809 [Fig. 4] included a reservoir or [[fountain]] “covered with a vine treliage in a form of a dome or copula,” a [[jet|jet d’eau]], a [[bowling green]], and two [[labyrinth]]s “contrived so as to be different in their issues and windings.” The town became a fashionable resort; visitors included Baron and Baroness de Riedesel and Mrs. Charles Carroll of Carrollton.<ref>Percival Reniers, ''The Springs of Virginia: Life, Love, and Death at the Waters, 1775–1900'' (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1941), 34, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/XXDTEMDD/ view on Zotero].</ref>
  
-- ''Elizabeth Kryder-Reid''
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The Bath resort community declined in popularity with the rise of the other Virginia springs in the Allegheny highlands described by Thomas Jefferson as “medicinal springs.” These springs became part of a social tour that lasted from July through mid-September. The tour generally started at Warm Springs, and continued on to Hot Springs, White Sulphur Springs, Sweet Springs, Salt Sulphur Springs, and Red Sulphur Springs.<ref>Reniers, ''The Springs of Virginia'', 26, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/XXDTEMDD/ view on Zotero]; B. Carson, “Early American Tourists,” 393–97, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/AFZV62H8 view on Zotero]. Cary Carson includes, along with his discussion of consumer behavior in America, a measured drawing of the oldest extant bathhouse in America, the Gentlemen’s bathhouse in Warm Springs (Berkeley Springs), Virginia (later West Virginia). See Cary Carson, “The Consumer Revolution in Colonial America: Why Demand?” in ''Of Consuming Interests: The Style of Life in the Eighteenth Century'', ed. Cary Carson, Ronald Hoffman, and Peter J. Albert (Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1994), 444–697, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/Q476GSSS view on Zotero].</ref> Lewis Miller’s sketch of Yellow Sulphur Springs illustrates accommodations, [[walk]]s, benches, lighting, and other features for the recreation of the bathers [Fig. 5]. Historian Carl Bridenbaugh credits these resorts, at least in colonial times, with “promoting colonial union and. . . nourishing nascent Americanism.” He argues that, in addition to the springs’ appeal as salubrious escapes from humidity, heat, and noise, they offered the “most significant intercolonial meeting places. . . [and] provided a powerful solvent of provincialism.”<ref>Bridenbaugh, “Baths and Watering Places,” 180–81, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/FDI9CBAU view on Zotero].</ref> As some of the most elaborate landscape designs of the period suggest, resorts may also have done much to disseminate the fashion for baths and bathhouses in residential gardens as well.
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''Elizabeth Kryder-Reid''
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<hr>
  
 
==Texts==
 
==Texts==
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===Usage===
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*Anonymous, July 28, 1733, describing a plantation for sale in Charleston, SC (''South Carolina Gazette'')
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:“A [[Plantation]] about two Miles above Goose-Creek [[Bridge]]. . . [had] a Spring within 3 Stones throw of the House, intended for a Cold '''Bath'''.”
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*Anonymous, February 6, 1746, describing in the ''Boston Weekly News-Letter'' the property of John Welch, Boston, MA (quoted in Benes 1996: 53)<ref>Peter Benes, “Horticultural Importers and Nurserymen in Boston, 1719–1770,” in ''Plants and People: Annual Proceedings of the Dublin Seminar for New England Folklife, 1995'', ed. Peter Benes (Boston: Boston University, 1996), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/Q9SU336I/ view on Zotero].</ref>
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:“TO BE LETT, (exclusive of the '''''Bath-House''''') The '''Bath'''-Garden, at the Westerly Part of the Town, which has for many Years been improv’d as a [[public Garden]], and contains a Variety of the best Fruit-Trees, a great Quantity of Currant and Gooseberry Bushes, some of the best Grape Vines, a handsome [[Summer-House]], Glasses for Hot-[[Bed]]s, &c Enquire of ''John Welch'', and know further. N.B. The Cold '''Bath''' is in good Order for Use and has been found beneficial to several that have used it, even this Winter-Season: Price 40 Shillings a Year or 5 Shillings each single Time, old Tenor.”
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*[[Thomas Jefferson|Jefferson, Thomas]], 1771, describing [[Monticello]], [[plantation]] of Thomas Jefferson, Charlottesville, VA (1944: 26)<ref>Thomas Jefferson, ''The Garden Book'', ed. Edwin M. Betts (Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 1944), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/8ZA5VRP5 view on Zotero].</ref>
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:“. . . a few feet below the spring level the ground 40 or 50 f. sq. let the water fall from the spring in the upper level over a [[terrace]] in the form of a [[cascade]]. then conduct it along the foot of the [[terrace]] to the Western side of the level, where it may fall into a cistern under a [[temple]], from which it may go off by the western [[border]] till it falls over another [[terrace]] at the Northern or lower side. let the [[temple]] be raised 2. f. for the first floor of stone. under this is the cistern, which may be a '''bath''' or anything else. the 1st story [[arch]]es on three sides; the back or western side being close because the hill there comes down, and also to carry up stairs on the outside. the 2d story to have a door on one side, a spacious window in each of the other sides, the rooms each 8. f. cube; with a small table and a couple of chairs. the roof may be [[Chinese manner|Chinese]], Grecian, or in the taste of the Lantern of Demosthenes at Athens.”
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 +
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*Quincy, Josiah, May 3, 1773, describing the country seat of John Dickensen, near Philadelphia, PA (Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)
 +
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:“This worthy and [[arch]]-politician. . . here enjoys ''otium cum dignitate'' as much as any man. Take into consideration the antique look of his house, his gardens, [[green-house]], '''bathing-house''', [[grotto]], study, fish-[[pond]], fields, [[meadow]]s, [[vista]], through which is distant [[prospect]] of Delaware River.”
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*Carroll (of Carrollton), Charles, May 24, 1778, in a letter to his father, Charles Carroll (of Annapolis), describing the Carroll Garden, Annapolis, MD (Maryland Historical Society, A. E. Carroll Papers, MS 206, no. 479)
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:“If Joe has finished all the Jobbs at Annapolis, I wish you would set him about preparing stones to line a cold '''bath'''; the stones already raised at the soap stone quarry would be sufficient for this purpose, as the '''bath''' need not be in the clear more than 10 feet long & 8 broad & 4 feet 6 inches deep. When I return I will direct where it shall be dug.”
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*Peters, Samuel, 1782, describing Stafford Springs, CT (quoted in Bridenbaugh 1946: 153)<ref>Bridenbaugh, “Baths and Watering Places,” 151–81, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/FDI9CBAU view on Zotero].</ref>
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:“. . . the New England '''''Bath''''', where the sick and rich resort to prolong life and acquire the polite accomplishments.”
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*Anonymous, April 28, 1786, describing a new bathing house in Charleston, SC, in the ''Charleston Morning Post, and Daily Advertiser'' (Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)
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:“A '''Bathing House''' BEING about to be erected at the Retreat, those Gentlemen who wish to become subscribers, are requested to leave their name and the Needful at the said place, as speedily as possible. . . Many attempts have been made to establish a '''BATHING HOUSE''', but none of them have succeeded, and when it is recollected that in this climate, such an Establishment would be in the highest degree beneficial, it seems truly astonishing. . . in a considerable measure by this reflection, the Subscriber now issues Proposals for the erection of a permanent and elegant '''BATHING HOUSE'''.”
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*[[Peale, Charles Willson]], June 1788, describing Annapolis, MD (Miller et al., eds., 1983: 1:498)<ref>Lillian B. Miller et al., eds., ''The Selected Papers of Charles Willson Peale and His Family'', vol. 1, ''Charles Willson Peale: Artist in Revolutionary America, 1753–1791'' (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1983), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/IZAKPCBG view on Zotero].</ref>
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:“. . . being invited to dine with the fish Club, I took my Gun for further Amusement; the club had a marqui fixed opposite the Cool Spring ('''bath House''') on the other side of the creek. They have skittle Ground and qu[o]ites to amuse themselves.”
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*Chapman, Thomas, 1795–96, describing a [[plantation]] near Harrodsburg, KY (quoted in Schwaab 1973: 28)<ref>Eugene L. Schwaab and Jacqueline Bull, ''Travels in the Old South'' (Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1973), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/VBE4QNV7 view on Zotero].</ref>
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:“Colonel Nicholas’s [[Plantation]] is in a higher State of Improvement than any other in the State of Kentucky. Exclusive of a good Framed Commodious House, a famous Spring Dairey [''sic''], where Milk can be kept cool in the hotest [''sic''] Day of Summer, there is a large Barn, Stable, and out Offices, and a large Grist Mill, supplied with Water from the same Spring wch [''sic''] passes through the Spring House. There is also a '''bathing House''' connected with the Dairey [''sic''], and an Apple Orchard of 400 Young thriving Trees.”
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===Usage===
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*Bentley, William, July 12, 1797, describing Salem, MA (1962: 2:228)<ref name="Bentley">William Bentley, ''The Diary of William Bentley, D.D., Pastor of the East Church, Salem, Massachusetts'' (Gloucester, MA: Peter Smith, 1962), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/B63ABACF view on Zotero].</ref>
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:“12. Plenty of Mackerel in the market at 6 cents pr. lb. A '''Bath house''' is begun on the back of our land which is to extend 64 feet upon B., & to have eight apartments. The success is doubtful for it is said such a thing much talked of was not much used when gotten.”
  
Anonymous, 28 July 1733, describing a plantation
 
for sale in Charleston, S.C. (South Carolina
 
Gazette)
 
  
“A Plantation about two Miles above Goose-
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*[[Dwight, Timothy]], 1799, describing a lunatic asylum in New York, NY (1822: 3:454)<ref>Timothy Dwight, ''Travels; in New-England and New-York'', 4 vols. (New Haven: T. Dwight, 1821), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/7D8MGMDN view on Zotero].</ref>
Creek Bridge . . . [had] a Spring within 3 Stones
 
throw of the House, intended for a Cold Bath.
 
  
Anonymous, 6 February 1746, describing in the
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:“Among its conveniences are an excellent garden, fruit trees, [[walk]]s, a large [[ice-house]], '''bathing-house''', and stables.
Boston Weekly News-Letter the property of John
 
Welch, Boston, Mass. (quoted in Benes 1996: 53)
 
  
“TO BE LETT, (exclusive of the Bath-House)
 
The Bath-Garden, at the Westerly Part of the
 
Town, which has for many Years been improv’d as
 
a public Garden, and contains a Variety of the best
 
Fruit-Trees, a great Quantity of Currant and
 
Gooseberry Bushes, some of the best Grape Vines,
 
a handsome Summer-House, Glasses for Hot-
 
Beds, &c Enquire of John Welch, and know further.
 
N.B. The Cold Bath is in good Order for Use
 
and has been found beneficial to several that have
 
used it, even this Winter-Season: Price 40 Shillings
 
a Year or 5 Shillings each single Time, old Tenor.”
 
  
Jefferson, Thomas, 1771, describing Monticello,  
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*Anonymous, April 18, 1800, describing in the ''Federal Gazette'' Willow Brook, seat of John Donnell, Baltimore, MD (quoted in Sarudy 1989: 137)<ref>Barbara Wells Sarudy, “Eighteenth-Century Gardens of the Chesapeake,” ''Journal of Garden History'' 9, no. 3 (July–September 1989): 104–59, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/PGSNXHMJ view on Zotero].</ref>
plantation of Thomas Jefferson, Charlottesville,  
 
Va. (1944: 26)
 
  
“a few feet below the spring level the ground
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:“In the garden is a neat wooden house, with a twelve foot passage, and five rooms: a gardener’s house, a fish [[pond]] well stocked with fish, and an elegant '''bath''' with two dressing springs of fine soft water.”
40 or 50 f. sq. let the water fall from the spring in
 
the upper level over a terrace in the form of a cascade. then conduct it along the foot of the terrace
 
to the Western side of the level, where it may fall
 
into a cistern under a temple, from which it may
 
go off by the western border till it falls over
 
another terrace at the Northern or lower side. let
 
the temple be raised 2. f. for the first floor of stone.
 
under this is the cistern, which may be a bath or
 
anything else. the 1st story arches on three sides;
 
the back or western side being close because the
 
hill there comes down, and also to carry up stairs
 
on the outside. the 2d story to have a door on one
 
side, a spacious window in each of the other sides,
 
the rooms each 8. f. cube; with a small table and a
 
couple of chairs. the roof may be Chinese, Grecian,
 
or in the taste of the Lantern of Demosthenes
 
at Athens.”  
 
  
Quincy, Josiah, 3 May 1773, describing the
 
country seat of John Dickensen, near Philadelphia,
 
Pa. (Colonial Williamsburg Foundation; hereafter
 
CWF)
 
  
“This worthy and arch-politician ...here
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*Bentley, William, 1800 and 1802, describing Salem, MA (1962: 2:339, 437)<ref name="Bentley"></ref>
enjoys otium cum dignitate as much as any man.
 
Take into consideration the antique look of his
 
house, his gardens, green-house, bathing-house,
 
grotto, study, fish-pond, fields, meadows, vista,  
 
through which is distant prospect of Delaware
 
River.”
 
  
Carroll (of Carrollton), Charles, 24 May  
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:“31. [May 1800] The weather begins to feel like Summer. I bathed in the river this evening, & the '''Bath House''' was opened for the first time. . .
1778, in a letter to his father, Charles Carroll (of
 
Annapolis), describing the Carroll Garden,
 
Annapolis, Md. (Maryland Historical Society,
 
  
A. E. Carroll Papers, ms. 206, no.479)
+
:“July 1 [1802] walked down Seargeant’s new wharf, which is now the best in the Town. Near it, eastward, is a '''bathing house''' for salt water, lately erected for females, but little used.”
“If Joe has finished all the Jobbs at Annapolis, I
 
wish you would set him about preparing stones to
 
line a cold bath; the stones already raised at the soap stone quarry would be sufficient for this purpose,  
 
as the bath need not be in the clear more
 
than 10 feet long & 8 broad & 4 feet 6 inches deep.
 
When I return I will direct where it shall be dug.”  
 
  
Peters, Samuel, 1782, describing Stafford
 
Springs, Conn. (quoted in Bridenbaugh 1946: 153)
 
  
“the New England Bath, where the sick and
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*[[Latrobe, Benjamin Henry]], March 26, 1805, describing a design for a house in Philadelphia, PA (Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)
rich resort to prolong life and acquire the polite
 
accomplishments.”
 
  
Anonymous, 28 April 1786, describing in the  
+
:“From the kitchen a door leads to the Back stairs, which communicate immediately with the Dining room, and the Lady’s apartment above stairs. At the foot of these stairs is a small room, which can be well adapted to the purpose of a '''bath''', or a store room.
Charleston Morning Post, and Daily Advertiser a  
 
new bathing house in Charleston, S.C. (CWF)
 
  
“A Bathing House BEING about to be erected
 
at the Retreat, those Gentlemen who wish to
 
become subscribers, are requested to leave their
 
name and the Needful at the said place, as speedily
 
as possible. . . . Many attempts have been made to
 
establish a BATHING HOUSE, but none of them
 
have succeeded, and when it is recollected that in
 
this climate, such an Establishment would be in
 
the highest degree beneficial, it seems truly astonishing
 
. . . in a considerable measure by this reflection,
 
the Subscriber now issues Proposals for the
 
erection of a permanent and elegant BATHING
 
HOUSE.”
 
  
Peale, Charles Willson, June 1788, describing  
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*Caldwell, John Edwards, 1808, describing Hot Springs, VA (1951: 31)<ref>John Edwards Caldwell, ''A Tour through Part of Virginia, in the Summer of 1808; Also, Some Account of the Islands of the Azores'', ed. William M. E. Rachal (Richmond, VA: Dietz, 1951), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/8F26GMXG view on Zotero].</ref>
Annapolis, Md. (Miller, Hart, and Appel, eds.,  
 
1983: 1:498)
 
  
“being invited to dine with the fish Club, I
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:“The Hot Springs are in '''Bath''' county, 36 miles from the Sweet Springs. Here are three baths, one of vital heat, or 96 degrees of Farenheit’s thermometer: one of 104°, and it is said that the hottest is 112°, and sufficiently hot to boil an egg. The patient, on coming out of the two latter, is wrapped up in blankets, and lies stewing in the sweating room adjoining the '''bath''', until the perspiration has freely spent itself from every pore of the body.”
took my Gun for further Amusement; the club
 
had a marqui fixed opposite the Cool Spring
 
(bath House) on the other side of the creek.
 
They have skittle Ground and qu[o]ites to amuse
 
themselves.”  
 
  
Chapman, Thomas, 1795–96, describing a plantation
 
near Harrodsburg, Ky. (quoted in Schwaab
 
1973: 28)
 
  
“Colonel Nicholas’s Plantation is in a higher
+
*[[Peale, Charles Willson]], July 29, 1810, in a letter to his son, Rembrandt Peale, describing [[Belfield]], estate of Charles Willson Peale, Germantown, PA (Miller et al., eds., 1991: 3:55)<ref>Lillian B. Miller et al., eds., ''The Selected Papers of Charles Willson Peale and His Family'', vol. 3, ''The Belfield Farm Years, 1810–1820'' (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1991), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/IZAKPCBG view on Zotero].</ref>
State of Improvement than any other in the State
 
of Kentucky. Exclusive of a good Framed Commodious
 
House, a famous Spring Dairey [sic],  
 
where Milk can be kept cool in the hotest [sic] Day
 
of Summer, there is a large Barn, Stable, and out
 
Offices, and a large Grist Mill, supplied with
 
Water from the same Spring wch [sic] passes
 
through the Spring House. There is also a bathing
 
House connected with the Dairey [sic], and an
 
Apple Orchard of 400 Young thriving Trees.
 
  
Bentley, William, 12 July 1797, describing
+
:“The Barn and one of the Barracks on the West, the Coach-House near the Center, Spring-house on the East side and the '''Bath House''' below it. There is 4 large Popplers (Tulip Tree) which crosses the Road, and the Lumbardy Poppler a row of them on your right hand. Just above the '''bath-House''' is a small fish [[pond]] with about 200 Catfish which I brought from the falls of Schulkill.”
Salem, Mass. (1962: 2:228)  
 
  
“12. Plenty of Mackerel in the market at 6 cents
 
pr. lb. A Bath house is begun on the back of our
 
land which is to extend 64 feet upon B., & to have
 
eight apartments. The success is doubtful for it is
 
said such a thing much talked of was not much
 
used when gotten.”
 
  
Dwight, Timothy, 1799, describing a lunatic asylum
+
*Anonymous, April 24, 1813, describing Norfolk, VA (''Norfolk Gazette and Publick Ledger'')  
in New York, N.Y. (1822: 3:454)  
 
  
“Among its conveniences are an excellent garden,  
+
:“PUBLIC '''BATHS''' AND [[public garden|GARDEN]], OPPOSITE THE THEATRE.
fruit trees, walks, a large ice-house, bathing-
 
house, and stables.
 
  
Anonymous, 18 April 1800, describing in the Federal
+
:“The subscriber, ever grateful to his friends and the public in general for their past favors, takes this method of informing them that his '''Baths''' will be opened every day (when fair) from 6 A.M. to 9 P.M. He flatters himself that by the neatness and promptitude which he will exert himself in serving those who will favor him with their custom, to merit the public patronage. The price for '''Baths''', as heretofore, three for one dollar; 37 1-2 cents for a single one.
Gazette Willow Brook, seat of John Donnell,  
 
Baltimore, Md. (quoted in Sarudy 1989: 137)
 
  
“In the garden is a neat wooden house, with a
 
twelve foot passage, and five rooms: a gardener’s
 
house, a fish pond well stocked with fish, and an
 
elegant bath with two dressing springs of fine soft
 
water.”
 
  
Bentley, William, 1800 and 1802, describing  
+
*Anonymous, September 18, 1813, describing in the ''City Gazette and Commercial Daily Advertiser'' a proposed bathhouse in Charleston, SC (Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)  
Salem, Mass. (1962: 2:339, 437)  
 
  
“31. [May 1800] The weather begins to feel like
+
:“A splendid Establishment. The subscriber has it in contemplation to erect at the East Bay in this city a CIRCULAR FLOATING '''BATHING HOUSE''', on a new, highly approved, extensive and elegant plan—to go into operation in the season of 1814. It will be 250 feet in circumference, built of the best materials, and in the most substantial manner, forming a beautiful structure, which (besides increasing the resources of health and pleasure) will be greatly ornamental to the city. It will contain FORTY capacitus private bathing rooms, lighted by VENETIAN windows: a large SWIMMING '''bath''' in the centre, of about 160 feet circumference: FORTY dressing CLOSETS attached to the swimming '''bath''': two spacious SITTING rooms, one for the accommodation of LADIES, and the other for GENTLEMEN.
Summer. I bathed in the river this evening, & the  
 
Bath House was opened for the first time. . . .  
 
  
“July 1 [1802] walked down Seargeant’s new
 
wharf, which is now the best in the Town. Near it,
 
eastward, is a bathing house for salt water, lately
 
erected for females, but little used.”
 
  
Latrobe, Benjamin Henry, 26 March 1805,  
+
*Anonymous, March 29, 1815, describing a sale in Richmond, VA (''Daily Compiler'')  
describing a design for a house in Philadelphia,  
 
Pa. (CWF)  
 
  
“From the kitchen a door leads to the Back
+
:“MARBLE MANTLES FOR SALE. A number of elegant marble Mantles, from Philadelphia, at the house formerly occupied as a '''Bathing house''', on the cross street leading to Mayo’s [[Bridge]].”
stairs, which communicate immediately with the
 
Dining room, and the Lady’s apartment above
 
stairs. At the foot of these stairs is a small room,  
 
which can be well adapted to the purpose of a
 
bath, or a store room.”  
 
  
Caldwell, John Edwards, 1808, describing Hot
 
Springs, Va. (1951: 31)
 
  
“The Hot Springs are in Bath county, 36 miles
+
*Lambert, John, 1816, describing Charleston, SC (1816: 2:139–40)<ref>John Lambert, ''Travels through Canada, and the United States of North America in the Years 1806, 1807, and 1808'', 2 vols. (London: Baldwin, Cradock, and Joy, 1816), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/T9KUEDWH/ view on Zotero].</ref>
from the Sweet Springs. Here are three baths, one
 
of vital heat, or 96 degrees of Farenheit’s thermometer:  
 
one of 104o, and it is said that the  
 
hottest is 112o, and sufficiently hot to boil an egg.  
 
The patient, on coming out of the two latter, is
 
wrapped up in blankets, and lies stewing in the
 
sweating room adjoining the bath, until the perspiration
 
has freely spent itself from every pore of
 
the body.
 
  
Peale, Charles Willson, 29 July 1810, in a letter
+
:“The garden dignified by the name Vauxhall is also under the direction of Mr. Placide. It is situated in Broad-street, a short distance from the theatre, surrounded by a brick [[wall]], but possesses no decoration worthy of notice. It is not to be compared even with the common tea-gardens in the vicinity of London. There are some warm and cold '''baths''' on one side for the accomodation of the inhabitants. . . The heavy dews and vapours which arise from the swamps and marshes in its neighbourhood, after a hot day, are highly injurious to the constitution, particularly while it is inflamed by the wine and spirituous liquors which are drunk in the garden. It is, also, the period of the sickly season when the garden is open for public amusement, and the death of many performers and visitors may be ascribed to the entertainments given at that place.
to his son, Rembrandt Peale, describing Belfield,  
 
estate of Charles Willson Peale, Germantown, Pa.
 
(Miller, Hart, and Ward, eds., 1991: 3:55)
 
  
“The Barn and one of the Barracks on the
 
West, the Coach-House near the Center, Spring-
 
house on the East side and the Bath House below
 
it. There is 4 large Popplers (Tulip Tree) which
 
crosses the Road, and the Lumbardy Poppler a
 
row of them on your right hand. Just above the
 
bath-House is a small fish pond with about 200
 
Catfish which I brought from the falls of
 
Schulkill.”
 
  
Anonymous, 24 April 1813, describing Norfolk,  
+
*Paulding, James Kirke, 1816, describing Warm Springs (Berkeley Springs), VA (later WV) (1817: 1:167, 169; 2:235)<ref>James Kirke Paulding, ''Letters from the South'', 2 vols. (New York: James Eastburn, 1817), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/H5XVF9WE view on Zotero].</ref>
Va. (Norfolk Gazette and Publick Ledger)  
 
  
“PUBLIC BATHS AND GARDEN, OPPOSITE
+
:“[Vol. 1]. The '''bath''' here is the most luxurious of any in the world; its temperature about that of the body, its purity almost equal to that of the circumambient air: and the fixed air plays against the skin, in a manner that tickles the fancy wonderfully. . .
THE THEATRE.  
 
  
“The subscriber, ever grateful to his friends
+
:“The '''bath''' is about thirty feet in diameter, forming an octagon, walled two or three feet above the water’s edge; the bottom covered with pebbles, and the water so pure, that if it were only deeper, a man’s head would turn in looking down into it. . .
and the public in general for their past favors,  
 
takes this method of informing them that his
 
Baths will be opened every day (when fair) from 6
 
  
A.M. to 9 P.M. He flatters himself that by the  
+
:“[Vol. 2]. There is a [[pavilion]] built over the spring, which is used for drinking, and two '''bathhouses'''—one for either sex. The spring which supplies the ladies’ '''bath''' is one of the finest I have ever seen. It bursts from a fissure in the rock in the form of a cone, much larger than the crown of a hat, and, together with the others, forms a fine stream, in some places six or eight yards wide.
neatness and promptitude which he will exert
 
himself in serving those who will favor him with
 
their custom, to merit the public patronage. The
 
price for Baths, as heretofore, three for one dollar;
 
37 1-2 cents for a single one.”
 
Anonymous, 18 September 1813, describing in the  
 
City Gazette and Commercial Daily Advertiser a  
 
proposed bathhouse in Charleston, S.C. (CWF)
 
  
“A splendid Establishment. The subscriber has
 
it in contemplation to erect at the East Bay in this
 
city a CIRCULAR FLOATING BATHING
 
HOUSE, on a new, highly approved, extensive and
 
elegant plan—to go into operation in the season
 
of 1814. It will be 250 feet in circumference, built of
 
the best materials, and in the most substantial
 
manner, forming a beautiful structure, which
 
(besides increasing the resources of health and
 
pleasure) will be greatly ornamental to the city. It
 
will contain FORTY capacitus private bathing
 
rooms, lighted by VENETIAN windows: a large
 
SWIMMING bath in the centre, of about 160 feet
 
circumference: FORTY dressing CLOSETS
 
attached to the swimming bath: two spacious SITTING
 
rooms, one for the accommodation of
 
LADIES, and the other for GENTLEMEN.”
 
  
Anonymous, 29 March 1815, describing a sale in
+
*Warden, David Bailie, 1816, describing Bladensburg, MD (1816: 160)<ref>David Bailie Warden, ''A Chronographical and Statistical Description of the District of Columbia'' (Paris: Printed and sold by Smith, 1816), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/QF8TXC8D view on Zotero].</ref>
Richmond, Va. (Daily Compiler)  
 
  
“MARBLE MANTLES FOR SALE. A number
+
:“The mineral spring is pleasantly situated on the side of the stream, near a fine [[clump]] of trees at the entrance of the village. It would not require much expense to make this an agreeable watering place. . . By means of a thermometer, which Mr. Diggs politely procured, we found the temperature of the water to be 55 1/2°. Some years ago, a public '''bath''' was constructed near the spring, but the temperature was found to be disagreeably cold, and it was entirely abandoned.”
of elegant marble Mantles, from Philadelphia, at
 
the house formerly occupied as a Bathing house,  
 
on the cross street leading to Mayo’s Bridge.”  
 
  
Lambert, John, 1816, describing Charleston, S.C.
 
(2:139–40)
 
  
“The garden dignified by the name Vauxhall is
+
*Deford, William, May 5, 1819, describing in the ''American Beacon and Norfolk & Portsmouth Daily Advertiser'' Wigwam Gardens in Norfolk, VA (Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)
also under the direction of Mr. Placide. It is situated
 
in Broad-street, a short distance from the
 
theatre, surrounded by a brick wall, but possesses
 
no decoration worthy of notice. It is not to be
 
compared even with the common tea-gardens in
 
the vicinity of London. There are some warm and
 
cold baths on one side for the accomodation of
 
the inhabitants. . . . The heavy dews and vapours
 
which arise from the swamps and marshes in its
 
neighbourhood, after a hot day, are highly injurious
 
to the constitution, particularly while it is
 
inflamed by the wine and spirituous liquors which
 
are drunk in the garden. It is, also, the period of
 
the sickly season when the garden is open for public
 
amusement, and the death of many performers
 
and visitors may be ascribed to the entertainments
 
given at that place.”
 
  
Paulding, James Kirke, 1816, describing Warm
+
:“''Bathing imparts new vigour and elasticity to the system—It is the grand restorative of nature.'' Public '''Bathing house'''. THE Subscriber having, at a considerable expense, and with much personal labour, put his '''BATHS''' in such order as to render them worthy of the public attention, hopes to receive that remuneration which h[i]s efforts merit, and which, he feels assured, ''a prudent regard to the preservation of their health'', will ensure to him, from his fellow citizens.  
Springs (Berkeley Springs), Va. (later W.Va.)
 
(1817: 1:167, 169; 2:235)
 
  
“[Vol. 1]. The bath here is the most luxurious of
+
:“In his arrangements for the Season, which commenced on the 1st ins. he flatters himself, that he has neglected nothing which may be necessary to recommend his '''Baths''' for cleanliness, convenience, privacy, or attendance, and Ladies and Gentlemen can be accommodated at any hour, with ''Hot, Cold, or Tepid '''Baths''''', as may be best adapted to their health or taste.
any in the world; its temperature about that of the
 
body, its purity almost equal to that of the circumambient
 
air: and the fixed air plays against the skin,  
 
in a manner that tickles the fancy wonderfully. . . .  
 
  
“The bath is about thirty feet in diameter,
 
forming an octagon, walled two or three feet
 
above the water’s edge; the bottom covered with
 
pebbles, and the water so pure, that if it were only
 
deeper, a man’s head would turn in looking down
 
into it. . . .
 
  
“[Vol. 2]. There is a pavilion built over the
+
*Anonymous, March 22, 1820, describing in the ''City Gazette and Commercial Daily Advertiser'' a salt water bathing house proposal in Charleston, SC (Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)
spring, which is used for drinking, and two bathhouses—
 
one for either sex. The spring which supplies
 
the ladies’ bath is one of the finest I have ever
 
seen. It bursts from a fissure in the rock in the
 
form of a cone, much larger than the crown of a
 
hat, and, together with the others, forms a fine
 
stream, in some places six or eight yards wide.”
 
  
Warden, David Bailie, 1816, describing Bladensburg,  
+
:“SALT WATER '''BATHING HOUSE'''. Many attempts have been made to establish a '''BATHING HOUSE''', but none of them have succeeded, and when it is recollected that in this climate, such an Establishment would be in the highest degree beneficial, it seems truly astonishing.—in a considerable measure by this reflection, the Subscriber now issues Proposals for the erection of a permanent and elegant '''BATHING HOUSE'''. It depends upon the public whether his plans are carried into execution or not. Should a sufficient number of Subscribers be obtained, the work will be completed by the latter end of May: but it is not necessary that two hundred be obtained by the middle of April.  
Md. (p. 160)
 
  
“The mineral spring is pleasantly situated on
+
:“''The following is a brief sketch of the plan and situation'': The Building will be erected at the East end of Laurens street, a low water mark: the Foundation to be made of Palmetto Logs, 46 feet square, containing 14 private '''Baths''', with a '''Bath''' in the centre of 20 feet diameter: the bottom of the '''baths''' to be floored: over the Dressing Room will be a Platform and Railing, over which there will be a Roof. There will be a Bridge leading form Laurens street to the '''Bathing House'''.  
the side of the stream, near a fine clump of trees at  
 
the entrance of the village. It would not require
 
much expense to make this an agreeable watering
 
place. . . . By means of a thermometer, which Mr.
 
Diggs politely procured, we found the temperature
 
of the water to be 55 1/2°. Some years ago, a  
 
public bath was constructed near the spring, but
 
the temperature was found to be disagreeably
 
cold, and it was entirely abandoned.
 
  
Deford, William, 5 May 1819, describing in the  
+
:“Those Gentlemen who feel disposed to encourage the undertaking are requested to subscribe immediately.”
  
American Beacon and Norfolk & Portsmouth Daily
 
Advertiser Wigwam Gardens in Norfolk, Va.
 
(CWF)
 
  
“Bathing imparts new vigour and elasticity to
+
*Silliman, Martha Trumbull, September 1, 1821, describing Monte Video, property of Daniel Wadsworth, Avon, CT (quoted in Saunders and Raye 1981: 20)<ref>Richard Saunders and Helen Raye, ''Daniel Wadsworth, Patron of the Arts'' (Hartford, CT: Wadsworth Atheneum, 1981), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/P8ZQIH73 view on Zotero].</ref>
the system——It is the grand restorative of nature.”
 
Public Bathing house. THE Subscriber having, at
 
a considerable expense, and with much personal
 
labour, put his BATHS in such order as to render
 
them worthy of the public attention, hopes to
 
receive that remuneration which h[i]s efforts
 
merit, and which, he feels assured, a prudent
 
regard to the preservation of their health, will
 
ensure to him, from his fellow citizens.  
 
  
“In his arrangements for the Season, which
+
:“The place is a great deal handsomer than I expected. The buildings are all Gothic. First there is Uncles beautiful house; 2d the tower, 3d the cottage & the barns 4th the boat house & 5th the '''bathing house''' 6th a grape house 7th an ice house & 8th the bee house & a Gothic gate.”
commenced on the 1st ins. he flatters himself, that
 
he has neglected nothing which may be necessary
 
to recommend his Baths for cleanliness, convenience,
 
privacy, or attendance, and Ladies and Gentlemen
 
can be accommodated at any hour, with
 
Hot, Cold, or Tepid Baths, as may be best adapted
 
to their health or taste.”  
 
  
Anonymous, 22 March 1820, describing in the
 
City Gazette and Commercial Daily Advertiser a
 
salt water bathing house proposal in Charleston,
 
  
S.C. (CWF)
+
*Silliman, Benjamin, 1824, describing a [[fountain]] in New Lebanon, NY (1824: 46–47)<ref>Benjamin Silliman, ''Remarks Made on a Short Tour between Hartford and Quebec, in the Autumn of 1819'' (New Haven, CT: S. Converse, 1824), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/B5VWTWM5 view on Zotero].</ref>
“SALT WATER BATHING HOUSE. Many
 
attempts have been made to establish a BATHING
 
  
HOUSE, but none of them have succeeded, and
+
:“This is a very remarkable [[fountain]]. Unlike most mineral waters, it issues from a high hill; the water boils up in a space of ten feet wide, by three and a half deep. . . the water discharged amounts to eighteen barrels in a minute, and not only supplies the '''baths''' very copiously, simply by running down hill to them.
when it is recollected that in this climate, such an
 
Establishment would be in the highest degree beneficial,  
 
it seems truly astonishing. ——in a considerable
 
measure by this reflection, the Subscriber
 
now issues Proposals for the erection of a permanent
 
and elegant BATHING HOUSE. It depends
 
upon the public whether his plans are carried into
 
execution or not. Should a sufficient number of
 
Subscribers be obtained, the work will be completed
 
by the latter end of May: but it is not necessary
 
that two hundred be obtained by the middle
 
of April.  
 
  
“The following is a brief sketch of the plan and
 
situation: The Building will be erected at the East
 
end of Laurens street, a low water mark: the Foundation
 
to be made of Palmetto Logs, 46 feet
 
square, containing 14 private Baths, with a Bath in
 
the centre of 20 feet diameter: the bottom of the
 
baths to be floored: over the Dressing Room will
 
be a Platform and Railing, over which there will be
 
a Roof. There will be a Bridge leading form Laurens
 
street to the Bathing House.
 
  
“Those Gentlemen who feel disposed to
+
*[[Peale, Charles Willson]], c. 1825, describing New York, NY (Miller et al., eds., 2000: 5:247–48)<ref>Lillian B. Miller et al., eds., ''The Selected Papers of Charles Willson Peale and His Family'', vol. 5, ''The Autobiography of Charles Willson Peale'' (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2000), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/IZAKPCBG view on Zotero].</ref>
encourage the undertaking are requested to subscribe
 
immediately.
 
  
Silliman, Martha Trumbull, 1 September 1821,
+
:“Peale went to a '''bathing house''' on the north river, this building has a private as well as public bathing places, for men or women. The cost of public bathing is 12 1/2 Cts. and 25 Cents for private bathing. . .
describing Monte Video, property of Daniel
 
Wadsworth, Avon, Conn. (quoted in Saunders
 
and Raye 1981: 20)
 
  
“The place is a great deal handsomer than I
+
:“The public '''Bath''' is extended wings on each side about 40 feet into the river on which there are a range of boxes to dress and undress, these have stairs with ropes to decend into the water on the 3 sides and at the end next the river is a sunken vessel of an oblong square, and the debth of the water therein is about 4 feet, for the accomdation of those who cannot swim. In the private '''baths''' they have the same kind of vessels which rise and fall with the tide. You are furnished with a towel and an oil cap for the head. They have warm '''baths''' for those who want them. The[re] is another '''bathing house''' on the same river, which at present is not in order except for the accomodation of women.  
expected. The buildings are all Gothic. First there
 
is Uncles beautiful house; 2d the tower, 3d the cottage
 
& the barns 4th the boat house & 5th the  
 
bathing house 6th a grape house 7th an ice house &
 
8th the bee house & a Gothic gate.
 
  
Silliman, Benjamin, 1824, describing a fountain
+
:“If there were also '''Bathing houses''' on the east river, and it was the custom generally for the Inhabitants to make frequent use, especially during the hot seasons, it would contribute much to ward off those dreadful fevers which too oftain afflict large Cities.
in New Lebanon, N.Y. (pp. 46–47)
 
  
“This is a very remarkable fountain. Unlike
 
most mineral waters, it issues from a high hill; the
 
water boils up in a space of ten feet wide, by three
 
and a half deep . . . the water discharged amounts
 
to eighteen barrels in a minute, and not only supplies
 
the baths very copiously, simply by running
 
down hill to them.”
 
  
Peale, Charles Willson, c. 1825, describing
+
[[File:1782.jpg|thumb|right|Fig. 6, Sophie Madeleine du Pont, ''Spout bath at the Warm Springs'' (Berkeley Springs), 1837.]]
New York, N.Y. (Miller, Hart, and Ward, eds.,
 
2000: 5:247–48)
 
  
“Peale went to a bathing house on the north
+
*du Pont, Sophie Madeleine, July 21, 1837, describing Warm Springs (Berkeley Springs), VA (later WV) (quoted in Low and Hinsley 1987: 173, 179)<ref>Betty-Bright Low and Jacqueline Hinsley, ''Sophie du Pont, A Young Lady in America: Sketches, Diaries, & Letters, 1823–1833'' (New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1987), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/U2EJBX3K view on Zotero].</ref>
river, this building has a private as well as public
 
bathing places, for men or women. The cost of
 
public bathing is 12 1/2 Cts. and 25 Cents for private
 
bathing. . . .  
 
  
“The public Bath is extended wings on each
+
:“Warm Springs. . . The most abundant of these gushes from the earth in the middle of a large octagonal [[basin]] of mason work covered with a wooden building having an opening at the top, & four neat & comfortable rooms on as many sides for the accommodation of bathing. This '''bath''' is thirty eight feet in diameter; & the temperature of water 96 degrees—It is one of the most curious & beautiful objects I have seen, the water is pure & translucent to an almost dazzling degree, & rises in ceaseless flow, accompanied by showers of bright gleaming air bubbles. . .
side about 40 feet into the river on which there are
 
a range of boxes to dress and undress, these have
 
stairs with ropes to decend into the water on the 3
 
sides and at the end next the river is a sunken vessel
 
of an oblong square, and the debth of the water  
 
therein is about 4 feet, for the accomdation of  
 
those who cannot swim. In the private baths they
 
have the same kind of vessels which rise and fall
 
  
with the tide. You are furnished with a towel and
+
:“There are several other springs of the same kind in the [[meadow]]—round one a platform is built with benches, under shady trees, for those who drink the water, which notwithstanding its odour of half spoiled eggs & its warmth, is not very nauseous to the taste—Another '''bath house''' contains four small '''baths''', into one of which a ''spout'' is arranged ''for'' the benefit of those who are recommended to take ''douches''. I have tried this at Dr Horner’s request & think it of service to me, as well as the bathing.” [Fig. 6]
an oil cap for the head. They have warm baths for
 
those who want them. The[re] is another bathing
 
house on the same river, which at present is not in
 
order except for the accomodation of women.  
 
  
“If there were also Bathing houses on the east
 
river, and it was the custom generally for the
 
Inhabitants to make frequent use, especially during
 
the hot seasons, it would contribute much to
 
ward off those dreadful fevers which too oftain
 
afflict large Cities.”
 
  
du Pont, Sophie Madeleine, 21 July 1837,  
+
*Alcott, William A., August 1838, “Embellishment and Improvement of Towns and Villages” (''American Annals of Education'' 8: 343)<ref>William A. Alcott, “Embellishment and Improvement of Towns and Villages,” ''American Annals of Education'' 8, no. 8 (August 1838): 337–47, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/5K3WRQ2I view on Zotero].</ref>
describing Warm Springs (Berkeley Springs), Va.  
 
(later W.Va.) (quoted in Low and Hinsley 1987:  
 
173, 179)
 
  
“Warm Springs. . . . The most abundant of
+
:“In all our larger cities and towns there should be public '''baths''', and custom should require their daily use by those who have not the means of private ones. And if we do not recommend public '''bathing houses''' to every town and village of New England, of every size, it is because we do humbly hope our citizens will provide themselves with conveniences of the kind at their own expense, when they can be made to feel their importance.
these gushes from the earth in the middle of a
 
large octagonal basin of mason work covered with
 
a wooden building having an opening at the top,  
 
& four neat & comfortable rooms on as many
 
sides for the accommodation of bathing. This
 
bath is thirty eight feet in diameter; & the temperature
 
of water 96 degrees—It is one of the most
 
curious & beautiful objects I have seen, the water
 
is pure & translucent to an almost dazzling degree,
 
& rises in ceaseless flow, accompanied by showers
 
of bright gleaming air bubbles. . . .  
 
  
“There are several other springs of the same
 
kind in the meadow—round one a platform is
 
built with benches, under shady trees, for those
 
who drink the water, which notwithstanding its
 
odour of half spoiled eggs & its warmth, is not
 
very nauseous to the taste—Another bath house
 
contains four small baths, into one of which a
 
spout is arranged for the benefit of those who are
 
recommended to take douches. I have tried this at
 
Dr Horner’s request & think it of service to me, as
 
well as the bathing.” [Fig. 6]
 
  
Alcott, William A., August 1838, “Embellishment
+
*Hovey, C. M. (Charles Mason), October 1850, “Notes on Gardens and Nurseries,” describing a residence in Cambridge, MA (''Magazine of Horticulture'' 16: 462)<ref>Charles Mason Hovey, “Notes on Gardens and Nurseries,” ''Magazine of Horticulture, Botany, and All Useful Discoveries and Improvements in Rural Affairs'' 16, no. 10 (October 1850): 461–62, [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/599Z2NAK view on Zotero].</ref>
and Improvement of Towns and Villages”
 
(American Annals of Education 8: 343)
 
  
“In all our larger cities and towns there should
+
:“The sailing [[pond]], with the exception of the [[walk]]s around the border, and the planting of a few trees on the island in the centre, have been completed since last year, and a fine boat-house, to combine a '''bathing-house''', &c., was now just being finished.”
be public baths, and custom should require their
 
daily use by those who have not the means of private
 
ones. And if we do not recommend public
 
bathing houses to every town and village of New
 
England, of every size, it is because we do humbly
 
hope our citizens will provide themselves with
 
conveniences of the kind at their own expense,  
 
when they can be made to feel their importance.”  
 
  
Hovey, C. M., October 1850, “Notes on Gardens
 
and Nurseries,” describing a residence in Cambridge,
 
Mass. (Magazine of Horticulture 16: 462)
 
  
“The sailing pond, with the exception of the  
+
*Watson, John Fanning, 1857, describing Bathsheba’s Bath and Bower, Philadelphia, PA (1857: 1:411)<ref>John Fanning Watson, ''Annals of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania in the Olden Time; Being a Collection of Memoirs, Anecdotes, and Incidents of the City and Its Inhabitants, and of the Earliest Settlements of the Inland Part of Pennsylvania, from the Days of the Founders'', 2 vols. (Philadelphia: E. Thomas, 1857), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/5PTKBUW2 view on Zotero].</ref>
walks around the border, and the planting of a few
 
trees on the island in the centre, have been completed
 
since last year, and a fine boat-house, to
 
combine a bathing-house, &c., was now just
 
being finished.
 
  
Watson, John Fanning, 1857, describing
+
:“I had long heard traditional facts concerning the rural beauty and charming scenes of Bathsheba's '''bath''' and [[bower]], as told among the earliest recollections of the aged. They had heard their parents talk of going out over the Second street [[bridge]] into the country about the Society hill, and there making their tea—regale at the above—named spring.
Bathsheba’s Bath and Bower, Philadelphia, Pa.  
 
  
(1:411)
 
“I had long heard traditional facts concerning
 
the rural beauty and charming scenes of
 
Bathsheba’s bath and bower, as told among the
 
earliest recollections of the aged. They had heard
 
their parents talk of going out over the Second
 
street bridge into the country about the Society
 
hill, and there making their tea—regale at the
 
above—named spring.”
 
  
 
===Citations===
 
===Citations===
 +
 +
*[[Chambers, Ephraim]], 1741, ''Cyclopaedia'' (1741: 1:n.p.)<ref>Ephraim Chambers, ''Cyclopaedia, or An Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences. . . '', 5th ed., 2 vols. (London: D. Midwinter et al., 1741), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/PTXK378N view on Zotero].</ref>
 +
 +
:“'''BATH''', BALNEUM, a convenient receptacle of water for persons to wash, or plunge in, either for health or pleasure. See WATER. '''''Baths''''' are either ''natural'' or ''artificial''. Natural, again, are either ''hot'' or '''cold'''. . .
 +
 +
:“'''BATHS''', BALNEA, in architecture, denote large pompous buildings among the ancients, erected for the sake of bathing.
 +
 +
:“'''''Baths''''' made a part of the ancient gymnasia.”
 +
 +
 +
*Bordley, J. B., July 1798, ''Country Habitations'' (1798: 11)<ref>J. B. [John Beale] Bordley, ''Country Habitations'' (Philadelphia: Charles Cist, 1798), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/FQ7V6B5S view on Zotero].</ref>
 +
 +
:“Thus from water thrown up, every house might have ''family '''baths'''''; the most important of all building—improvements for the health and comfort of families, that can be adopted in our climate especially. You now rise from bed and wash face and hands—your tip ends. Why not rise and plunge into your wash-[[bason]]—a '''bath''' adjacent to your bed-chamber? instead of using a gallon vessel of water, only for hands and face! Every family in this fine climate ought to have its '''''bath'''''; and when there are servants, proper bathing places should be provided for them.
 +
 +
:“Bathing moistens, soaks, washes, supples and refreshes the whole body. When the water is tepid, bathing is always safe, cleaning and refreshing; when ''cold'', or made more than blood ''warm'', it is wholesome or not according to the state of health; but is very beneficial in many cases, when well advised to use the one or the other, according to the state of health.”
 +
 +
 +
*[[Webster, Noah]], 1828, ''An American Dictionary of the English Language'' (1828: 1:n.p.)<ref>Noah Webster, ''An American Dictionary of the English Language'', 2 vols. (New York: S. Converse, 1828), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/R6R883RR view on Zotero].</ref>
 +
 +
:“'''B`ATH''', ''n''. [Sax. ''baeth'', ''batho'', a '''bath'''; ''bathian'', to bathe; W. ''badh'', or ''baz''; D. G. Sw. Dan. ''bad'', a '''''bath'''''; Ir. '''''bath''''', the sea; Old Phrygian ''bedu'', water. Qu. W. ''bozi'', to immerse.]
 +
 +
:“1. A place for bathing; a convenient vat or receptacle of water for persons to plunge or wash their bodies in. '''Baths''' are warm or tepid, hot or cold, more generally called ''warm'' and ''cold''. They are also ''natural'' or ''artificial''. ''Natural'' '''baths''' are those which consist of spring water, either hot or cold, which is often impregnated with iron, and called chalybeate, or with sulphur, carbonic acid, and other mineral qualities. These waters are often very efficacious in scorbutic, bilious, dyspeptic and other complaints.
 +
 +
:“2. A place in which heat is applied to a body immersed in some substance. Thus,
 +
 +
:“A ''dry'' '''bath''' is made of hot sand, ashes, salt, or other matter, for the purpose of applying heat to a body immersed in them.
 +
 +
:“A ''vapor'' '''bath''' is formed by filling an apartmentwith hot steam or vapor, in which the body sweats copiously, as in Russia; or the term is used, for the application of hot steam to a diseased part of the body. ''Encyc. Tooke.''
 +
 +
:“A ''metalline'' '''bath''' is water impregnated with iron or other metallic substance, and applied to a diseased part. ''Encyc. . .''
 +
 +
:“3. A house for bathing. In some eastern countries, '''baths''' are very magnificent edifices.”
 +
 +
 +
*Ranlett, William H., 1849, ''The Architect'' (1849; repr., 1976: 1:33)<ref>William H. Ranlett, ''The Architect'', 2 vols. (1849–51; repr., New York: Da Capo, 1976), [https://www.zotero.org/groups/54737/items/itemKey/QGQPCB5J view on Zotero].</ref>
 +
 +
:“Design V.—Elevations, plans, details, ground [[plot]] and scenic [[view]] of a cottage in the Tudor style, designed for a country residence on the bank of the Bronx river, in Westchester County, N. Y. The tenement comprises ten acres of ground. . . The premises will contain a gardener’s lodge, [[summer-house]], stone [[bridge]], coach-house, '''bathhouse''', and out-buildings, screened by ornamental [[shrubbery]].”
 +
 +
<hr>
  
 
==Images==
 
==Images==
 +
===Inscribed===
 +
<span id="roundabout_img"></span>
 +
<gallery widths="170px" heights="170px" perrow="7">
  
<gallery></gallery>
+
Image:0461.jpg|[[Samuel Vaughan]], Plan of Bath [[Berkeley Springs|[Berkeley Springs]]], VA [detail], 1787, from the diary of Samuel Vaughan, June–September 1787. “f. a large '''Bath''' for swimming” and “g. a '''Bath''' for Poor People.”
 +
 
 +
Image:0462.jpg|[[Samuel Vaughan]], “Warm or [[Berkeley Springs]], in Virginia,” 1787, from the diary of Samuel Vaughan, June–September 1787.
 +
 
 +
Image:0460.jpg|Charles Varlé, ''Project for the Improvement of the [[Square]] and the Town of Bath'' [detail], 1809. “F. addition of '''Bath'''.”
 +
 
 +
Image:0722.jpg|Anonymous, “Barrell Farm,” Pleasant Hill, 1817. “Bathing House” is located just below the poplar [[grove]].
 +
 
 +
Image:1782.jpg|Sophie Madeleine du Pont, ''Spout '''bath''' at the Warm Springs'' ([[Berkeley Springs]]), 1837.
 +
 
 +
Image:0568.jpg|William Keenan, ''Plan of the City and Neck of Charleston, S.C.'', September 1844. “'''Bathing House'''” at the bottom left of the plan.
 +
 
 +
Image:0487.jpg|William Wade, ''Castle Garden: From the Battery'', 1848.
 +
 
 +
Image:0567.jpg|Sam A. Gilbert, ''A Plan of the City of Charleston'', 1849. “'''Bathing House'''” at the bottom of the plan.
 +
 
 +
Image:0781.jpg|[[Frances Palmer]], Plan and section of Villa at Oswego, New York, in William H. Ranlett, ''The Architect'' (1851), vol. 2, pl. 12. “'''bath-house''', L.”
 +
 
 +
Image: 2288.jpg|Map of White Sulphur Springs, Greenbrier County, Virginia, 1854.
 +
 
 +
Image: 2288_detail1.jpg|Map of White Sulphur Springs, Greenbrier County, Virginia, 1854 [detail].
 +
 
 +
</gallery>
 +
 
 +
===Associated===
 +
<span id="roundabout_img"></span>
 +
<gallery widths="170px" heights="170px" perrow="7">
 +
 
 +
Image:1781.jpg|Sophie Madeleine du Pont, Octagonal Bath at Warm Springs ([[Berkeley Springs]]), 1837.
 +
 
 +
</gallery>
 +
 
 +
===Attributed===
 +
<span id="roundabout_img"></span>
 +
<gallery widths="170px" heights="170px" perrow="7">
 +
 
 +
Image:0703.jpg|Lewis Miller, “The Yellow Sulphur Springs, Montgomery County,” n.d.
 +
 
 +
Image:2280.jpg|[[Pierre Pharoux]], Frontal [[view]] of two [[pavilion]]s on the water for the city of Speranza, 1795.
 +
 
 +
Image:2281.jpg|[[Pierre Pharoux]], Aerial [[view]] of two [[pavilion]]s on the water for the city of Speranza, 1795.
 +
 
 +
Image:2116.jpg|Edwin Whitefield, ''[[Fountain]] [[Park]] near Philadelphia. Residence of A. McMakin Esq.'', c. 1850.
 +
</gallery>
 +
 
 +
<hr>
  
 
==Notes==
 
==Notes==
 +
 +
<references></references>
 +
 +
[[Category: Keywords]]
 +
[[Category: Water Features]]
 +
[[Category: Architecture]]

Latest revision as of 10:29, February 12, 2021

(Bath-house, Bathing house)

History

Fig. 1, William Wade, Castle Garden: From the Battery, 1848.

The bath and bathhouse in America had many forms, including private versions attached to houses or separately constructed in a garden, and public baths at resorts, in public gardens, and at the seaside. The term “bath” referred both to the structure covering the water and to the watering receptacle or pool itself. The structures were sometimes called bathhouses or bathing houses. Baths at natural sources of mineral waters were also referred to as spas and springs.

Fig. 2, Samuel Vaughan, Plan of Bath [Berkeley Springs], VA [detail], 1787, from the diary of Samuel Vaughan, June–September 1787. “f. a large Bath for swimming” and “g. a Bath for Poor People.”

Although garden treatise literature contains few references to garden baths, other evidence indicates that the bathhouse held a prominent position in American ornamental landscapes. Baths were situated in public gardens, such as a public bath and garden in Norfolk, Virginia, or Bathsheba’s Bath and Bower in Philadelphia, and in many private gardens, such as John Donnell’s Willow Brook in Baltimore and Charles Willson Peale's Belfield in Philadelphia. Baths at private estates might be simple, as suggested by the note in the South Carolina Gazette in 1733, of “frames, Planks, &c. to be fix’d in and about a Spring. . . intended for a Cold Bath.” They also could be quite substantial, as was Charles Carroll of Carrollton’s stone-lined bath, which he ordered in 1778 to measure ten by eight feet with a depth of four-and-a-half feet. Few detailed descriptions of the architecture of these bathhouses survive, however. At Monte Video in Connecticut, the bathhouse was described merely as Gothic. More is known about the architecture of public baths, where the structures were larger and often quite elaborate. Many textual descriptions and images of baths survive because they were considered civic amenities, such as the bath at Castle Garden in New York [Fig. 1]. Samuel Vaughan's plan of 1787 for the town of Bath included “baths [at a] for company 5 by 18 feet that fills in 5 minutes & emties [sic] in four,” dressing rooms [b], two piazzas with seats [bb], a large bath for swimming [f], and a separate “Bath for Poor People [g]” [Fig. 2]. Sophie Madeleine du Pont in 1837 described and sketched a bathhouse at Warm Springs (Berkeley Springs), Virginia (later West Virginia), with a thirty-foot octagonal masonry basin and four separate bathing rooms [Fig. 3].

Fig. 3, Sophie Madeleine du Pont, Octagonal Bath at Warm Springs (Berkeley Springs), 1837.

Mineral springs were visited as early as 1669 when Massachusetts colonists took the waters at Lynn Red Spring, but it was not until the end of the French and Indian War that springs began to be developed widely as commercial establishments.[1] A bath at Stafford Springs in Connecticut opened in 1765 and became, in the words of Samuel Peters, “where the sick and rich resort to prolong life, and acquire the polite accomplishments.”[2] In addition to bathing, spas, such as Yellow Sulphur Springs, near Philadelphia, often included a variety of entertainments such as dining, dancing, and overnight lodging.[3] Bathing, as a general practice, was argued to have healthful effects. J. B. Bordley wrote in 1798 that “[e]very family in this fine climate ought to have its bath. . . Bathing moistens, soaks, washes, supples and refreshes the whole body.” At the age of 95, Charles Carroll of Carrollton credited his longevity to daily cold baths. When bathed in and imbibed, mineral waters rich in sulfur and iron were particularly renowned for their curative properties for ailments such as rheumatism, cholera, malaria, hysteria, gout, and digestive disorders. Du Pont, seeking relief from a back and knee ailment, took the waters of Warm Springs, and she described vividly the sulfur-rich water’s “odour of half spoiled eggs.”

Fig. 4, Charles Varlé, Project for the Improvement of the Square and the Town of Bath [detail], 1809. “F. addition of Bath.”
Fig. 5, Lewis Miller, “The Yellow Sulphur Springs, Montgomery County,” n.d.

As their popularity grew, accommodations and other facilities were built at many of the springs to cater to the travelers seeking rest and refreshment. These resorts often included elaborate gardens. In 1776, the Virginia Assembly laid out the town of Bath around a spring that had been owned by Lord Fairfax. Lots sold at 25 guineas each, and Bath included a theater, inns, and places to ride and play billiards. Charles Varlé’s landscape design for the town in 1809 [Fig. 4] included a reservoir or fountain “covered with a vine treliage in a form of a dome or copula,” a jet d’eau, a bowling green, and two labyrinths “contrived so as to be different in their issues and windings.” The town became a fashionable resort; visitors included Baron and Baroness de Riedesel and Mrs. Charles Carroll of Carrollton.[4]

The Bath resort community declined in popularity with the rise of the other Virginia springs in the Allegheny highlands described by Thomas Jefferson as “medicinal springs.” These springs became part of a social tour that lasted from July through mid-September. The tour generally started at Warm Springs, and continued on to Hot Springs, White Sulphur Springs, Sweet Springs, Salt Sulphur Springs, and Red Sulphur Springs.[5] Lewis Miller’s sketch of Yellow Sulphur Springs illustrates accommodations, walks, benches, lighting, and other features for the recreation of the bathers [Fig. 5]. Historian Carl Bridenbaugh credits these resorts, at least in colonial times, with “promoting colonial union and. . . nourishing nascent Americanism.” He argues that, in addition to the springs’ appeal as salubrious escapes from humidity, heat, and noise, they offered the “most significant intercolonial meeting places. . . [and] provided a powerful solvent of provincialism.”[6] As some of the most elaborate landscape designs of the period suggest, resorts may also have done much to disseminate the fashion for baths and bathhouses in residential gardens as well.

Elizabeth Kryder-Reid


Texts

Usage

  • Anonymous, July 28, 1733, describing a plantation for sale in Charleston, SC (South Carolina Gazette)
“A Plantation about two Miles above Goose-Creek Bridge. . . [had] a Spring within 3 Stones throw of the House, intended for a Cold Bath.”


  • Anonymous, February 6, 1746, describing in the Boston Weekly News-Letter the property of John Welch, Boston, MA (quoted in Benes 1996: 53)[7]
“TO BE LETT, (exclusive of the Bath-House) The Bath-Garden, at the Westerly Part of the Town, which has for many Years been improv’d as a public Garden, and contains a Variety of the best Fruit-Trees, a great Quantity of Currant and Gooseberry Bushes, some of the best Grape Vines, a handsome Summer-House, Glasses for Hot-Beds, &c Enquire of John Welch, and know further. N.B. The Cold Bath is in good Order for Use and has been found beneficial to several that have used it, even this Winter-Season: Price 40 Shillings a Year or 5 Shillings each single Time, old Tenor.”


“. . . a few feet below the spring level the ground 40 or 50 f. sq. let the water fall from the spring in the upper level over a terrace in the form of a cascade. then conduct it along the foot of the terrace to the Western side of the level, where it may fall into a cistern under a temple, from which it may go off by the western border till it falls over another terrace at the Northern or lower side. let the temple be raised 2. f. for the first floor of stone. under this is the cistern, which may be a bath or anything else. the 1st story arches on three sides; the back or western side being close because the hill there comes down, and also to carry up stairs on the outside. the 2d story to have a door on one side, a spacious window in each of the other sides, the rooms each 8. f. cube; with a small table and a couple of chairs. the roof may be Chinese, Grecian, or in the taste of the Lantern of Demosthenes at Athens.”


  • Quincy, Josiah, May 3, 1773, describing the country seat of John Dickensen, near Philadelphia, PA (Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)
“This worthy and arch-politician. . . here enjoys otium cum dignitate as much as any man. Take into consideration the antique look of his house, his gardens, green-house, bathing-house, grotto, study, fish-pond, fields, meadows, vista, through which is distant prospect of Delaware River.”


  • Carroll (of Carrollton), Charles, May 24, 1778, in a letter to his father, Charles Carroll (of Annapolis), describing the Carroll Garden, Annapolis, MD (Maryland Historical Society, A. E. Carroll Papers, MS 206, no. 479)
“If Joe has finished all the Jobbs at Annapolis, I wish you would set him about preparing stones to line a cold bath; the stones already raised at the soap stone quarry would be sufficient for this purpose, as the bath need not be in the clear more than 10 feet long & 8 broad & 4 feet 6 inches deep. When I return I will direct where it shall be dug.”


  • Peters, Samuel, 1782, describing Stafford Springs, CT (quoted in Bridenbaugh 1946: 153)[9]
“. . . the New England Bath, where the sick and rich resort to prolong life and acquire the polite accomplishments.”


  • Anonymous, April 28, 1786, describing a new bathing house in Charleston, SC, in the Charleston Morning Post, and Daily Advertiser (Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)
“A Bathing House BEING about to be erected at the Retreat, those Gentlemen who wish to become subscribers, are requested to leave their name and the Needful at the said place, as speedily as possible. . . Many attempts have been made to establish a BATHING HOUSE, but none of them have succeeded, and when it is recollected that in this climate, such an Establishment would be in the highest degree beneficial, it seems truly astonishing. . . in a considerable measure by this reflection, the Subscriber now issues Proposals for the erection of a permanent and elegant BATHING HOUSE.”


“. . . being invited to dine with the fish Club, I took my Gun for further Amusement; the club had a marqui fixed opposite the Cool Spring (bath House) on the other side of the creek. They have skittle Ground and qu[o]ites to amuse themselves.”


  • Chapman, Thomas, 1795–96, describing a plantation near Harrodsburg, KY (quoted in Schwaab 1973: 28)[11]
“Colonel Nicholas’s Plantation is in a higher State of Improvement than any other in the State of Kentucky. Exclusive of a good Framed Commodious House, a famous Spring Dairey [sic], where Milk can be kept cool in the hotest [sic] Day of Summer, there is a large Barn, Stable, and out Offices, and a large Grist Mill, supplied with Water from the same Spring wch [sic] passes through the Spring House. There is also a bathing House connected with the Dairey [sic], and an Apple Orchard of 400 Young thriving Trees.”


  • Bentley, William, July 12, 1797, describing Salem, MA (1962: 2:228)[12]
“12. Plenty of Mackerel in the market at 6 cents pr. lb. A Bath house is begun on the back of our land which is to extend 64 feet upon B., & to have eight apartments. The success is doubtful for it is said such a thing much talked of was not much used when gotten.”


“Among its conveniences are an excellent garden, fruit trees, walks, a large ice-house, bathing-house, and stables.”


  • Anonymous, April 18, 1800, describing in the Federal Gazette Willow Brook, seat of John Donnell, Baltimore, MD (quoted in Sarudy 1989: 137)[14]
“In the garden is a neat wooden house, with a twelve foot passage, and five rooms: a gardener’s house, a fish pond well stocked with fish, and an elegant bath with two dressing springs of fine soft water.”


  • Bentley, William, 1800 and 1802, describing Salem, MA (1962: 2:339, 437)[12]
“31. [May 1800] The weather begins to feel like Summer. I bathed in the river this evening, & the Bath House was opened for the first time. . .
“July 1 [1802] walked down Seargeant’s new wharf, which is now the best in the Town. Near it, eastward, is a bathing house for salt water, lately erected for females, but little used.”


  • Latrobe, Benjamin Henry, March 26, 1805, describing a design for a house in Philadelphia, PA (Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)
“From the kitchen a door leads to the Back stairs, which communicate immediately with the Dining room, and the Lady’s apartment above stairs. At the foot of these stairs is a small room, which can be well adapted to the purpose of a bath, or a store room.”


  • Caldwell, John Edwards, 1808, describing Hot Springs, VA (1951: 31)[15]
“The Hot Springs are in Bath county, 36 miles from the Sweet Springs. Here are three baths, one of vital heat, or 96 degrees of Farenheit’s thermometer: one of 104°, and it is said that the hottest is 112°, and sufficiently hot to boil an egg. The patient, on coming out of the two latter, is wrapped up in blankets, and lies stewing in the sweating room adjoining the bath, until the perspiration has freely spent itself from every pore of the body.”


  • Peale, Charles Willson, July 29, 1810, in a letter to his son, Rembrandt Peale, describing Belfield, estate of Charles Willson Peale, Germantown, PA (Miller et al., eds., 1991: 3:55)[16]
“The Barn and one of the Barracks on the West, the Coach-House near the Center, Spring-house on the East side and the Bath House below it. There is 4 large Popplers (Tulip Tree) which crosses the Road, and the Lumbardy Poppler a row of them on your right hand. Just above the bath-House is a small fish pond with about 200 Catfish which I brought from the falls of Schulkill.”


  • Anonymous, April 24, 1813, describing Norfolk, VA (Norfolk Gazette and Publick Ledger)
“PUBLIC BATHS AND GARDEN, OPPOSITE THE THEATRE.
“The subscriber, ever grateful to his friends and the public in general for their past favors, takes this method of informing them that his Baths will be opened every day (when fair) from 6 A.M. to 9 P.M. He flatters himself that by the neatness and promptitude which he will exert himself in serving those who will favor him with their custom, to merit the public patronage. The price for Baths, as heretofore, three for one dollar; 37 1-2 cents for a single one.”


  • Anonymous, September 18, 1813, describing in the City Gazette and Commercial Daily Advertiser a proposed bathhouse in Charleston, SC (Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)
“A splendid Establishment. The subscriber has it in contemplation to erect at the East Bay in this city a CIRCULAR FLOATING BATHING HOUSE, on a new, highly approved, extensive and elegant plan—to go into operation in the season of 1814. It will be 250 feet in circumference, built of the best materials, and in the most substantial manner, forming a beautiful structure, which (besides increasing the resources of health and pleasure) will be greatly ornamental to the city. It will contain FORTY capacitus private bathing rooms, lighted by VENETIAN windows: a large SWIMMING bath in the centre, of about 160 feet circumference: FORTY dressing CLOSETS attached to the swimming bath: two spacious SITTING rooms, one for the accommodation of LADIES, and the other for GENTLEMEN.”


  • Anonymous, March 29, 1815, describing a sale in Richmond, VA (Daily Compiler)
“MARBLE MANTLES FOR SALE. A number of elegant marble Mantles, from Philadelphia, at the house formerly occupied as a Bathing house, on the cross street leading to Mayo’s Bridge.”


  • Lambert, John, 1816, describing Charleston, SC (1816: 2:139–40)[17]
“The garden dignified by the name Vauxhall is also under the direction of Mr. Placide. It is situated in Broad-street, a short distance from the theatre, surrounded by a brick wall, but possesses no decoration worthy of notice. It is not to be compared even with the common tea-gardens in the vicinity of London. There are some warm and cold baths on one side for the accomodation of the inhabitants. . . The heavy dews and vapours which arise from the swamps and marshes in its neighbourhood, after a hot day, are highly injurious to the constitution, particularly while it is inflamed by the wine and spirituous liquors which are drunk in the garden. It is, also, the period of the sickly season when the garden is open for public amusement, and the death of many performers and visitors may be ascribed to the entertainments given at that place.”


  • Paulding, James Kirke, 1816, describing Warm Springs (Berkeley Springs), VA (later WV) (1817: 1:167, 169; 2:235)[18]
“[Vol. 1]. The bath here is the most luxurious of any in the world; its temperature about that of the body, its purity almost equal to that of the circumambient air: and the fixed air plays against the skin, in a manner that tickles the fancy wonderfully. . .
“The bath is about thirty feet in diameter, forming an octagon, walled two or three feet above the water’s edge; the bottom covered with pebbles, and the water so pure, that if it were only deeper, a man’s head would turn in looking down into it. . .
“[Vol. 2]. There is a pavilion built over the spring, which is used for drinking, and two bathhouses—one for either sex. The spring which supplies the ladies’ bath is one of the finest I have ever seen. It bursts from a fissure in the rock in the form of a cone, much larger than the crown of a hat, and, together with the others, forms a fine stream, in some places six or eight yards wide.”


  • Warden, David Bailie, 1816, describing Bladensburg, MD (1816: 160)[19]
“The mineral spring is pleasantly situated on the side of the stream, near a fine clump of trees at the entrance of the village. It would not require much expense to make this an agreeable watering place. . . By means of a thermometer, which Mr. Diggs politely procured, we found the temperature of the water to be 55 1/2°. Some years ago, a public bath was constructed near the spring, but the temperature was found to be disagreeably cold, and it was entirely abandoned.”


  • Deford, William, May 5, 1819, describing in the American Beacon and Norfolk & Portsmouth Daily Advertiser Wigwam Gardens in Norfolk, VA (Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)
Bathing imparts new vigour and elasticity to the system—It is the grand restorative of nature. Public Bathing house. THE Subscriber having, at a considerable expense, and with much personal labour, put his BATHS in such order as to render them worthy of the public attention, hopes to receive that remuneration which h[i]s efforts merit, and which, he feels assured, a prudent regard to the preservation of their health, will ensure to him, from his fellow citizens.
“In his arrangements for the Season, which commenced on the 1st ins. he flatters himself, that he has neglected nothing which may be necessary to recommend his Baths for cleanliness, convenience, privacy, or attendance, and Ladies and Gentlemen can be accommodated at any hour, with Hot, Cold, or Tepid Baths, as may be best adapted to their health or taste.”


  • Anonymous, March 22, 1820, describing in the City Gazette and Commercial Daily Advertiser a salt water bathing house proposal in Charleston, SC (Colonial Williamsburg Foundation)
“SALT WATER BATHING HOUSE. Many attempts have been made to establish a BATHING HOUSE, but none of them have succeeded, and when it is recollected that in this climate, such an Establishment would be in the highest degree beneficial, it seems truly astonishing.—in a considerable measure by this reflection, the Subscriber now issues Proposals for the erection of a permanent and elegant BATHING HOUSE. It depends upon the public whether his plans are carried into execution or not. Should a sufficient number of Subscribers be obtained, the work will be completed by the latter end of May: but it is not necessary that two hundred be obtained by the middle of April.
The following is a brief sketch of the plan and situation: The Building will be erected at the East end of Laurens street, a low water mark: the Foundation to be made of Palmetto Logs, 46 feet square, containing 14 private Baths, with a Bath in the centre of 20 feet diameter: the bottom of the baths to be floored: over the Dressing Room will be a Platform and Railing, over which there will be a Roof. There will be a Bridge leading form Laurens street to the Bathing House.
“Those Gentlemen who feel disposed to encourage the undertaking are requested to subscribe immediately.”


  • Silliman, Martha Trumbull, September 1, 1821, describing Monte Video, property of Daniel Wadsworth, Avon, CT (quoted in Saunders and Raye 1981: 20)[20]
“The place is a great deal handsomer than I expected. The buildings are all Gothic. First there is Uncles beautiful house; 2d the tower, 3d the cottage & the barns 4th the boat house & 5th the bathing house 6th a grape house 7th an ice house & 8th the bee house & a Gothic gate.”


  • Silliman, Benjamin, 1824, describing a fountain in New Lebanon, NY (1824: 46–47)[21]
“This is a very remarkable fountain. Unlike most mineral waters, it issues from a high hill; the water boils up in a space of ten feet wide, by three and a half deep. . . the water discharged amounts to eighteen barrels in a minute, and not only supplies the baths very copiously, simply by running down hill to them.”


“Peale went to a bathing house on the north river, this building has a private as well as public bathing places, for men or women. The cost of public bathing is 12 1/2 Cts. and 25 Cents for private bathing. . .
“The public Bath is extended wings on each side about 40 feet into the river on which there are a range of boxes to dress and undress, these have stairs with ropes to decend into the water on the 3 sides and at the end next the river is a sunken vessel of an oblong square, and the debth of the water therein is about 4 feet, for the accomdation of those who cannot swim. In the private baths they have the same kind of vessels which rise and fall with the tide. You are furnished with a towel and an oil cap for the head. They have warm baths for those who want them. The[re] is another bathing house on the same river, which at present is not in order except for the accomodation of women.
“If there were also Bathing houses on the east river, and it was the custom generally for the Inhabitants to make frequent use, especially during the hot seasons, it would contribute much to ward off those dreadful fevers which too oftain afflict large Cities.”


Fig. 6, Sophie Madeleine du Pont, Spout bath at the Warm Springs (Berkeley Springs), 1837.
  • du Pont, Sophie Madeleine, July 21, 1837, describing Warm Springs (Berkeley Springs), VA (later WV) (quoted in Low and Hinsley 1987: 173, 179)[23]
“Warm Springs. . . The most abundant of these gushes from the earth in the middle of a large octagonal basin of mason work covered with a wooden building having an opening at the top, & four neat & comfortable rooms on as many sides for the accommodation of bathing. This bath is thirty eight feet in diameter; & the temperature of water 96 degrees—It is one of the most curious & beautiful objects I have seen, the water is pure & translucent to an almost dazzling degree, & rises in ceaseless flow, accompanied by showers of bright gleaming air bubbles. . .
“There are several other springs of the same kind in the meadow—round one a platform is built with benches, under shady trees, for those who drink the water, which notwithstanding its odour of half spoiled eggs & its warmth, is not very nauseous to the taste—Another bath house contains four small baths, into one of which a spout is arranged for the benefit of those who are recommended to take douches. I have tried this at Dr Horner’s request & think it of service to me, as well as the bathing.” [Fig. 6]


  • Alcott, William A., August 1838, “Embellishment and Improvement of Towns and Villages” (American Annals of Education 8: 343)[24]
“In all our larger cities and towns there should be public baths, and custom should require their daily use by those who have not the means of private ones. And if we do not recommend public bathing houses to every town and village of New England, of every size, it is because we do humbly hope our citizens will provide themselves with conveniences of the kind at their own expense, when they can be made to feel their importance.”


  • Hovey, C. M. (Charles Mason), October 1850, “Notes on Gardens and Nurseries,” describing a residence in Cambridge, MA (Magazine of Horticulture 16: 462)[25]
“The sailing pond, with the exception of the walks around the border, and the planting of a few trees on the island in the centre, have been completed since last year, and a fine boat-house, to combine a bathing-house, &c., was now just being finished.”


  • Watson, John Fanning, 1857, describing Bathsheba’s Bath and Bower, Philadelphia, PA (1857: 1:411)[26]
“I had long heard traditional facts concerning the rural beauty and charming scenes of Bathsheba's bath and bower, as told among the earliest recollections of the aged. They had heard their parents talk of going out over the Second street bridge into the country about the Society hill, and there making their tea—regale at the above—named spring.”


Citations

BATH, BALNEUM, a convenient receptacle of water for persons to wash, or plunge in, either for health or pleasure. See WATER. Baths are either natural or artificial. Natural, again, are either hot or cold. . .
BATHS, BALNEA, in architecture, denote large pompous buildings among the ancients, erected for the sake of bathing.
Baths made a part of the ancient gymnasia.”


  • Bordley, J. B., July 1798, Country Habitations (1798: 11)[28]
“Thus from water thrown up, every house might have family baths; the most important of all building—improvements for the health and comfort of families, that can be adopted in our climate especially. You now rise from bed and wash face and hands—your tip ends. Why not rise and plunge into your wash-bason—a bath adjacent to your bed-chamber? instead of using a gallon vessel of water, only for hands and face! Every family in this fine climate ought to have its bath; and when there are servants, proper bathing places should be provided for them.
“Bathing moistens, soaks, washes, supples and refreshes the whole body. When the water is tepid, bathing is always safe, cleaning and refreshing; when cold, or made more than blood warm, it is wholesome or not according to the state of health; but is very beneficial in many cases, when well advised to use the one or the other, according to the state of health.”


  • Webster, Noah, 1828, An American Dictionary of the English Language (1828: 1:n.p.)[29]
B`ATH, n. [Sax. baeth, batho, a bath; bathian, to bathe; W. badh, or baz; D. G. Sw. Dan. bad, a bath; Ir. bath, the sea; Old Phrygian bedu, water. Qu. W. bozi, to immerse.]
“1. A place for bathing; a convenient vat or receptacle of water for persons to plunge or wash their bodies in. Baths are warm or tepid, hot or cold, more generally called warm and cold. They are also natural or artificial. Natural baths are those which consist of spring water, either hot or cold, which is often impregnated with iron, and called chalybeate, or with sulphur, carbonic acid, and other mineral qualities. These waters are often very efficacious in scorbutic, bilious, dyspeptic and other complaints.
“2. A place in which heat is applied to a body immersed in some substance. Thus,
“A dry bath is made of hot sand, ashes, salt, or other matter, for the purpose of applying heat to a body immersed in them.
“A vapor bath is formed by filling an apartmentwith hot steam or vapor, in which the body sweats copiously, as in Russia; or the term is used, for the application of hot steam to a diseased part of the body. Encyc. Tooke.
“A metalline bath is water impregnated with iron or other metallic substance, and applied to a diseased part. Encyc. . .
“3. A house for bathing. In some eastern countries, baths are very magnificent edifices.”


  • Ranlett, William H., 1849, The Architect (1849; repr., 1976: 1:33)[30]
“Design V.—Elevations, plans, details, ground plot and scenic view of a cottage in the Tudor style, designed for a country residence on the bank of the Bronx river, in Westchester County, N. Y. The tenement comprises ten acres of ground. . . The premises will contain a gardener’s lodge, summer-house, stone bridge, coach-house, bathhouse, and out-buildings, screened by ornamental shrubbery.”

Images

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Attributed


Notes

  1. Carl Bridenbaugh, “Baths and Watering Places of Colonial America,” William and Mary Quarterly 3, no. 2 (April 1946): 152, view on Zotero.
  2. Samuel Peters, A General History of Connecticut (London: Printed for the author, 1781), 174. A detailed description of a visit to Stafford Springs is recorded in John Adams’s diary in 1771, although he does not use the term “bath,” view on Zotero.
  3. Barbara G. Carson, “Early American Tourists and the Commercialization of Leisure,” in Of Consuming Interests: The Style of Life in the Eighteenth Century, ed. Cary Carson, Ronald Hoffman, and Peter J. Albert (Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1994), 390, view on Zotero; Carol Shiels Roark, “Historic Yellow Springs: The Restoration of an American Spa,” Pennsylvania Folklife 24 (autumn 1974): 28–38, view on Zotero.
  4. Percival Reniers, The Springs of Virginia: Life, Love, and Death at the Waters, 1775–1900 (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1941), 34, view on Zotero.
  5. Reniers, The Springs of Virginia, 26, view on Zotero; B. Carson, “Early American Tourists,” 393–97, view on Zotero. Cary Carson includes, along with his discussion of consumer behavior in America, a measured drawing of the oldest extant bathhouse in America, the Gentlemen’s bathhouse in Warm Springs (Berkeley Springs), Virginia (later West Virginia). See Cary Carson, “The Consumer Revolution in Colonial America: Why Demand?” in Of Consuming Interests: The Style of Life in the Eighteenth Century, ed. Cary Carson, Ronald Hoffman, and Peter J. Albert (Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1994), 444–697, view on Zotero.
  6. Bridenbaugh, “Baths and Watering Places,” 180–81, view on Zotero.
  7. Peter Benes, “Horticultural Importers and Nurserymen in Boston, 1719–1770,” in Plants and People: Annual Proceedings of the Dublin Seminar for New England Folklife, 1995, ed. Peter Benes (Boston: Boston University, 1996), view on Zotero.
  8. Thomas Jefferson, The Garden Book, ed. Edwin M. Betts (Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 1944), view on Zotero.
  9. Bridenbaugh, “Baths and Watering Places,” 151–81, view on Zotero.
  10. Lillian B. Miller et al., eds., The Selected Papers of Charles Willson Peale and His Family, vol. 1, Charles Willson Peale: Artist in Revolutionary America, 1753–1791 (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1983), view on Zotero.
  11. Eugene L. Schwaab and Jacqueline Bull, Travels in the Old South (Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1973), view on Zotero.
  12. 12.0 12.1 William Bentley, The Diary of William Bentley, D.D., Pastor of the East Church, Salem, Massachusetts (Gloucester, MA: Peter Smith, 1962), view on Zotero.
  13. Timothy Dwight, Travels; in New-England and New-York, 4 vols. (New Haven: T. Dwight, 1821), view on Zotero.
  14. Barbara Wells Sarudy, “Eighteenth-Century Gardens of the Chesapeake,” Journal of Garden History 9, no. 3 (July–September 1989): 104–59, view on Zotero.
  15. John Edwards Caldwell, A Tour through Part of Virginia, in the Summer of 1808; Also, Some Account of the Islands of the Azores, ed. William M. E. Rachal (Richmond, VA: Dietz, 1951), view on Zotero.
  16. Lillian B. Miller et al., eds., The Selected Papers of Charles Willson Peale and His Family, vol. 3, The Belfield Farm Years, 1810–1820 (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1991), view on Zotero.
  17. John Lambert, Travels through Canada, and the United States of North America in the Years 1806, 1807, and 1808, 2 vols. (London: Baldwin, Cradock, and Joy, 1816), view on Zotero.
  18. James Kirke Paulding, Letters from the South, 2 vols. (New York: James Eastburn, 1817), view on Zotero.
  19. David Bailie Warden, A Chronographical and Statistical Description of the District of Columbia (Paris: Printed and sold by Smith, 1816), view on Zotero.
  20. Richard Saunders and Helen Raye, Daniel Wadsworth, Patron of the Arts (Hartford, CT: Wadsworth Atheneum, 1981), view on Zotero.
  21. Benjamin Silliman, Remarks Made on a Short Tour between Hartford and Quebec, in the Autumn of 1819 (New Haven, CT: S. Converse, 1824), view on Zotero.
  22. Lillian B. Miller et al., eds., The Selected Papers of Charles Willson Peale and His Family, vol. 5, The Autobiography of Charles Willson Peale (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2000), view on Zotero.
  23. Betty-Bright Low and Jacqueline Hinsley, Sophie du Pont, A Young Lady in America: Sketches, Diaries, & Letters, 1823–1833 (New York: Harry N. Abrams, 1987), view on Zotero.
  24. William A. Alcott, “Embellishment and Improvement of Towns and Villages,” American Annals of Education 8, no. 8 (August 1838): 337–47, view on Zotero.
  25. Charles Mason Hovey, “Notes on Gardens and Nurseries,” Magazine of Horticulture, Botany, and All Useful Discoveries and Improvements in Rural Affairs 16, no. 10 (October 1850): 461–62, view on Zotero.
  26. John Fanning Watson, Annals of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania in the Olden Time; Being a Collection of Memoirs, Anecdotes, and Incidents of the City and Its Inhabitants, and of the Earliest Settlements of the Inland Part of Pennsylvania, from the Days of the Founders, 2 vols. (Philadelphia: E. Thomas, 1857), view on Zotero.
  27. Ephraim Chambers, Cyclopaedia, or An Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences. . . , 5th ed., 2 vols. (London: D. Midwinter et al., 1741), view on Zotero.
  28. J. B. [John Beale] Bordley, Country Habitations (Philadelphia: Charles Cist, 1798), view on Zotero.
  29. Noah Webster, An American Dictionary of the English Language, 2 vols. (New York: S. Converse, 1828), view on Zotero.
  30. William H. Ranlett, The Architect, 2 vols. (1849–51; repr., New York: Da Capo, 1976), view on Zotero.

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