Blue Springs Alabama
Blue Springs Alabama
(Barbour County) – Population 91
Blue Springs is a town in Barbour County. At the 2010 census the population was 96. The racial makeup of the town was 99.17% white and 0.83% black or African American.
The town is the home of Blue Springs State Park.
Blue Springs began as a land purchase by Thomas Hagler, one of the original settlers in the area who bought the land around the springs from the federal government in 1839.
In the 1890s, however, local entrepreneurs began to realize the potential of the constant 68-degree springs as a travel destination. As a result, tourismbecame a mainstay of the local economy. In particular, the Whigham family invested in expanding a spring on their property in the 1890s and erected the Blue Springs Hotel by 1900 to accommodate travelers drawn to the alleged healing powers of the spring. The hotel offered a room and three meals a day for one dollar. Some visitors built their own cottages near the springs. The community also was a popular destination for politicians who could draw a bigger crowd by speaking at the resort. Blue Springs was incorporated in 1907.
Blue Springs State Park was established in the mid-1960s and features a pair of concrete swimming pools. The underground spring pumps approximately 3,600 gallons of water per hour into the two pools.
Blue Springs Alabama Places of Interest
Blue Springs is rated by Digital Alabama as one of the Best Small Towns in Alabama.