HISTORY OF CLARKE COUNTY: WHITE SULPHUR WELL

The White Sulphur Well lies just outside the corporate limits of the town, situated on the Southern Railway. This water is known far and wide for its medicinal qualities. There have been numberless cures of stomach and kidney troubles and rheumatism made by this water, many being cases which have baffled medical science. In connection with this well there is also an iron well noted for rebuilding the blood tissues of the body. The owners of these wells have constructed on the grounds a nice pavilion, bathrooms and swimming pool.

The Choctaw Inn, a modern and up-to-date hotel situated on a high hill overlooking the well, is kept open all seasons of the year for the comfort and pleasure of the countless numbers of visitors that come from all sections of the country—some seeking health, some pleasure.

This sulphur well was bored in 1862 in search of salt. The well proper is situated about 200 yards south of the Southern Railroad. It was inconvenient to reach and the surroundings disagreeable, so the owner conceived the idea of piping it up to the railroad. The Choctaw Inn is the old Savage Hotel, remodeled. A Mr. Savage, perhaps of Mobile, built a hotel there just after the Civil War and lived there for many years. The property has changed hands several times since 1875 and is now owned by T. B. Pace. Quite a number of people are entertained at the Choctaw Inn every summer.

It is strange that this neck of territory, lying here between two great rivers, so greatly blessed with natural advantages, so rich in soils, timber and minerals, should escape the eye and attention of man during all the ages since the formation of these hills and valleys, being uninhabited by man until about 400 years ago.