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The Ruins of West Baden (West Baden, Indiana)
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 10 ก.พ. 2024
- Imagine the ruins of what looked like an ancient city, appearing along a country road. It’s grounds were filled with columned structures, that looked like something out of Ancient Rome or Greece, and in the distance: a building with a colossal dome, over 200 feet across, with walls crumbling to the ground. This was what I found in 1997, when I toured the ruins of West Baden Springs, in Southern Indiana.
I was able to take video of these incredible ruins, which many thought were too gone to recover. But today, the resort is not only back to its former, beautiful glory, but thriving. Come along for an adventure back in time, to 1997, with a comparison of how it looks today!
Thanks to the foresight and financial commitment of the late Bill Cook, the hotel was once again restored to it‘s former glory. Hopefully it can continue to impress visitors for many years to come. It‘s definitely worth a trip to southern Indiana to experience this magnificent place.
I love it when old historic buildings are preserved.🥰
I have had the privilege to visit the West Baden Springs Hotel, as well as the French Lick Springs Hotel, and I absolutely would recommend them to anyone visiting the area. Even if you can't stay in one of these incredible structures, just walking through them is mind-blowing. Just the scale of that dome is almost unbelievable, even when you are standing in the middle of it. Great video, Roger! Keep up the good work!
One of my favorite places to hang-out for no reason! Hope they bring the railway trolley back soon!
Lifelong Hoosier and I have never seen any pre-restoration vids, outstanding, thanks.
I know I hadn’t either, and remembered my old Hi-8 footage.
Having grown up in southern Indiana it’s hard to believe how they fell into such disrepair. I am proud of the resurgence and renewal.
You should be proud. We stayed their a few years ago. WOW. Awesome.
Stay at West Baden several times a year and each time we fall in love with the place again. It has served as the site of many great moments in my life including my engagement. There is not enough words to say how grateful I am to Bill Cook for saving and restoring both resorts. Definitely should be on your bucket list of places to stay.
Pictures and video don’t do it true justice. Simply an amazing building and incredible renovation!
Because of the size and shape of the dome, the marble and tile flooring, and the acoustics that creates, there is an indescribable peace one feels immediately upon stepping from the lobby area to the open space under it. All sounds are slightly muffled. There is a soft, unfamiliar echo following each sound. Although there are no “Quiet Please” signs posted, once you step under the dome, everyone instinctively speaks softly, gazes upwards, and feels the blanket of peace and relaxation that is laid upon them by the building as they walk through. Like entering a church, you feel the sacredness around you. If you have not experienced it, I highly recommend it.
I'm a native Hoosier. Born and raised in Indianapolis. I enjoy your videos. I miss indiana. 🐱
Lifelong hoosier here. I love the beauty, legends, history, quirky roadside attractions, slower pace, everything about Indiana.
I was surprised to find this.. I went to college there in 1967. I even spotted my original room on the 3rd floor in this video... WOW!! At that time it was part of Northwood Institute, Midland MI. Those intervening 30 years really took a toll on the building. Glad to see it back to it's glory. Thx for the memories
My pleasure! It’s an incredible site today, a true gem of southern Indiana!
Southern Indiana has some absolute unique places. Highly recommend taking the walking tour of the West Baden, did it in December and if you like Christmas at all, the decor is a sight to behold as well as the hotel itself. When the weather is warmer it's one of the most peaceful places to just wander about. Amazed they could build it in that era and even more amazed at the condition it was in. Very fortunate Indiana Landmarks stepped in originally and the Cook Group took it from there. Another masterpiece Roger, love you work as a fellow Hoosier.
Thanks, Stephen! One of my favorite hangouts, and always a pleasure to take friends there for a Christmas tour. Free shuttle between resorts, good pizza, beautiful decorations! 🙂
It’s such an amazing place! You don’t know where to look first. My 87 y/o MIL loved the gardens and sitting under the dome listening to the live piano.
My aunt & uncle go there every year for Valentine’s Day and get an inner room so that they can overlook the foyer area. Thank you for sharing.
Just beautiful!!!! I'm so happy they saved it. Great video.
Thank-you, Chris!
Great Educational Video , 👍👍👍
Never heard of this place. Gorgeous!. Fantastic restoration. A lot of similar type of work going on in downtown Detroit for the last 25 years. Glad to see someone saw the potential. Now i gotta visit!!.
West Baden is a truly beautiful place! You can take either a street or track trolley all day, for free, between West Baden and French Lick resorts. They want you to gamble at the casino!
Nice find! So glad people prioritized saving this gem!!!
Bill and Gayle Cook spent millions renovating West Baden and French Lick resorts. Simply remarkable! 🙂
@@AdventureswithRogerBill and Gayle cook are heritage heroes!
May they find regeneration at the spring and a good return on their investment!!
@@onesuch They’ve saved a ton of historic properties, including Becks Mill, outside Salem.
I was there in 1997 as well, on my honeymoon, we stayed there and toured for 3 days. I have not been back since and would love to see this restoration completed. Another great video Roger!
It’s like the difference of night and day! Just a really beautiful place. They did have a rail trolley going for a time, hopefully they bring it back. They do have shuttles that run 24/7 between the resorts, free of charge, making it easy to get around.
We had the chance to stay there once! It is beautiful!!
Very nice to see some Indiana history. Many years ago, when West Baden was a complete shell, I used to do 2 weekend's of pumpkin carving displays and 2 weekends gingerbread house displays for tours run by the Historic Landmarks foundation. We would set up the pumpkin displays and carving station on the porch facing the main drive. I would set up the gingerbread area in the original check in space. Running around that building after hours with nobody around was an amazing experience. Thanks for the reminder. Keep up the good work.
I have been twice to the hotel. The first time was in the 1980's late in the evening with a group and the interior was in very ruinous state. It had been raining outside and also inside it was dripping. It looked like the end was near.
The second time was around 2001 and it had been transformed. So bright and restored! It was not a hotel yet but the interior with the dome had been painted and it was magnificent.
The tiles of the fireplace had been cleaned and restored. They are Rookwood art pottery tiles which are very valuable. Rookwood pottery was the premier art pottery of the US being founded in Cincinnati in the 1880's.
Overall the place is a true American treasure and I am glad that it was restored.
The Swatstika is the “Big Dipper”, “the wheel in the sky keeps on turning “!
I've stayed here several times over the years. The renovations are still ongoing, last time I was there the buildings around the garden were almost complete and they were working on restoring one of the springs. The spring water is known for its high sulfur levels which is believed to have healing powers going back into deep antiquity. It is lesser known, but the springs also have a higher than normal level of lithium. There used to be more wooden buildings beyond the gardens in what is now a field, but they were destroyed decades ago (I don't recall if by storm, fire, tornado, or a combination of these). It is a great place and the staff is always flawless. They went as far as to leave a rose in our room last time because I had informed them that I was bringing my fiancee there for her birthday. If you are ever in the area, it is likely the only chance you will ever have to see a place like this in person.
I was born in the early 80's and watching this makes me feel like the world was so much cleaner, so much less cluttered, people were so much cooler, clothes were so much more comfortable, things were more personal, things were more awesome. I mean, this video alone. You couldnt just whip out your camera. Dude had a nice camera. And I like the zooming. I remember seeing something especially cool and forgetting how to zoom in. Its nostalgic in a way.
I love the newer, smaller cameras. My Hi8 was considered compact at the time, considering the previous camcorders used VHS tapes! And before that, you had to put a huge camera on one shoulder, and strap an actual VHS recorder on the other. It was a drag to go mobile! And now, my iPhone produces better quality than any of those units.
Talked my wife into spending the last two Spring Breaks there... Great decision... Relaxing, Peaceful, and an extremely enjoyable week... Would be going this year, but ACL surgery kept us from going... Next Year!
Another fine video! I remember seeing all the swastikas on the porch railing and asked about it and since these were "healing springs" that were being marketed that's why they used them as it represents the ancient Greek symbol for health, vitality in Hindu, and the Slavs used it as a symbol of love. Also, the fireplace in the atrium is one of a kind Rookwood Pottery piece and is considered priceless. It is the largest pottery piece that Maria Longworth ever created. There are a lot of interesting things there and I was in awe with the intricate tile work. It was great seeing it for myself many years ago before it was reopened. I need to make another trip down there to see the finished remodel!
You would love it! It will be amazing in spring, when the gardens are blooming!
Thank you Roger for another great video. One of my absolute favorite places in Indiana. I've ghost hunted the halls there and I wasn't disappointed. Crazy energy in the place.
I’ve heard stories from a few people, but have yet to be spooked myself. Places over 100 years old, and with that much history, just have to have something going on.
In 1976 I went to school there. It was at that time called Northwood Institute. At that time it was still in good condition except for the center area under the dome. The original floor was a mosaic of 1" tiles. The very center was heaved up due to the spring beneath , but was concreted over and we would roller skate there. We had to use the huge fireplace one night when the power was knocked out due to a storm. The top or 6th floor had a room 666 there, some girls claimed to have found and old Jesuit book of incantations it caused such a ruckus that they had to bring in priest to get everyone settled back down
Those are some awesome memories!
I too visited once when it was in ruin but there wasn't a guide, I just roamed around. I worked for Cook at the time and learned Mr. Cook was restoring it. I went back and watched the heavy haul helicopter place the cupolas on the towers. That was impressive. I always wanted to go back but since moved the TN. Thanks for showing it.
The Cook’s did wonders for this property. Today you can a free shuttle between the two resorts, 24/7. Both are showplaces!
Thank God the Cook family and the Cook Foundation had the foresight to rescue West Baden from becoming nothing but a memory.
It really has blessed Orange, and the surrounding counties.
My parents are staying there this upcoming weekend. We live very close so it's an easy then we can get away. I remember when it was in decay. Thank you for sharing the old footage. ❤
Been years since been there, fun place. Great vid, tya
The place is looking good 👍
My father's folks live in West Baden Springs. I haven't been there since before the hotel was restored. Outstanding to see it restored like this!
Such an incredible restoration, really. Glad I could see both versions!
Great video. This place is a palace!
Thanks Derrick! Very cool place
I first went there in the early to mid 80's after we got married. Oddly my wife and I could just walk around the hotel and grounds. Saw things no longer there. No one stopped us. It was a mess then but so glad I got to see it prior to the restoration. Great video for those who don't know the history of the hotel.
I've stayed here once, lived in IN most of my life. I love the history of the whole place. I have a pretty good 360 photo of the main area with the dome I took. Was there during Christmas and loved it. Thanks for sharing
I worked in this building in the summer of 81 in maintenance when it was a culinary college, Been in it many times. There is an outside stair off the sixth floor that goes up the dome and a door leads to a room that gives you access to go down in the middle of the top of the dome, There Was a nice old painting up on the wall in the access area, Cool view to sit up high in the center over the area the dome covers, Not for those afraid of heights. In 81 the school only used three floors and the other floors were empty and bare. There is a penthouse above the sixth floor. Love this building. Glad it is back to a hotel
Keith went to school there 1973-1975 when Northwood Institute was there. We love going there. It’s beautiful now
Hi. Thanks for sharing! Very cool to see that restoration footage.
Great video Roger!!!
Thank-you, Mike! Glad you made it back safely
They did an great job on the restoration. Back in the late 90's my job required me to drive past there, amazing transformation. My wife & I actually had the opportunity to stay the night there several years ago. (glad it was a free trip)(too steep for my pocket) Thanks for sharing the old video Roger
Went there for the tree lighting in November!
After i saw this video I did some looking (not research) into the West Baden Hotel AND decided to go there for my 80th birthday. Just me and Mrs., no kids, grand kids, just the two of us. Did a side trip to see Sasquatch at Patoga Lake. I'm not waiting for my 90th BD to go back....
Really nice oasis, surrounded by country! Next time you go, look up French Lick Scenic Railway. They have a train that takes visitors through the second longest tunnel in the state, and through lots of beautiful countryside. There several different tours actually, from open air cars to first class dinner trips.
Roger, the gnome like creature is a sprudel. My father graduated from West Baden High School in 1955. Their sports teams were the West Baden Sprudels (French Lick High School was the Red Devils). There was a negro league baseball team around turn of last century called West Baden Sprudels also. I assume they were the first Sprudels team
A while back, I compared the two mineral water mascots. Pluto was by far the scarier of the two! At the French Lick Museum, they have a huge, gold devil that’s supposed to be Pluto: nightmare fuel! 😂
@@AdventureswithRoger Pluto is on the wall at factory across highway from French Lick resort too.
My father also told me he worked for Jesuits at dome
This place is gorgeous. A great weekend getaway for those of us in Saint Louis ☺️💕 Thank so much for sharing.
One of my favorite places!
I visited it in 1998 and it looked much better then your old video So glad we have forward thinking Hoosiers
Amazing place with a great history been there many times. The hotel was a college called Northwood in the 1970s, my dad took classes there and I even went with him a couple times when they couldn't get a babysitter, although I was too little to remember it. Larry Bird also attended Northwood for a short time before going to ISU
Interesting tidbit: After PTL went out of business, Jim Bakker got word of this old resort, that it was for sale. So he sent his wife Tammy Faye and best friend Roe Messner to see if it would be an appropriate place to bring PTL back to life, this time at French Lick Springs. It didn't work out. Little did Jim suspect that Tammy Faye had been pursuing a relationship with Roe, and would turn into a full-blown affair after Jim went to prison. (from Jim's book "I Was Wrong", which has an entire chapter about this resort)
Grateful it was restored for the future!
Me too. It looked like a lost cause, but now it’s incredible!
Being raised in town, have been in this building all my life.
The college let the Boy Scouts use the locker rooms to the old pool as our meeting place. We were all over the place.
What I find most interesting is the buildings use during WWI as a hospital.
Cool video. What a magnificent place! Old world style.
It really is something to see in person!
I love this place. My sister was a student at IU Bloomington in the 1970s and when my parents and I would visit her, she would take us to a bunch of cool places in Southern Indiana. She took us here when it was still a culinary institute. The doors were open but school wasn't in session and we walked around the whole place, which was empty of people. We admired the dome and the mosaic tile on the floor. At lot of the place wasn't in ruins but it looked worn down. I never forgot this place and always thought about it for many years. After I was married, my husband and I stayed at a B & B that was close to the West Baden hotel and they were in the process of renovating it, so we took the tour. I was so happy to see they were restoring it. I never got back to see the finished hotel but it looks great in the videos. I just wish they wouldn't of capped off all of the springs and preserved just one of the springs in the spring houses. I'd love to walk the grounds to see if there are any natural springs or sinkholes around the area. Wish you could of done that in the video but I loved watching it.
I’ve walked all around the grounds and have never found a sink hole, but I have smelled the sulfur! Some days it’s stronger than others. 🙂
This is a neat place. It took a long time to restore. Now they are fixing the roof due to the severe storms last year.
We stayed there a few years ago. Beautiful place.
I and family stayed here. Remarkable,,
French Lick adjoins West Baden. The Hotel at French Lick is also impressive. The Hotel also has a golf course that I’ve been told is challenging.
Thank you. I’m not sure I’ll ever get to Indiana again, but I won’t miss this if I do!
Truly beautiful place, inside and out!
Awesome video, thank you !
Thank-you, Linda!
Absolutely astonishing!
Sad the storm blew away the dome last year.. eagerly waiting to see it repaired... have been to this like 50 times .. such a nice place!!
Shattered some of the glass panels on the roof. Didnt blow much of anything away except a few shingles. Stayed there twice since then and its business as usual. They should have completed replacing all of the glass panels by may.
Very interesting. Thank you
I really love this building and its gardens. I helped set up for the employee banquets quite a few times. I just dont recommend walking around the gardens in July and August. The smell from the water treatment plant just up the road will kill you. The sulfer water wells are bad too but after a few minutes of being around those their smell doesnt bother you anymore.
This was the largest freespan building in the world until the Astrodome was built in Houston. I always found that interesting.
My 8th grade trip took in French Lick, West Baden and Spring Mill State Park in 1956. We toured all three.
I miss those school trips. It would be great to have a retirement home that takes a person on those school trips again!
Thank you so much for sharing the footage from the 1990s. We have been there several times, and absolutely love it! In fact, we will be there again for the solar eclipse in April. Already have our mineral bath scheduled!
Would love to hear how the mineral bath goes!
We have had a mineral bath every time we are there, and it is absolutely amazing! They used to bottle the water and sell it, it was very popular due to to its lithium content.
@@marylopez6173 Does it feel energizing or sedating?
Over at Paoli, they called theirs “Lithia Springs”, due to its high lithium content.
So kind of an homage to Baden-Baden?
Indeed!
“In 1855, when the community was renamed West Baden in reference to Wiesbaden (or Baden-Baden), a spa town in Germany that was known for its mineral springs, Lane changed the hotel's name to the West Baden Inn.”
@@AdventureswithRoger : Thank you!
Nice cover on the content. It is a very impressive place. I had a good friend who worked on the rehab. (electrical) They just don't make them like this anymore. Sadly.
Amazing 😮
Looks like a great place for building a community around with apartments, with this structure acting like a community center.
I need to get up there
Very beautiful in the spring and at Christmas. And free to walk around and take a look!
The founder of Cook medical devices paid for the restoration of the hotel, I live about 30 miles from it and worked on the roofing of it. Very generous of the late Mr Cook .
👍👍👍👍
WOW!
Enjoyed my 60 birthday birthday in west Biden great food
Happy birthday!
I saw it in the Summer of 1965 when I was part of a IN DNR Flood Control Summer Vacation survey crew working on Indiana's Lost River watershed. With this beautiful place across the road (and a large field), we were staying at the West Baden Inn. I seem to recall that at that time, it had just been vacated by the Jesuits within the past decade. We got in and were able to walk around inside. Most everything seemed to be in working order - no electricity, of course.. We never saw "ruins", but Indiana Weather can ruin things fairly quickly.
The place was awe inspiring then, and apparently, once again. I will make sure to get back down this Spring.
Thanks, Roger! Have you done a vid of :Lost River??
I did one about the lost river, several years ago. Absolutely spooky when it’s flooding:
The Mysterious Wesley Chapel Gulf and Orangeville Rise (Orangeville, Indiana)
th-cam.com/video/7-ruH_ACArg/w-d-xo.html
Yes!!!!!!! I love Indiana!!!!!
That's awesome Thank God vandals didn't get in there and smash everything up beyond repair!
It all looks so ancient
Ty Sir 🏆 🏆👴🙏🙏💙
4:00 The same frieze adorns the old Department of Agriculture in Washington DC. On the opposite side of the street, facing the swastika frieze, is The Holocaust Museum. Of course, the building was built in the 1920s.
Hello, I was hoping for even more historical information. Like the first ones who lived there before the dome. That history is also fascinating. Great video though. I remember when it was broken down before Mr. Cook invested.
West Baden Springs Resort (West Baden, Indiana)
th-cam.com/video/MrmkFCTaZ1M/w-d-xo.html
I love this hotel
it was also at one time a college and older friend of miner got his culinary degree from "Northwood college" as it was called
Wow! ❤
When I lived in the nearby city of Jasper I heard various pronunciations of West Baden. Besides the Engish pronunciation of West Baden, I heard "West Bahden" and even "Vest Bahden".
The resort was named after a place in Europe, someone said the current pronunciation was simply “Hoosier-ized”. 🙂
My son engaged his girlfriend at the dome in French Lick back in December.what a beautiful place!
It really is, especially in the spring!
The 2 resorts were where the State Political Conventions were held - Dems at FL, Reps at WB. My family went to the area often in the 60s, & WB was in disrepair. A section of an exterior wall had collapsed, iirc, & the Jesuits could not repair it. Now that the 2 are supported by the casino & many visitors, they are in their glory again! The docent tours are very much worth the time!
BTW, all the Mineral Springs they used are now sealed off from the public, but wandering the grounds, the sulphuric scent is often noticed.
The mineral spring smell is often very strong! I went over one night, when it was closed to guests, during the pandemic. Still lit up, it was magical but smelly! 😂
Beautiful restoration! Are you the kid with the plaid shorts in the 1997 footage?
Not me. I had my friend take a short video of me sitting at the fountain, but I didn’t use it in this segment.
I commented a couple of my experiences on the video with the black panther and creatures of Indiana
On 1820's,30's & 40's My Ancestors were SOLE folks from their area in Central Pennsylvania that cited on census reports Bayern & Baden German as there origins... Only folks in there area speaking German.
Have you visited the ruins of the Catholic church that used to be right by the west baden dome? It's up the hill where you meet valet. There is just a foundation left as well as a statue.
Had not seen it
@@AdventureswithRoger google "Our Lady of Lourdes Church West Baden Indiana" for more info
The stained glass windows were re-used at the Catholic Church in Dubois, Indiana.
Can you imagine the heating and air cost. 😊
Been there
A lovely building! Who owns it?
As far as I know, the Cook family still owns it.
"Spring #1, ...wooden floor.. they've gotten excavation down to..." Down to what!? Curious because the floor is now filled in with concrete and signage in 2023 said the Jesuits did so. Your video from the 90s almost proves otherwise. Have the former video uploaded for viewing?
Lots of lies handed down to us throughout history, for sure! Thank you Roger for providing evidence contrary to the “narrative” and bringing us closer to the Truth.
This is what I could hear: “This is spring number one. I’ll let y’all come up and take a look in. The wood flooring that you see they begun to excavate down below and they’ve gotten (muffled audio) to excavate it.” I replayed it several times, but can’t make out what he said after “gotten”. I think my cameras microphone honed-in on the guy beside me, cancelling-out the tour guide.
What I do know is that the owner used to pay a guy, to dump bags of Epsom salt, in the water each morning. This would explain that magical, relaxing feeling! One cup of that, in a hot bath, makes me numb!
@@AdventureswithRoger Thanks. Just makes me wonder whom actually filled in the spring. Seeing this I really feel it's the group who did the refurbishing. I was up taking the tours maybe a year after yourself. Wish now I had taken pics of said buildings. Sigh. No matter whom, it's incredibly sad to fill them in. As always, thanks for the vids!
@@fatsdulange It could simply be, that the water was stagnant and unhealthy, so they capped it. Sometimes worse than others, the area wreaks of sulfur in the air.
I took one of my friends to a mineral spring, to soak an arthritic ankle. While their ankle magically felt better for days, they had diarrhea for nearly a week. That’s some powerful stuff! 😂
❤
Who paid for this restoration ?
Bill and Gayle Cook.
Cemetery full of Jesuits. Hmmm. This place is very significant. Something about water running under/into specific structures…
Southern Indiana / Northern Kentucky has some pretty crazy underbelly.
West Baden is in the middle of nowhere .. I guess the springs were the only reason to build such a huge hotel complex .. It's a beautiful building
why did they concrete over the floor in spring house 1? going to need to make them healing waters private now sry
My guess: the well was stagnant. Regular mineral water has a strong, unpleasant sulphur scent. You can often smell it as you drive into town. If the well had stopped flowing, it was a whole lot of nasty.