From Bath House to small batch Brewery
Built in 1916, the Superior operated as a bathhouse in Downtown Hot Springs National Park, Arkansas, until its closure in 1983. After lying vacant for 30 years, current owner Rose Schweikhart re-imagined the Superior Bathhouse into a craft brewery with a full service, family-friendly restaurant. We are Hot Springs on tap.
After signing the lease from the Department of the Interior, Rose began construction in late spring of 2013 and today the Superior Bathhouse is home to the only brewery in a US National Park and the only brewery in the world to utilize thermal spring water in their beer. Rose considers beer to be a creative process. She and the Superior Bathhouse brewing team crank out a constant stream of new beer from the original to the outlandish. Stop by the Superior and experience #HotSpringsOnTap for yourself!
Hot Springs National Park’s thermal water fell as rain over 4,000 years ago and reaches the surface at a piping hot 143 degrees! Water from 47 springs is centralized and tested for safety prior to distribution to bath houses, jug fountains, and our brewery for your personal drinking enjoyment.
History of Superior Bath House
“The first Superior was constructed on portions of the old Hale and Big Iron bathhouse sites. It was made of red brick, some of which may have been reused in the current building. The style of construction was markedly different from that of the Victorian bathhouses that were its contemporaries. The business’s name was said to derive from offering superior service, but it may also have been meant to appeal to the many health seekers arriving from the upper Midwest. The smallest bathhouse on the Row, the Superior also had the lowest rates; it offered only the basic hydrotherapy, mercury, and massage services. It closed in November of 1983.”
Present Day
“The present Superior opened on February 1, 1916. It was built by L. C. Young and Robert Proctor in “an eclectic commercial style of classical revival origin,” contained 11,000 square feet, and cost $68,000 to build. The architect was Harry Schwebke. Brick pilasters lend architectural interest to both the forward projecting sun porch and to the second story portion of the main building. The vaguely Doric pilaster capitals are inset with a center medallion of green tile, as are the paterae over the pilasters. Both the sun porch and the second story portion of this bathhouse are topped with brick parapets.”
Check out these photos from the beginning years of Rose’s
revitalization of Superior Bathhouse Brewery!
Did you know, all of the equipment for our brewery had to be hauled through our North side front windows? Oh The labors of love!
“When Rose Schweikhart heard about a unique opportunity to lease historic bathhouses in Hot Springs, Ark., she immediately thought it would be the perfect place to launch her dream of opening the town’s first brewery. Superior Bathhouse Brewery is today the first and only brewery in the world to use thermal spring water. Rose’s project came together through a combination of tools and resources coordinated by Southern Bancorp, from the Arkansas Economic Development Commission’s Minority Ownership Loan Guaranty Program and an SBA loan to an economic development grant from the Federal Home Loan Bank. Additionally, Southern Bancorp connected Rose to the Henderson State University’s Small Business Technology Center to provide technical assistance. Today, Superior Bathhouse Brewing employs 42 people and has become a popular food and beer lover’s destination as well as a valuable member of the local business community.”
Rose Schweikhart is building a new future—and making great beer—in one of America's National Parks.
In the early 1900s, Hot Springs, Arkansas was the place to be. Home to natural thermal springs, the town had eight bathhouses where visitors could soak away their troubles. And soak they did: Hot Springs played host to thousands of visitors, including Al Capone, Babe Ruth and President Harry Truman. In 1921, the row of bathhouses and part of downtown was even declared a National Park.
Unfortunately, as the demand for natural spas declined, Hot Springs' fortunes followed. By 1985, only one bathhouse was in operation.
Enter professional tuba player and homebrew hobbyist Rose Schweikhart. When she moved to Hot Springs in 2011, she decided it was time to take a chance at turning her hobby into a new career. Hot Springs, she decided, needed a microbrewery.
The town was ideally suited for making beer. After all, the first step in brewing is heating water, and Hot Springs had 143 degree water bubbling out of the ground—a natural feature that, Schweikhart realized, could save 25 percent on her energy costs.
The business environment was also promising. Hot Springs National Park was leasing historic bathhouses for use by small businesses and, if things worked out, Schweikhart's brewery would be the first in a U.S. National Park and the first in the world to use thermal spring water as the main ingredient. To make things even more promising, the area around Bathhouse Row had a notable lack of restaurants for locals and tourists to enjoy. With the right marketing and menu, Schweikhart's brewpub had the potential to become a popular watering hole.
image from JP Morgan Chase.com
Check out these photos of our patio glowup!
