Bremond, Texas
Texas
A man tasted the local water in 1878, started bottling it, and turned this small Texas town into a resort with four hotels.
In 1878 a Bremond resident named Francis Marion Wootan figured out that the water here carried a heavy load of minerals. Bottled mineral water was fashionable at the time, so Wootan started filling bottles and selling the water as a cure. People came for it. What grew up around the springs was called Wootan Wells, a resort community with four hotels and hundreds of staff to keep them running. It lasted a few decades. In 1916 fire tore through the community and hit Wootan Wells hard. Flooding and drought followed, wearing the place down further. Then in 1921 a second fire closed Wootan Wells for good. The town that remains counts about eight hundred and fifty people.
This is the first of 2 parts. The rest runs about 2 minutes and is read to you as you drive past. Hear the whole piece.
In 1878, local resident Francis Marion Wootan discovered that the local water had a high mineral content.
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