Sharon Springs’ development as a mineral water spa reputedly began when David Eldredge established a boarding house near the springs in 1825. Between 1836 and 1860, several large hotels and boarding houses were built to accommodate the increasing number of visitors. The most notable of these were the Great House (later named the Pavilion Hotel) and Bang’s Congress Hall.
In 1884, Dr. Alfred W. Gardner, after touring Europe’s leading spas, returned to build the Inhalation Bathhouse, with rooms for inhaling sulphur steam or gases. The Inhalation Bathhouse was designed for practicing the most advanced European methods of using sulphur water. These modern methods were first introduced into the United States here at Sharon Springs.
It should be noted that the patronage of Sharon Springs has changed several times during its existence as a health spa. At first, it attracted wealthy gentiles who made their rounds of summer resorts. By the 1890s, Sharon Springs was beginning to lose its appeal to this group because they no longer considered mineral baths as fashionable. By the turn of the century, Sharon Springs was developing its identity as a Jewish resort.
A contributing factor toward the shift in clientele seems to have been the growing segregation of gentile and Jewish resorts. In addition, the Jewish population maintained closer ties with its European background and thus was influenced by the continuing popularity of mineral water spas enjoyed among Europeans. Initially, the Jewish visitors were mostly of German origin, but by the 1920s when visitors to the resort peaked in numbers, the guests were predominantly Jews of Eastern Europe.
Over the next several years, growth was maintained at a more moderate rate. The spa continued as a bustling resort, but a new, modern facility was needed. On June 1, 1927, the new Imperial Baths opened on Main Street with accommodations for 5,000 treatments daily. The following year, the last large hotel to be built in Sharon Springs, the Adler, was completed. It had its own bathing facilities.
Construction nearly came to a standstill during the Depression as the number of guests declined. There were many suspicious hotel fires during the 1930s. The Pavilion Hotel was torn down in 1941, bringing an abrupt end to the luxurious environment of the spa.
After World War II, the Village experienced a brief rejuvenation. The German government, as part of the reparation pact, paid for prescribed treatments at the mineral baths for former concentration camp victims.
Transportation systems dictated the pulse and health of Sharon Springs’ economy. Early travelers came by steamer from New York City to Albany and transferred to stagecoaches, and later trains, for the last part of the trip to Sharon Springs. When the Delaware and Hudson Railroad built a spur through Sharon in 1870, it gave visitors easier access to the resort. With the advent of the automobile, people enjoyed the freedom of providing their own travel arrangements. Many city dwellers also later relied on the Greyhound Bus Lines. Since the 1950s, the resort has declined steadily.
Today, this little Village is still attracting attention with its distinctive history. In 1994, the spa district was listed in New York’s Register of Historic Places and the National Register. Approximately 180 buildings, including bathhouses, hotels, and homes, dating from the mid-19th Century and early-20th Century, were surveyed and are included in the historic district. Walking tour plaques along Main Street tell the history of this little community with its unusual architecture. Quaint gift shops and restaurants have taken over buildings of the past and given them new uses.
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