Settler J. A. Lynch laid out the town of Mineral Wells in 1881. When attempting to dig a water well, Lynch struck mineral water instead, which reputedly cured his rheumatism. By 1885, Mineral Wells was booming as a health resort, selling “Crazy Water” (so called because it was said to relieve people’s mental confusion) for drinking and bathing. A railroad connection was made in 1891. The resort’s popularity peaked in the 1920s with over four hundred wells in operation, and hotels, apartment houses, and a few grand houses provided accommodations for the health seekers. In 1940, the U.S. Army established Fort Wolters here, and Mineral Wells became the largest infantry replacement training center in the country during World War II, with 30,000 troops on the base. The base’s closing marked a significant decline in the area’s economy, and although it was temporarily reactivated for Vietnam-era training, it was finally shuttered in 1973.
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