One of three springs once available to guests at the French Lick Springs Hotel, Pluto Spring is best identified with Pluto Water. You can’t escape the sound of flowing water while in French Lick The Power of Pluto Rival French Lick Springs used the devilish Roman god of the underworld as its pitchman. Modeled on Baden-Baden in Germany, West Baden Springs, opened in 1855, adopted a Germanic-looking imp, Sprudel, as the mascot for its spring water. Less than a mile apart in the same spring-blessed valley, the French Lick Springs Hotel and West Baden Springs Hotel competed for customers by offering a setting rivaling the elegance of European spa destinations.
Named for the mineral salts once mined in this valley southwest of Indianpolis, Indiana, French Lick became of the focus of spa travel in the United States in the late 1800s, thanks to its two spacious resorts with mineral springs. “The bath is there, if you’d like to try it.” While getting ready for a much-needed massage at the Spa at French Lick Springs Hotel, I asked my therapist, Lisa, about the namesake springs.
Historic building atop one of the springs of French Lick
