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#60 and Counting: An Anniversary Tradition at West Baden Springs Hotel

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After 60 years of marriage and more than a half-century of traveling the country together, you learn a thing or two. Like which destinations are worth a return visit to commemorate those extra-special milestones. Erv and Lou Ellen Watts reached the decision pretty easily. No plane tickets necessary. No lengthy drive or cross-country itinerary needed. To celebrate their 60 th anniversary, the best spot they could imagine was just a few hours down the road. “We’ve traveled and spent time in every single state in the union – except for Hawaii, Alaska and North Dakota – and we try to stay in historic places,” Lou Ellen explains on this quiet February afternoon at West Baden Springs Hotel. It’s perfect, because on this relatively low-traffic Friday, it almost feels like Erv and Lou Ellen have the hotel all to themselves. Photos courtesy of Jan Tellstrom “To us, this is so special It’s not just because it’s here in the state, but it’s historic, and we like historic (destinations),” L
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145 years (and counting) of big business at West Baden Springs Hotel

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If you’ve ever visited French Lick Resort on a large business outing or major group function, you might be surprised to know you’re part of a tradition that first started 145 years ago. Group business has always been big business here. Particularly at West Baden Springs Hotel, where more thorough records were kept detailing the groups that visited. It’s fun to crack open the photo archives which detail some of the groups that have made West Baden a spot to meet and retreat. Everything from the first group on record (the Mitchell, Indiana district Medical Society in the summer of 1878), to organizations you never even knew existed: the International Baby Chick Association, the National Coffee Roasters Association, the American Walnut Manufacturers’ Association ... the list goes on and on. Here’s a few more we found. You know you've got a big group when you fill up the entire front steps of the hotel, and then some. This is the Indian Refining Company, which eventually became
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College Days under the Dome: Northwood Memories from a Different Era of West Baden

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If you follow French Lick Resort on Facebook, you probably recognize the name from the comment section. She’ll leave a “heart” on anything and everything related to West Baden Springs Hotel. She talks about it to everyone. Friends. Strangers. Judith Dunlap's dorm room at Northwood Institute, which is now a third-floor guestroom at West Baden Springs Hotel. Everyone needs a superfan, and Judith Dunlap is ours. “It is one of my favorite subjects,” she says of West Baden Springs Hotel. When she’s here visiting the resort and gets on one of her West Baden kicks, “I start talking about the dome my hubby just goes to the casino,” Judith jokes. There’s a good reason for the love and obsession. “Judy” as she was better known to friends back then, lived and attended classes at the dome from 1976-78 when Northwood Institute inhabited the hotel prior to its restoration. And she’s got plenty of stories to share about her time there…. Growing up in a small town 45 minutes away, Judith&
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How Do They Make Your Stay Special? Our Experience Designers Share 5 Stories & Itineraries

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If you already have an upcoming trip on the books to French Lick Resort (that’d be some of you) or want to make a trip happen (that’d be all the rest of you), then listen up. There’s a planning resource you’ll want to know about, and you may not know it existed. It’s called the Experience Design Team, it’s totally free to use, and here’s a little more about how it all works . In a nutshell, it allows you to connect with a real person who’ll work with you one-on-one to arrange anything and everything you want to experience during your time here. Especially if it’s your first visit, it’s a terrific way to make sense of all that’s available – not only on resort grounds but nearby attractions as well. Rather than tell you more about how it works, we’ll show you. Hear from three of our Experience Designers – Sarah, Joe and Nikki – about just a couple of the experiences they have customized for guests.   Sarah’s Guests Tim’s Bachelor Party I helped Tim plan a bachelor party fo
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Hotel Headlines From Days Gone By

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When we say our hotels have been making headlines for well over a century, it’s the truth. Dusting off some old newspaper clippings to spotlight a few of the occasions we’ve been in the news over the years.... The May 2, 1908 edition of the Indianapolis News sported the headline “Gambling at French Lick, Where Tom Taggart And Al Brown Reign As The Keepers of Noted Resorts And Are Reaping Rich Harvests.” If you’ve got a good zoom tool and a little bit of time, it’s interesting to peruse the story (or the accompanying editorial cartoon, at least). The writer of the story interviewed the local sheriff, prosecutor and judge, who all had the same laissez-faire attitude about allowing illegal gambling to occur in French Lick. The not-so-secret gambling kept people flocking to Taggart’s French Lick Springs Hotel during the day, and the Brown Hotel (located right across the street) for gambling festivities into the night. French Lick Springs Hotel owner Tom Taggart on the steps (circa 1
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