The Daily Times-Echo of Eureka Springs on April 24, 1905, carried the following announcement:

“The first grand opening of the Basin Park Hotel, now nearing completion, will take place July 1, and the event promises to be one of the grandest in the history of Eureka Springs. T. J. Brumfield, under whose management the Hotel Wadsworth has been so successful, and who has earned the reputation of being one of the best caterers in the South, has been selected as manager for this splendid hostelry, which is an assurance of a large patronage.

“This grand structure was built by W. M. Duncan and his associates, and contains one hundred guest rooms in addition to spacious parlors and dens.... The hotel will be conducted strictly on the European plan, in connection with a first-class cafe on the second floor, occupying the entire depth of the north end of the building on this floor.... A special feature and a most attractive one is the feasible plan of easy fire escapes, as from each story to the Basin Park reservation, back of the hotel, iron bridges will be built so that in case of fire the entire house, were it crowded, could be emptied in three minutes. There is complete fire protection throughout the building, although it is practically fire-proof.... The cost of this hotel in its entirety, including furnishings, will exceed $50,000....”

The grand opening mentioned above took place July 1, 1905, forty-nine years ago and the hotel has been in continuous operation since that date. If it were built today it would cost several times as much as it did half a century ago.

The Basin Park occupies a central position in the down-town section of Eureka Springs and is adjacent to the Basin Circle Park which contains the famous Basin Spring. The structure has been featured in Ripley’s “Believe It or Not” as “An eight story hotel with every floor a ground floor.” Bridge-walks at the rear of the building lead to the Basin Park Reservation, a wooded tract owned by the city and originally containing twenty-eight acres. The top floor contains the popular Roof Garden and Ball Room. The hotel is strictly modern throughout with automatic elevator and bath facilities.

The Basin Park changed ownership several times in the half-century, but the man most closely associated with its operation through the years is Claude A. Fuller, attorney and former mayor and congressman. The hotel was owned and managed by Joe Parkhill, nephew of Mr. Fuller, from 1945 to 1954. Early this year it was purchased by Mr. and Mrs. Pat Mathews. Mrs. Mathews is the former Dorothy Fuller, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. C. A. Fuller. The Mathews have added new furnishings and made other improvements since assuming management.