The springs were developed by J.O. Langford beginning in 1909. Langford was a
Mississippi native who had contracted
malaria as a child. Searching for a cure, he heard of reputedly curative hot springs on the
Rio Grande while visiting
Alpine, Texas. Langford made a homestead claim, sight unseen. Although other homestead claims on the site had failed, Langford, his wife Bessie and his 18-month-old daughter set out for the site, discovering that it was already occupied by Cleofas Natividad with his wife and ten children. Initially considering the Natividads squatters, the Langfords developed a cooperative relationship with the Natividads. Langford took a 21-day treatment of drinking and bathing in the spring waters, regaining his health. The site was the first major tourist attraction in the area, predating the establishment of the national park. Before Langford's development, a small stone tub had been excavated in the local stone for bathing, with a
dugout that was renovated by the Langfords as a residence. The Langfords later built an
adobe house, a stone bathhouse, and brushwood bathing shelters. The Langfords left in 1912 when bandits made the area unsafe. When they returned in 1927 they rebuilt the bathhouse, but with a canvas roof. They also built a store and a motor court, consisting of seven attached cabins. The structures were built of local stone with wood trussed roofs covered with corrugated metal. Interior walls were plastered. Four of the motor court rooms featured painted murals. A terrace was covered with a long porch or ramada connecting the cabins. The hot springs remain, at a temperature of 105 degrees Fahrenheit, and may be used for soaking. Hot Springs was placed on the
National Register of Historic Places on September 17, 1974. ==Water profile==