Page 54 - Demo

52Christmas Day 1890 was a particularly special one for the small community of Kramer. On that day, The Hotel Mudlavia, an opulent health spa, opened for business. Situated near a natural spring, the Warren County showplace offered mineral-laden drinking water and soothing mud baths.%u201cMudlavia Moor Mud%u201d was famous. It was said to be good for rheumatism, arthritis, as well as a host of other chronic conditions. The mud was excavated from an adjacent hillside, mixed with water, and heated. After reaching the proper consistency and temperature, it was ready to slather on eager guests. Then, on a cold February day in 1920, the spa was consumed by fire. But several years later, in 1934, a new, smaller Mudlavia rose, Phoenix-like, from the ashes. For a while, the resort thrived%u2014then it went through a period of closings and reopenings, and eventually became a restaurant. In 1974, fire struck once more, and it%u2019s been a ruin ever since.Over the years, many famous people signed Mudlavia%u2019s guest register, including such notables as John L. Sullivan, James Whitcomb Riley, and Paul Dresser. One patron, not so well known, was my grandmother. I have a postcard, with a black-and-white image of Mudlavia on the front, that Grandma mailed from there, to my other grandmother, in 1949. The message reads: %u201cThis is the life of Riley. If I could just quit hurting at all it would be swell. I am getting better and hope to be out the end of the week. Will stay till I feel OK. Hope you are better. Maybe this would be good for you. See you soon.%u201d I didn%u2019t come across the old postcard until long after Grandma died%u2014so I couldn%u2019t ask her about the visit. But, her words imply that she received relief from some ailment. I hope so.Lynn and I first wandered through Mudlavia%u2019s once-manicured grounds in the late 1970s. Even in its run down state, we could tell it had been a remarkable place. When we returned recently, the site was much more overgrown and the building was far more deteriorated. The interior walls were covered in graffiti, and everything of value had been taken. I did find some dilapidated, rusting equipment in the old boiler room that was probably used for heating water%u2014and the famous mud. Surprisingly, Mudlavia is still a popular place to visit. During the hour Lynn and I were taking pictures, four other cars arrived loaded with adults and children. One couple warned us that the place was haunted. Perhaps it is, but no mudcovered apparitions appeared on my film.Good for What Ailed YouMudlavia (Boiler.), Kramer%u2014Warren Co. (745.15)