MINERAL WELLS, Texas – Update Sept. 4, 2023: The opening date for the Baker Hotel has been pushed back to the Spring of 2026.
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The once world-famous Baker Hotel in Mineral Wells is finally getting a facelift and it’s getting attention on a very modern platform — TikTok.
Mark Rawlings, general partner and restoration project manager for the hotel — and now TikTok star — told KSAT that he began working on the 14-floor luxury hotel in October 2019.
The North Texas hotel, which once had 450-rooms, was designed by Texas architect Wyatt C. Hedrick to take advantage of the famed mineral waters for which the city is named.
“The Baker was off the grid before that was a trendy thing. They generated their own electricity and had wells for their water,” said Rawlings.
The entire second floor of the hotel was once dedicated as a bath and massage floor where guests could take mineral baths, use steam rooms and get spa treatments like salt rubs, hot packs, facials and more.
Spa treatments at the hotel were sometimes prescribed by doctors and were believed to cure everything from rheumatism to eczema, according to a Baker Hotel historical pamphlet produced by the Mineral Wells Visitors Bureau.
Famous clients included the likes of Judy Garland, Will Rogers, Clark Gable, the Three Stooges, Lord Mountbatten and Audie Murphy.
Famed bank robbers Bonnie and Clyde were reported to have stayed at the hotel as well — a topic Rawlings covers in one of his TikTok videos.
@thebakerhotelandspa Lowest level, multiple escapes, adjoining doorways, a bar, AND THE ONLY ROOM that had the carpet removed from the hallway outside of its entrance. #thebakerhotelandspa #famous #guests #historic #hotel #restoration
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Rawlings has become a bit of a TikTok sensation, amassing nearly 100K followers. He posts videos of his progress during the restoration, unique finds he comes across and explainers about some unique history and facts about the hotel.
“The Baker had an energy management system back in 1929. When a guest left their room and locked their door, the power was turned off inside the room, thanks to a switch mechanism in the door jamb,” Rawlings said.
Some of Rawlings’ favorite parts of the restoration project include harvesting and organizing the many treasures he’s found at the hotel. He said some of the historic items from the Baker Hotel are being used in the renovations.
@thebakerhotelandspa As always - restoration, NOT renovation #thebakerhotelandspa #historic #hotel #spa #restoration #harvest
♬ original sound - The Baker Hotel and Spa
“I’m looking forward to the decorative plasterwork — this is when the hotel will truly begin to look restored,” Rawlings said.
The Baker ceased operations as a hotel in the mid-1960s as resort travel declined. The ground floor was still utilized for a few years by merchants, but the doors were finally locked on the Baker in 1972.
The Baker Hotel and Spa, located about an hour west of Fort Worth, is expected to reopen in 2024 with 165 guest rooms, event ballrooms, a spa, restaurant, coffee shop and retail options.
@thebakerhotelandspa It’s the suite life #thebakerhotelandspa #suitelifeofzackandcody #hotel #historic
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