To spot the Sumpter House, look for a tall, three-story building with big block letters spelling “SUMPTER HOUSE” on the front, standing grandly at the corner with wooden porches along the sides and nestled right against a thick cluster of trees with a rolling hill behind it.
Ah, you’ve found it! Imagine yourself stepping back over a hundred years, right in front of the legendary Sumpter House. The air would have smelled like fresh pine and the warmth from Hot Springs’ mineral waters would mingle with the hustle and bustle of carriages arriving out front. In the mid-1800s, this was the hotel to be at-just a couple hundred feet from busy Central Avenue, right where all the action was.
It all started thanks to James Sumpter, who journeyed here from Missouri with a sore back and a lot of hope, bringing his wife Elizabeth and two sons, John and William, with him. Talk about a family trip! They settled here because Hot Springs had the best thing around for aching joints: magic baths! The Sumpters built a humble house, which soon transformed into a thriving boarding spot, and eventually, this impressive hotel, thanks to E.A. Sage, a creative local.
The Sumpter House’s walls sure had stories to tell! Picture this: police sergeant Tom Goslee once dashed in during the infamous Gunfight at Hot Springs, catching his breath in the very halls where you stand-just think of the whispers and hurried footsteps echoing through these corridors.
Of course, not all the drama was outside. The Sumpter family had their own soap opera, with years of courtroom battles over who really owned this historic hotspot. Things finally settled down when the courts made their decision in 1910. But time marches on-even part of the hotel became the West Mountain Hotel by 1913. Now, as you gaze at its old-fashioned charm, you can almost hear its laughter, arguments, grand arrivals, and stories drifting through time. Quite the place to catch your breath, isn’t it?
