Bath (Berkeley Springs), West Virginia

Berkeley Springs (Bath), West Virginia
Town
Town square in Berkeley Springs
Location of Bath (Berkeley Springs) in Morgan County, West Virginia.
Coordinates: 39°37′32″N 78°13′37″W / 39.62556°N 78.22694°W / 39.62556; -78.22694Coordinates: 39°37′32″N 78°13′37″W / 39.62556°N 78.22694°W / 39.62556; -78.22694
Country	United States
State	West Virginia
County	Morgan
Incorporated	December 1776
Government
• Type	Town council
• Mayor	Scott Merki
Area
• Total	0.34 sq mi (0.88 km2)
• Land	0.34 sq mi (0.88 km2)
• Water	0 sq mi (0 km2)
Population (2010)
• Total	624
• Estimate (2016)	610
• Density	1,835.3/sq mi (708.6/km2)
Time zone	Eastern (EST) (UTC-5)
• Summer (DST)	EDT (UTC-4)
ZIP code	25411
Area code(s)	304
FIPS code	54-04876
Website	http://www.berkeleysprings.com/

Berkeley Springs is a town in, and the county seat of, Morgan County, West Virginia, USA, in the state's Eastern Panhandle. While the area was part of Virginia (prior to 1861), the town was incorporated as Bath. Since 1802, it has been referred to by the name of its original Virginia post office, Berkeley Springs. The population of the town was 624 at the 2010 United States Census. The town is located within the Hagerstown-Martinsburg, MD-WV Metropolitan Statistical Area. Berkeley Springs is a sister city to Bath, Somerset, England.

The area contains mineral water springs that were frequented by Native Americans indigenous to the area, possibly for thousands of years. After settlement by Europeans, the mineral springs drew many visitors from urban areas. Notable colonial visitors to the area included George Washington and James Rumsey. Berkeley Springs remained a popular resort area during the early years of the United States. It is the home of the Berkeley Springs International Water Tasting, the longest running and largest such event in the world.

The area continues to be a popular resort area with tourism the main industry in the county and four full-service spas using the mineral water. A historic building whose construction began in 1888, was built as a retreat for Rosa and Samuel Taylor Suit overlooking the town. It often is called "Berkeley Castle".

Berkeley Springs is a noted arts community with working artists accounting for approximately 1% of the county population of 16,000. Since 1994, the town has been listed in all four editions of John Villani's "100 Best Art Towns in America" (one of only 11 towns so rated).

During colonial times in 1748, George Washington, then just 16 years old, was part of the team that surveyed the Eastern Panhandle region for Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron. Washington returned several times over the next several years with his half-brother, Lawrence, who was ill, in hopes that the warm springs might improve his health. The springs, and their rumored medicinal benefits, attracted numerous Aboriginal Americans as well as Europeans to the area.