Map of Olympic National Park & Forest
History of the Springs
The name, Sol Duc, is an Indian term meaning 'sparkling water,' it is very befitting for the Sol Duc Hot Springs in Washington State where folks have been coming for over 100 years to soak for pleasure and also for their health. The Sol Duc hot springs and their curative properties were well known to the Quileutes and other inhabitants of the Olympic Peninsula.
According to stories of the early history of the springs, Theodore Moritz, an early settler on the Quillayute River, was shown Sol Duc Hot Springs by an Quileute Indian man he had aided. In the early 1880s, Mr. Moritz filed a homestead claim on the Sol Duc property. Talk of the curative properties of the hot springs soon drew many to this spot for a retreat. Mr. Moritz built a primitive bathhouse, wood-floored tents, and a dining room to accommodate these visitors. In 1903 a prominent timber man named Michael Earles came to the springs and was so impressed that he purchased an option to buy, which he did upon the death of Mr. Moritz in 1909.
Mr. Earles had big plans for the Sol Duc property, which he saw fulfilled in 1912, when he opened a 164-room, 5-star hotel and resort. The original resort built by Earles was a luxurious resort that drew thousands of visitors not just from the continental United States but also from as far away as Europe. Four years later the resort was destroyed in an unfortunate fire and has never again seen the grandeur of Earles vision but continues to draw thousands of visitors each year looking for peace, relaxation and a little of the miracle cure that is Sol Duc Hot Springs legacy.