History
Jeremiah Mathews, a local wagon and carriage maker, purchased the springs in 1879. Mathews built a bathhouse near the springs with five private bathing rooms and a 14-foot by 18-foot plunge bath. E. Myron Ferris purchased the springs from Mathews in 1890 for $25,000. Ferris changed the name to Ferris Hot Springs and immediately set about transforming the sleepy spa into a major recreation center for the Gallatin Valley. He built a two-story hotel, a large plunge, and private baths. Little new activity occurred until the early 1920's, when Sam Collett purchased the springs. Collett expanded the bathhouse and plunge and built a beautiful maple-floored ballroom next to the springs, declared to be