Designed and built in 1887 by its original owner, Frank Ferris, the Crescent Bath House served as a communal bath house for many decades after opening, offering tired, ailing passersby through Lake Elsinore, Calif., a variety of different hot sulfur baths, which were thought to cure arthritis, rheumatism, and other diseases. Though the 10 bathing rooms, each with a Roman-style porcelain tub and a skylight, remain today, as do the spaces that were formerly used for massages and physician exams, the structure was turned into an antiques shop in the 1950s (today it's home to Chimes Antiques and Collectibles). And while the Crescent Bath House has certainly been sandblasted and repainted in recent years, its arches, gingerbread trim, banisters, porches, gables, and original color scheme have stayed pretty much the same, earning the 6,000-square-foot building a spot on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. Listed for $795K as a commercial property—"potential reuse as a spa or bath house is distinctly in the realm of possibility," the brokerbabble advises—the house contains upstairs living quarters, so there's definitely potential for a mixed-use live/work situation.
· Crescent Bath House, 1887 [Architecture For Sale]
· History of the Chimes [Chimes Antiques]
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