Medicine Park History:

Medicine Park is located at the main entry to the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge, the second most visited wildlife refuge in the country - hosting more than 1.5 million annual visitors.

The community has a rich and colorful history. Originally founded on July 4th, 1908 by Oklahoma Senator Elmer Thomas, Medicine Park was Oklahoma’s first planned tourism resort.

In the spring of 1906, the then young lawyer and soon to be Senator envisioned the need for not only a recreational area, but also the need for a permanent water source for the budding and newly founded City o f Lawton. He and a partner, Hal Lloyd from Altus quietly purchased approximately 900 acres of what is now the cobblestone community of Medicine Park.

When the resort first opened, it consisted merely of a large surplus Army tent with a wooden floor that served as a place to for hot meals, the swimming hole and a limited number of campsites.

Numerous improvements were added and the area began to take on the look and feel of a bona fide resort. Tourists flocked to the area from around the state and North Texas to enjoy the mountains, wildlife, swimming, good food and lodging. Soon, there were two inns ( the Outside Inn and the Apache Inn ), Baird’s Health Sanitarium (which featured clay tennis courts and a spa), a Dance Hall, Canteen, Petting Zoo, Bath House, a General Store, School, Bait Shop, Hydro Electric Power Plant and the Dam Café.

The entire Bath Lake Park was landscaped with beautiful gardens, large trees, foot bridges and grassy areas for visitors to lounge around, sunbathe and enjoy the natural beauty. The area flourished during the late teens to the 1930’s as the “Jewel of the Southwest.”

The nearby Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge and Lake Lawtonka attracted thousands of people each weekend and throughout the seasons. Medicine Park became the “playground” for the State’s rich, famous and notorious. Folks would come to town for the weekend and leave their “work-a-day” world, troubles and reputations behind them. Outlaws and horse thieves mixed with noted politicians and businessmen, families and socialites in this new cobblestone community.