Some interesting secrets can be found hiding in the past in the Tar Heel State. Some of those secrets are just plain bizarre or weird, like the seven found in this article. Others, are just… well, random. For instance, the story of how a North Carolina four-star resort built for the richest of the rich in America was turned into a German POW camp during WWI.

The Mountain Park Hotel in Hot Springs was built in 1886 and served the wealthy as a luxury resort and spa that featured hot springs with healing properties.

Flickr/State Archives of North Carolina Raleigh, NC Up until the beginning of WWI, business was booming at the spa, but with the war came a sharp decline in visitors. The owner of the grand hotel offered to lease it to the government. And that’s how Hot Springs, NC got its POW campThe Germans detained at the camp were a combination of workers from a German ship and immigrants that had been held at Ellis Island since the beginning of the war. In all, 2,500 Germans were held in the internment camp in Hot Springs; many were living right in that luxury hotel.

The camp quickly outgrew the space available within thehotel, and the ship carpenters in the camp were employed by the government to build housing.

Flickr/State Archives of North Carolina Raleigh, NC The newly built barracks of Camp B in the internment camp are shown in the photo above, with a work crew in the center.

But the Germans held here had much time on their hands.

Flickr/State Archives of North Carolina Raleigh, NC Eventually, they built their own houses out of materials found at the hotel. The walls of many of the home were fashioned from tree limbs, as you can see in the photo above.

Below is a photo of a house in the camp. It has a bay window and a path in the yard made from large rocks found in the area. As you can see, this house was less drafty than many of the others; the gaps between the tree limbs were filled in.

Flickr/State Archives of North Carolina Raleigh, NC Homes were fashioned in makeshift ways with what was available for construction. The detainees had fashioned their own little German village by the time they were allowed to leave.

Below is a photo of a street of homes found in the German village.

Flickr/State Archives of North Carolina Raleigh, NC In the center of the photo is a church they built at the end of this street.

Below is a close up of the church the Germans built.

Flickr/State Archives of North Carolina Raleigh, NC Unfortunately, nothing remains of the German village, or the POW camp, in Hot Springs.

Until 1933, this grave of one of the German prisoners could be found at the International Order of Oddfellows’ Cemetery in Hot Springs.

Flickr/State Archives of North Carolina Raleigh, NC But it was moved in 1933 to Chattanooga National Cemetery.

Today, the Town of Hot Springs is still a place people visit to partake in the curative waters of the mineral springs.

Facebook/Hot Springs Resort and Spa The resort no longer boasts a gargantuan hotel, but there is still a resort at Hot Springs, albeit a little more rustic than past renditions in the same spot. You can find out more about the Town of Hot Springs here.

If you’d like to visit the site of the old German POW camp, it’s located at the present day Hot Springs Resort & Spa. Get more information on their official website.

Flickr/State Archives of North Carolina Raleigh, NC

Up until the beginning of WWI, business was booming at the spa, but with the war came a sharp decline in visitors. The owner of the grand hotel offered to lease it to the government. And that’s how Hot Springs, NC got its POW campThe Germans detained at the camp were a combination of workers from a German ship and immigrants that had been held at Ellis Island since the beginning of the war. In all, 2,500 Germans were held in the internment camp in Hot Springs; many were living right in that luxury hotel.

The newly built barracks of Camp B in the internment camp are shown in the photo above, with a work crew in the center.

Eventually, they built their own houses out of materials found at the hotel. The walls of many of the home were fashioned from tree limbs, as you can see in the photo above.

Homes were fashioned in makeshift ways with what was available for construction. The detainees had fashioned their own little German village by the time they were allowed to leave.

In the center of the photo is a church they built at the end of this street.

Unfortunately, nothing remains of the German village, or the POW camp, in Hot Springs.

But it was moved in 1933 to Chattanooga National Cemetery.

Facebook/Hot Springs Resort and Spa

The resort no longer boasts a gargantuan hotel, but there is still a resort at Hot Springs, albeit a little more rustic than past renditions in the same spot. You can find out more about the Town of Hot Springs here.

OnlyInYourState may earn compensation through affiliate links in this article.