 Gambling
existed at French Lick. It is
difficult to give an accurate
story of the casino, the
gambling, and the whim of
"Dame Fortune," yet it
wielded much influence in the
publicity which the resort
received. Absence of records,
emotional reporting, and garbled
gossip cast a haze upon this
phase of French Lick history. The
first casino was built under th
management of the French Lick
Springs Company, and some
gambling probably exited in the
pre-Taggart era. Soon after
Taggart assumed management of the
properties, Al Brown began
running a gambling establishment
in the upstairs of the red and
white casino. Under the
administration of Governor Any
the casino at French Lick was
raided by men from the State
Attorney General's office. A
number of operators were arrested
and pleaded guilty in the local
court and paid fines. The State
Attorney General's office then
began proceedings to bring a suit
against Taggart and thereby
effect the dissolution of the
French Lick Springs Hotel
Company. The charged that the
casino was under Taggart's
direction and part of the
business of his company, although
operated by another man. The
election of 1908 interfered with
these proceedings and Thomas R.
Marshall was made Governor of
Indiana. The change of
administration slowed down the
proceedings. Local officials were
convinced that the charges
against Taggart had been inspired
by political malice, and for the
time being the matter receded.
Governor Marshall expressed his
helplessness to bring indictments
against the gambling, citing that
without the help and cooperation
of Orange County officials he was
helpless. Shortly following these
proceedings all gambling was
moved across the street, to a
small hotel operated by Brown.
Here a large casino was set up
under the Brown management. From
that time on, Taggart could and
did, disclaim any connection with
the gambling establishment. The
patronage of the casino was made
up entirely of the out of town
visitors to French Lick. No local
residents were allowed to gamble
in the casino. French Lick
subsequently gained wide
publicity as a place where
gambling flourished. Newspapers
and other publications paid
little notice to the fact that
the casino was not located on
hotel properties. French Lick,
through no real fault of Taggart,
became synonymous with gambling.
Taggart was quite touchy when one
source or another would connect
him with gambling at French Lick.
In 1920 he filed a libel suit for
$100,000 damages against the
Brooklyn Standard-Union for
referring to French Lick as a
gambling place under his
management. The Standard-Union
subsequently retracted its
original statements. When Edna
Ferber first published Show Boat
she had written: . . . "In
the evening we can take a whirl
at Tom Taggart;s layout."
"Oh, don't play there ---not
much, I mean. Let's try to keep
what we have for a little while.'
'After all, we may as well give
Tom a chance to pay our expenses.
Remember the last time we were
down I won a thousand at roulette
alone---and roulette isn't my
game.'" Taggart threatened a
libel suit and subsequent
editions of show Boat cut out the
aspersions. The frequent
newspaper stories lining Taggart
with gambling at French Lick
served to convince many that the
resort was merely a gathering
place of law violators and
degenerate people of all sorts.
In this respect such publicity
hurt the hotel, yet all in all
the publicity good or bad boosted
the fame of the resort. At this
time when there were more than
500 mineral resorts in the United
States, it helped to have a
resort famous or infamous.
Whatever
the drawing card, be it Taggart,
Pluto, gambling, or the hotel
itself, the people came and how
they came. Literally in droves.
The Monon Railroad discharged
passengers in |
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special trains
coming to the resort. The Monon
also handled the return trips of
the many patrons. A special
siding at the hotel was often
filled with the private railway
cars of guest. In the busy season
the hotel drives were crowded
with cars. and on any day you
could see a Rolls Royce, Pierce
Arrow, Winton Six, Stuts or Cols
come driving up to the main
entrance, often with chauffeur.
Guest often checked in at the
rate of 150 to 200 a day. Hotel
porters were kept busy making
reservations, carrying luggage,
meeting guests and handling a
hundred or more trunks each day.
Most came for two weeks, to drink
the waters, take the baths and
relax. Politicians, businessmen,
and the cream of society came to
this resort in Southern Indiana.
The
visitor's first impression of the
French Lick was the towering
expanse of yellow brick,
extending on and on, the true
size often obscured because of
the trees of all varieties which
surrounded the buildings. Under
the impressive marquee of steel
and glass, which shaded an
expanse of marble stairway, a
uniformed porter would meet each
guest and take charge of luggage
and golf clubs. The guest would
climb the stairway lined with
potted flowers and gleaming brass
hand rails, and at the top a
uniformed doorman opened the main
doors leading into the ornate
lobby. Here the ritual of
registration was performed, and
only a brief glance down the page
showed famous names and addresses
from states near and far.
Elevators whisked the patrons to
their rooms located somewhere in
one of the buildings, facing the
front, the hillside, or the
gardens depending on the price
paid for the room. All rates were
American plan with meals included
in the daily rate. Tom Taggart
took special care to make every
room immaculate and inviting.
Often, flowers from the hotel
greenhouse would adorn the room,
compliments of Tom Taggart.
French Lick
was well equipped to provide
whatever was needed for a perfect
day. In the mornings many guest
took part in the sports and
outdoor activities available at
the hotel. Golf ranked first in
popularity. The lower course was
located only 150 yards from the
hotel. Here, there was a club
house, with professional golfers
to give lessons or advise the use
of equipment. This course was
recognized as an easier course to
play than the newer hill course
located two miles west of the
hotel. Unexperienced golfers and
guest who wanted a non-strenuous
game generally favored the smooth
fairways of the lower course. The
upper course was outfitted for
championship play. Over the years
many tournaments of national
renown were held on the hill
course. The hotel provided
transportation to and from the
upper course for the guest of the
hotel. A spacious club house
located there was equipped to
serve snacks and lunches for
golfers. The club house had
thirty sleeping rooms with locker
accommodations for 200 men and 25
women. It boasted a big living
room with fireplace and a large
veranda surrounding the club
house. The golf links did big
business. At times a timekeeper
was necessary in order to make
reservations for play. For other
sports enthusiast tennis courts
were available for play at no
charge. Horseback riding was also
popular. A stable of Kentucky
three and five gait horses was
kept for guest of the hotel For
nominal fees horses could be
rented by the hour. Miles of
horse trails wound through the
wooded countryside on the French
Lick properties. and group riding
was a popular past time at the
hotel. Swimming pools were
located in the men's and women's
bath departments and could be
used by guest of the hotel. Over
each pool was a skylight which
let in sunlight. Walking and
motoring were also encouraged as
forms of recreation at the hotel.
These sports facilities were
plentiful. The vast majority of
guest were older people who came
for relaxation and moderate
exercise. |