Linen-era color postcard of the Torbett Clinic and Hospital, Hot Well Pavilion, and Majestic Hotel and Bath House in Marlin, Texas — the red-brick resort complex that made this small Falls County city one of the South's most famous health destinations for nearly half a century. Marlin's artesian hot mineral wells were discovered in 1892 while drilling for water, and within years the town had built an entire industry around their purported therapeutic properties; the Torbett Sanitarium and Majestic Hotel drew patients suffering from rheumatism, arthritis, and nervous disorders from across Texas and beyond. By the time this card was posted in November 1942, the resort was in its long twilight — wartime rationing and changing medical tastes were eroding the spa town model — but the baths were still running, and someone named [sender] was writing home to a friend in Cameron.

• Caption: Torbett Clinic and Hospital, Hot Well Pavilion, Majestic Hotel and Bath House — Marlin, Texas.
• Card no.: 2A-H258
• Publisher: Genuine Curteich-Chicago C.T. Photo-Colorit
• Postmark: Marlin, Tex., November 1942
• Status: Posted