Timothy L. Bottoms

Dr. Timothy Leroy Bottoms (1917-2003) was the Chiropodist, or foot-health specialist, on the staff of the Fordyce Bathhouse in the late 1950s. He was born in Monticello, Arkansas, and later moved with his parents to Hot Springs where he graduated from Langston High School in 1939. Following graduation he was inducted into the U.S. Army, and was stationed in Italy, Africa, France, and Germany. At the end of World War II, he was selected by the Army to study cultural relations between America and Europe at the University of Dijon in France.

After being discharged from service Bottoms attended Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Missouri, where he majored in Pre-Medicine. He subsequently completed Podiatry School at the Illinois College of Podiatry and Foot Surgery in 1956. By 1957, he was listed in the city directory as the chiropodist in the Fordyce. A few years later he opened an office at 413 Malvern Avenue in the African American business district. Former clients relate that Dr. Bottoms would often sing as he worked on their feet. He remained in Hot Springs until his retirement in 1980.