Wayside: Colonial Springs Bottling Plant

The National Park Service stabilized the crumbling ruin in 2017.

Quick Facts

Location:

Along the rock and dirt Horse-Shoe trail on Mount Misery.

Designation:

Valley Forge Then and Now wayside exhibit

Amenities

2 listed

Cellular Signal, Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits

This structure is the remains of a bottling plant built in the late 1800s on top of a natural spring originally known as Cold Spring.

In 1908, the lease passed to the Colonial Springs Company, which continued to bottle and sell water in the local community. Later, the property was sold to Charles Hires and the Hires Company, the manufacturers of Hires Root Beer. Valley Forge State Park acquired the land in the 1930s and the building was abandoned. More recently, the National Park Service has taken measures to preserve the ruin.

Charles Hires (above left) was famous for root beer but sold water from Colonial Springs (above right) under the label Purock Spring Water. Hires continued to sell Purock water until the property was purchased by Valley Forge State Park.

In order to preserve this local history and to keep curious hikers safe, the National Park Service stabilized the crumbling ruin of the Colonial Springs Bottling Plant in 2017. Masonry walls were repointed, partially dismantled, and capped with cement.

Don’t Drink the Water! This spring may have been safe to drink from 100 years ago, but today the water can make you sick.

Tags: valley forge national historical park, colonial springs bottling plant, 50 years of valley forge, valley forge then and now, valley forge 50