Mineral Springs
MINERAL SPRINGS
MINERAL SPRINGS, naturally occurring, often heated waters that are relatively high in certain dissolved substances. The occurrence of mineral springs depends on geologic structure. Most occur along fault lines or corrugated regions, none in undisturbed regions, and few in
regions of little disturbance. Range of temperature is far higher in western regions than eastern, and they are more numerous in the west, where mountains are younger. About 10,000 mineral springs have been mapped in the United States. The most famous springs were at Saratoga, New York, and White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Albu, Marius, David Banks, and Harriet Nash, eds. Mineral and Thermal Groundwater Resources. New York: Chapman and Hall, 1997.
Stearns, Noah D., Harold T. Stearns, and Gerald A. Waring. Thermal Springs in the United States. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1937.
Mary AnneHansen
See alsoGeology ; Resorts and Spas .