Built in the 1930s, this small steam well served several purposes and was especially useful for cooking, including boiling eggs and cooking pigs. Cooking with steam stretches back thousands of years, and in a well like this, vaporized water rose naturally and cooked food placed at the top. With temperatures around 150°F (60°C), steam wells offered an easy, natural way to cook without fire. Steam wells around Calistoga were also used for soaking. In the 1700s, the native Wappo Indian Tribe used steam and hot mineral water for soaking and bathing, believing the water had special healing properties. Continuing this tradition, visitors still travel to Calistoga to enjoy natural hot mineral water baths. Constructed of wood, cement, and volcanic rock beside the famous Old Faithful Geyser of California, this well was eventually taken out of commission and filled in because steam posed a danger of injury to visitors.