Edward P. Dismuke came to Mineral Wells about 1900. In 1904, he and Cicero Smith built a recreational lake west of town with picnic areas and a scenic railroad. While digging a well for drinking water, they discovered a new supply of mineral water. After first selling the water in the Dameron Hotel, Dismuke opened the Famous Mineral Water Company in 1913, dispensing the water and other products from a drinking pavilion. The Famous Mineral Water Company wells are the only ones in town still accessible to the public.