NEWLY RESTORED BILLIARD AND BOWLING PAVILION AT WEST BADEN SPRINGS HOTEL REOPENING TO GUESTS FOR FIRST TIME IN MORE THAN 90 YEARS

Another historic building at French Lick Resort is coming back to life in a modern-day revival. 

The Billiard and Bowling Pavilion — located just a short walk from West Baden Springs Hotel in the hotel gardens — is opening its doors to guests for the first time in more than 90 years. With six bowling lanes along with pool tables and a new pizzeria, French Lick Resort’s newest attraction opens Tuesday, January 13. A grand reopening ceremony will be held at a later date.

This is the only building on French Lick Resort grounds that had not undergone a modern 
renovation — until now. The original Billiard and Bowling Pavilion opened Christmas Day of 1917, and guests came here for fun and games until the nearby West Baden Springs Hotel closed its doors to guests in the early 1930s following the Great Depression. This refurbished recreation hall is now open to guests of all French Lick Resort hotels, as well as the public. 

“To bring back another building that had not been in service for almost a century is a real treat we’re excited to offer our guests,” said Chuck Franz, CEO of French Lick Resort. “And, we’re bringing it back pretty close to what it was like 100 years ago with six lanes for bowling and the billiard tables in the front section of the building. Just like the restoration of the West Baden Springs Hotel dome, we relied on historical pictures to bring it back to the life that it had more than a century ago. We wanted to keep it as historically accurate as possible.”

Lighting fixtures that hang from the ceiling above the lanes closely mimic those of the original pavilion. Another original feature is the pair of limestone Tuscan columns, which separate the bowling portion of the building from the billiard area. All the windows on the sides of the building were kept to fill the interior with natural light.

Renovating this structure has been years in the making.

Before any work was done inside, a flood control system was added with pumps to steer away excessive water and gates to protect the building. The interior had been neglected for possibly more than 50 years since the days when Northwood Institute, a private college, inhabited the property prior to the renovation of West Baden Springs Hotel in the mid-2000s.

The east wing of the pavilion had been torn down at some point in history, but that section of the building has been rebuilt and now houses the new Sprudel’s Pizzeria, which will serve up a variety of artisan pizzas, sandwiches and salads plus Prohibition-era specialty cocktails. With bowling and billiards open until 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and midnight on Friday and Saturday, Franz foresees this as the resort’s newest late-night hangout.

“When our nighttime events close over at West Baden Springs Hotel, guests can venture over to the Billiard and Bowling Pavilion and continue their evening later into the night,” he said. 

Additionally, the Billiard and Bowling Pavilion can be booked for group functions for those wanting indoor recreation plus outdoor use with terrific views.

“We’ve tailored the exterior of the Billiard and Bowling Pavilion for group activities, so that on beautiful fall, spring or summer days, guests can move outdoors and enjoy great views of the hotel and gardens,” Franz said.