How often does a quick restroom stop turn into a brush with New Deal art history? Tucked inside the unassuming stone washhouse at Springs Day Park—just a flat, 10-minute stroll from your campsite at Pikes Peak RV Park—rumor has it a set of 1933 WPA murals still whispers stories of miners, mountain vistas, and Depression-era optimism.
Curious who painted them, whether you can still step inside, or if flash photography is a no-no? Stick around. In the next few minutes we’ll map the easiest path, decode the artwork’s past, and share pro tips for snapping that low-light shot without annoying the next person in line. Your bathroom break is about to become the most unexpected highlight of your Manitou Springs itinerary—let’s dive in.
Key Takeaways
– Springs Day Park’s unmarked restroom may hide 1933 WPA murals that show miners and mountains
– It is a flat 0.3-mile (about 6-minute) walk from Pikes Peak RV Park to the washhouse
– Search the wall space above the tiles for faded brown, green, and orange paint shapes
– Turn on night mode, skip the flash, and keep hands off the artwork
– Share clear photos with the Manitou Springs Heritage Center or tag them #WPAWhimsy
– Restrooms unlock around 7 a.m. in summer (9 a.m. in colder months) and lock by dusk
– Level paths, shaded benches, and a playground make the stop friendly for kids, seniors, and strollers
– Call the city number on the door if you spot graffiti, chips, or water leaks
– Your visit helps confirm if the art is real and keeps local history alive
– Combine this quick stop with downtown treats, creekside walks, or other New Deal art nearby.
Why a Hidden Restroom Mural Matters to Travelers Like You
Springs Day Park sits just beyond the hum of Ruxton Avenue, close enough for digital nomads to stretch their legs yet quirky enough for millennial culture hunters in search of an Instagram-worthy detour. Families find it makes a surprisingly teachable pit stop—kids can count pickaxes or puzzle out 1930s paint colors before charging off to the nearby playground. Retirees love that the whole outing can be done on a level path with shaded benches every couple hundred feet, no steep trails or ticket lines required.
For local history buffs, the possibility of undocumented WPA art is an irresistible mystery. The Works Progress Administration flooded Colorado with hundreds of public artworks during the Great Depression, yet many slipped through the official record. If a fragment survives inside this washhouse, spotting it could fill a gap in statewide art catalogs and maybe even prompt a new entry on Living New Deal. Every visitor—whether you’re browsing with a latte or corralling grandkids—plays a role in confirming, preserving, or at least appreciating this local legend.
WPA Art in a Nutshell: How Murals Landed in Everyday Buildings
During the darkest years of the 1930s, President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal launched the WPA to get Americans back to work. Artists earned roughly $23 a week to paint murals in post offices, schools, and, yes, the occasional public loo. The idea was simple: if art greeted miners washing up or farmers mailing letters, morale would tick upward even when wallets stayed thin.
Colorado’s assignments tended toward scenes of railroads, hard-rock mining, and the sunlit spine of the Rockies. Painters often used tempera on fresh plaster—fast-drying, inexpensive, and durable if moisture stayed low. Because the nation was still finding its feet, no one bothered with celebrity signatures; many pieces remain anonymous today. That anonymity adds to the intrigue at Springs Day Park: without a name to track, only careful eyes and community sleuthing can confirm what pigments still cling to the walls.
The Manitou Springs Mystery: Record or Rumor?
Search every WPA index you can find—from the National Archives to Colorado Springs’ historic building permits—and no black-and-white photo of the Springs Day Park murals turns up. Local historians at the Manitou Springs Heritage Center have combed microfilm, and so far the trail ends in oral histories: longtime residents recall “faded mountain panoramas” high above the tile line. No one has produced proof, but eyewitness accounts surface often enough to keep the rumor alive.
That uncertainty is half the fun. Think of your visit as citizen science: a field study where smartphone cameras replace lab notebooks. Snap, compare, and share—if you catch even a sliver of paint, you might add a missing puzzle piece to Colorado’s WPA map. The Heritage Center keeps a dedicated email for leads, and the staff have promised to archive any clear images submitted. Your curiosity could vault these walls from hearsay to heritage.
What to Look For Once You Step Inside
Enter the washhouse and let your eyes adjust to dimmer light. Scan the upper wall bands above the tile, where water spray is least likely to scar pigment. Expect earth-tone hues: umber for miners’ coats, pine green for slopes, a muted orange sunrise breaking over a stylized peak.
If you spot repeating motifs—mining carts, railroad ties, sunbursts—mentally cross-reference them with other 1930s Colorado murals, like those in the Colorado Springs City Auditorium. WPA pieces favored idealized strength and future-focused optimism, so even a weather-worn eye or a half-visible mountain outline can hint at the original narrative. Bonus tip: point your phone camera upward and tilt back; the lens may pick up faint color shifts your eye overlooks.
Getting There Without Guesswork
Leave Pikes Peak RV Park through the south gate and hang a right on Ruxton Avenue. The sidewalk parallels Fountain Creek, offering a splash of cool air before you reach the quaint footbridge leading into Springs Day Park. From the gate to the washhouse door measures roughly 0.3 miles—about a six-minute walk at an unhurried pace. Those rolling with wheelchairs or strollers will prefer the level western park entrance; the eastern trail dips briefly then climbs just enough to challenge arthritic knees.
Drivers find limited curb spots—just four marked spaces—along Park Avenue. On busy weekends, aim for 8 a.m. arrivals or reroute to the Manitou Springs Pool lot two blocks east. Both lots work for RV height clearances under 12 feet. Park hours run dawn to dusk, while the city unlocks the restrooms around 7 a.m. in summer and 9 a.m. in colder months. Doors generally lock at 8 p.m. July through August and an hour earlier the rest of the year.
Photo and Etiquette Hacks: Share the Art, Not the Germs
Remember, this is an active restroom. Keep groups to two insiders at a time, and keep conversation to a library whisper. When you’re lining up your shot, switch on night-mode or bump ISO, but skip the flash—bright bursts accelerate pigment fading and annoy whoever just wants to wash their hands.
Step back at least three feet; that distance reduces lens distortion and prevents backpack straps from brushing the wall. Parents juggling young explorers might scout solo first. Confirm no one’s in a stall, then wave the kids in for a quick 30-second look. For social-media mavens: early afternoon light bounces off white tile, casting a natural fill that flatters both paint and selfies. Use the hashtag #WPAWhimsy so future travelers—and maybe even art historians—can easily track ongoing discoveries.
Help These Walls Survive the Next Ninety Years
Humidity, cleaning chemicals, and curious fingertips loom as the three biggest enemies of aging tempera. Resist the urge to steady yourself on the wall—body oils attract grime that bonds permanently to porous paint. If you notice graffiti, chips, or a sudden drip near a seam, text the city hotline printed on the restroom door; rapid response prevents tiny blemishes from ballooning into multi-thousand-dollar repairs.
Community groups host a volunteer sweep each spring to clear debris, brush dust away from vent grates, and inspect grout. No harsh detergents touch the art—only distilled water and soft microfiber under a conservator’s guidance. Donations funnel through the Heritage Center, earmarked for professional evaluations every five to ten years. A single twenty-dollar contribution covers enough pH-neutral cleaner to treat wall sections safely for an entire season.
Fold the Murals Into a Memorable Half-Day
Kick off at 9 a.m. with gooey cinnamon rolls downtown, then mosey creekside to Springs Day Park. After your mural quest, swing by the Manitou Springs Post Office to admire its certified New Deal mural—a four-minute walk that adds context and contrast. Picnic tables sit just 100 feet east of the washhouse; pack sandwiches or grab takeout for an alfresco lunch with Fountain Creek burbling nearby.
Craving activity? The trailhead for the Manitou Incline and Barr Trail rises at the canyon mouth, a brisk quarter-mile from the park. If altitude gain isn’t your thing, drop quarters at the Penny Arcade or sample a small-batch lager at a local brewery before looping back to your RV spot for sunset s’mores. Shoulder seasons—late April to May and September through October—offer lighter crowds and easier campsite reservations.
Traveler-Type Cheat Sheet
Local history buffs often arrive armed with notebooks, ready to cross-reference any wall findings against the Living New Deal database. They linger longest, sketching pickaxes, tunnels, and pine-green slopes in hopes of matching a forgotten artist’s hand elsewhere in Colorado. Retirees and snowbirds, meanwhile, savor the level half-mile circuit, pausing on benches every couple hundred feet and bundling up with a light jacket when canyon breezes pick up in spring or fall. Families traveling with school-age kids transform the stop into a living lesson; youngsters learn WPA artists once earned just $23 a week, estimate that figure in today’s dollars, and then race to the playground to burn off fresh historical perspective.
Millennial and Gen-Z culture seekers show up around noon to catch the softest wall light, phones angled toward the glossy tile for a creamy bounce that flatters both mural and selfie. Digital nomads scout the western benches for two reliable Wi-Fi bars, syncing emails before ducking inside to snap low-light shots and later decamping to the Manitou Art Center’s coworking lounge for a bandwidth boost. Art-and-architecture road-trippers, mapping every New Deal treasure they can find, pair this rumor hunt with confirmed WPA carvings at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo twenty minutes south, confident their growing catalog may soon feature an officially documented Springs Day Park mural.
When the restroom door swings shut behind you, the mystery of those fading brushstrokes is only a few hundred steps from the comfort of your rig. Fire up the camp stove, let Fountain Creek provide the soundtrack, and trade WPA theories with neighbors under a sky Roosevelt himself might’ve called hopeful. Craving more effortless adventures like this? Reserve your creekside site at Pikes Peak RV Park today—our easy online booking, full hookups, and friendly staff make turning a quick art detour into an unforgettable stay a breeze. Book now, settle in, and keep the story hunt alive—Manitou Springs has plenty more secrets within walking distance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Are the murals officially confirmed as WPA art and do we know the artist’s name?
A: The paintings are widely believed to date to a 1933 Works Progress Administration assignment, but no archival paperwork or signature has surfaced, so the attribution remains an educated hypothesis backed by oral histories rather than a documented fact.
Q: What hours is the restroom building open to visitors?
A: The City of Manitou Springs unlocks the washhouse around 7 a.m. in summer and 9 a.m. in colder months, then locks it at dusk—typically 8 p.m. June through August and an hour earlier the rest of the year—so plan your visit inside that window.
Q: How do I walk there from Pikes Peak RV Park and is the path wheelchair friendly?
A: Exit the park’s south gate, turn right on Ruxton Avenue, and follow the level sidewalk 0.3 miles to Springs Day Park; the western park entrance stays curb-cut smooth for wheelchairs and strollers, while the eastern trail dips briefly before rising.
Q: Is there convenient parking for cars, RVs, or accessible vans?
A: Four standard curb spaces sit beside the park on Park Avenue; larger rigs or anyone wanting guaranteed room should use the Manitou Springs Pool lot two blocks east, which accepts vehicles up to 12-foot clearance and has designated ADA spots.
Q: Can I take photos of the murals and is flash allowed?
A: Photography for personal use is welcome, but please switch off flash or other bright artificial lighting because sudden bursts accelerate pigment decay and disrupt fellow restroom users.
Q: How long should I budget for the stop?
A: Most visitors need 10–15 minutes to scan the walls, grab a quick photo, and wash up, though art buffs linger closer to 30 minutes comparing motifs and taking detailed notes.
Q: Are guided tours, plaques, or printed handouts available on-site?
A: The washhouse itself offers no signage, but the Manitou Springs Heritage Center downtown keeps a one-page fact sheet and staff occasionally lead small-group walks if you arrange at least a week in advance.
Q: Is the restroom clean and safe for families with kids?
A: City crews service the facility daily during peak season, and local police include it on routine patrols, so parents generally find the space tidy, well lit, and no more intimidating than any other public restroom.
Q: May children or adults touch the paintings to feel the texture?
A: Please look but don’t touch; the paint sits directly on old plaster and even gentle fingertips leave oils that attract grime and speed deterioration.
Q: What should I do if I spot graffiti, new cracks, or peeling paint?
A: Snap a quick photo, note the date and time, and text it to the city’s facilities hotline posted on the restroom door so maintenance staff and conservators can respond before the damage spreads.
Q: Can I volunteer or donate to help preserve the murals?
A: Yes—email the Manitou Springs Heritage Center to join the annual spring clean-up or send a tax-deductible donation earmarked for professional conservation assessments and supplies like pH-neutral cleaners.
Q: Are there benches or shaded spots for less mobile visitors to rest while others explore?
A: Shaded benches sit every couple hundred feet along the creekside path and one directly faces the washhouse entrance, allowing companions to relax within easy sight of the doorway.
Q: When is the best natural light for photography inside the building?
A: Early afternoon, roughly noon to 2 p.m., sunlight bounces off the white tile interior and creates an even, warm glow that makes cell-phone night-mode shots sharper without extra gear.
Q: What other nearby WPA sites pair well with this visit?
A: Within a four-minute walk you can view the confirmed 1939 New Deal mural inside the Manitou Springs Post Office, and a 20-minute drive south brings you to Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s carved stone reliefs, letting road-trippers build a satisfying mini-tour of Depression-era art.