Beginning in the 1860s, the first vestiges of the resorts of Lake County appeared around the sparkling pools of the region's many hot springs and upon the shores of Clear Lake. Lured by the supposed medicinal qualities of the water, people flocked to rustic campgrounds and cabins to "take the cure" for their ailments, drink, and bathe, staying for long periods each summer. Within a few years, ambitious entrepreneurs bottled the springs' mineral waters and built more luxurious accommodations and amenities. Although the claims of curative waters lost sway over time, resorts equipped with extensive recreational facilities, dance floors, live music, bountiful food, hunting, fishing, and children's entertainment continued to draw visitors in droves. Families filled the resorts in summers, and by the 1940s, large group and society meetings as well as conventions began to utilize the resorts on spring and fall weekends. Though few original resorts remain, today, in 2007, the region's business directory lists 51 Lake County resorts.

The past lies just under the surface in Lake County. Interurban trains once carried wealthy Clevelanders to idyllic summer homes and resorts along the shoreline and up to Little Mountain. Stories abound of rum-running during Prohibition, enslaved people who were carried to freedom through the Underground Railroad, and stolen gold bars believed to be buried along a riverbank. Lake County was also once the site of a booming ship-building industry and a secret plant that created chemical warfare during World War I. Many residents fondly recall long-gone drive-in theaters and beloved drug store soda fountains and bakeries of the mid to late twentieth century. Join author Jennifer Boresz Engelking as she reveals the history behind some of the county's most intriguing people, places, and industries.