Photo: WBZ NewsRadio/Chaiel Schaffel
CHELSEA, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — A bathhouse on the North Shore has been letting people sweat it out since the Gilded Age.
Dillon's Russian Steam Bath in Chelsea is the oldest surviving steam bath in the country. The bathhouse, founded in 1885, has become a social scene over the years.
"I have customers coming here since they were 13," Owner Lisa Rizzo told WBZ NewsRadio's Chaiel Schaffel.
She joked it feels like entering hell for a minute when you enter the bathhouse that goes up to 220 degrees.
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"People meet each other, [make] lifelong friends here I mean it's like Thursday night guys gather, the Friday night guys," said Rizzo.
The bathhouse has survived everything from the Great Chelsea fire of 1973 to the COVID-19 pandemic.
'We've survived all types of events," said Rizzo.
For heat lovers who love the feeling of a good shvitz it's become a popular place to socialize.
Every Monday night is women's night, an event the Rizzo family created in 1993.
WBZ NewsRadio's Chaiel Schaffel (@CSchaffelWBZ) reports:
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