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Lost Lidos

I went to Kings Norton Girls grammar School and we had to swim in a lido almost opposite, don't know its name but I hated it Any other KNGS pupils remember it/
 
I recall the name Pountney belonging to a Newsagent on the corner of Bevington Road and Trinity Road Aston.
 
Nice thread Anne

As I attended Bournville Junior School in the mid-1950's I went with my class each week through what we knew as the "bird cage" (the paths through Cadbury's factory grounds that had wrought iron railings each side), to learn to swim for free at the little factory swimming pool. I can still remember doggy paddling up and down with a cork float! Is my memory correct that it was a wooden shack-like building, black with a sloping pitched roof, that jutted out like a boat house at the side of the factory lake?

My parents ran a corner shop on Franklin Road near to Cotteridge park, so by the late 1950's I also often rolled my trunks in a towel and walked or cycled to the top of the road to spend a summer's day at the outdoor Lido in Rowheath Park. I remember jumping off the top board there many a time, but I only risked diving off the second board, as that felt pretty high. My visual recall of the Lido is pretty hazy now, but I do remember it as a great facility in a nice green setting. It was certainly a socially lively place for coteries of boys and girls entering their teen-ages and wanting to show off and flirt with one another.
 
Has anyone any memories of the outdoor lido in Knowle i think it was behind the Greswold Hotel i used to go there to do electrical repairs late 50s . Dek
 
Have just seen Barons early photo of Keepers Pool on this thread,have never seen a photo.of Keepers Pool before.
When as a little lad, I first dived of the highest board,I thought it was about a mile high.How our perception of things as a child are so far from reality.
 
Have just seen Barons early photo of Keepers Pool on this thread,have never seen a photo.of Keepers Pool before.
When as a little lad, I first dived of the highest board,I thought it was about a mile high.How our perception of things as a child are so far from reality.

Ray have a look on the Sutton Park thread i,m sure theres an old photo of keepers on there. thats if it,s not been lost due to the change over. Dek
 
Re: Memories

Ray

Some more photos of Keepers Pool Lido, a little closer up though. I think I only ever used the lido about half a dozen times myself. I remember it was always packed like the one photo shows.

Phil

SuttonKeepersPool1975.jpg
SuttonKeepersPoolLido.jpg


SuttonParkKeepersPoolLido.jpg
 
Phil 3 great photos the first one just remind you how popular Keepers was 50 years ago. Dek
 
Phil thanks for those and they called that fun in the first photo. Rather have put a tin bath in the garden and sat in it. Jean.
 
Phil thank you for the smashing photo's! The last one is just as I remember it I loved going there it has such happy memories for me! I went to Tamworth baths yesterday to watch my two five year old grandchildren having their swimming lesson.......oh how Nanny wanted to join in.........lol
 
Spent many a Sunday morning Swimming in the lake & sunning our selves on that raft in the 2nd photo, around the late 50s . WHY DO WE NOT HAVE ANY OPEN AIR POOLS NOW? If we are to have global warming may be it would be the right thing to invest in for the future?.
WHEN THAT POOL CLOSE IT WAS A GREAT LOSS TO SUTTON PARK & THE FOLKS OF SUTTON.
 
Re: Another Picture of Sutton Park Lido

Some more lido's that you may or may not remember. They seemed to be everywhere at one time. but I wouldn't even begin to know where to look for the nearest one now. Even paddling pools for the kids seem to be a thing of the past now. Do we have one in Birmingham now?

Cannon Hill Park Lido, Malvern Park, Solihull Lido, Droitwich Lido.

Phil

EdgbastonCannonHillLido1873to1939.jpg
MalvernParkLido19582.jpg


ShirleyLido1.jpg
DroitwichLido.jpg
 
Dek

Tamworth Lido I didn't know or use, but I think I have a faint recollection of Knowle Lido at the back of the Greswolde Hotel, but it must have been a long time ago and I think I only ever used it once. Can I remember a lido at Shirley?

Phil

TamworthLido.jpg
 
Phil i,m amazed at your file system you always come up with the goods when i was about 11 i lived with my cousin in Walmley we used to take a few sandwiches and a few pennies for a drink set off on our bikes to Tamworth do a bit of train spotting spend a couple of hours in the lido and come home cream crackered a great day out what freedom we had in those days. Dek
 
Oh Tamworth Lido was brilliant can you believe we used to have swimming lessons there in about 1966 when I was at school. I went to Arthur Terry in Four Oaks and we were bused to Tamworth baths. In May it was freezing! When we moved to Tamworth I went often. I taught my boys to swim there. It was very popular too I loved going in the summer.
 
The council in our town (Daventry) closed our lido about 2 years ago,and really the pool was stolen by them.
About 50 years ago 5 children were drowned,in a local lake,so the people of Daventry without the help of the council,raised the funds (raffles,jumble sales and suchlike) to build a lido,so that no such tragedy could ever happen again.
In recent times,the council who paid for the upkeep,said they couldn't afford it,it didn't occur to them the money could have been saved,by sacking about half the "suits" who wouldn't have been missed.
My view was,the council showed a depraved lack of care for the children of our town.
 
Hi All,
Thank you for your wonderful picutes on Lost Lidos.
I haven't posted much lately due to untold commitments and I like a quiet moment to enjoy Birmingham History. I enjoy reading the posts. I've also asked my sister in Adelaide to start contributing - she would really benefit from all the nostalgia and memories!
Talking about Lost Lidos, I've been on a campaign to restore an Open-Air baths in Reading for the last 7 years. We've fought off the bulldozers and got an English Heritage Listing.
You'll find the History and all about it on my other website. https://www.kingsmeadowbaths.org.uk
The Council have now handed over the opportunity to make good headway with our initiatives over the next two years.
There is a poll on Reading History - and I KNOW you're not connected in any way, but from a heritage point of view, would my Brummie friends like to click on King's Meadow Baths and help raise the percentage! it was placed onto the getReading website just two days ago and I somehow think Reading Abbey rented a crowd!! I do however, support the Abbey as a very important part of our Heritage too.
Anything I can do for you with a simple click - just ask me. Thank you. Here is the link
https://www.getreading.co.uk/poll/c/2001326_our_history
 
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