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Victoria Road Swimming Baths

JKC

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I cannot find a sub section for the baths so I will post it here and Rod then can then move it.....I am not a swimmer, these days I cannot even float....straight to the bottom, but I came across these two photo's on ebay before xmas....I did put a bid in but the price shot over £10 for each, way out of my league.....but I did ask the person who brought them if I could have a copy of them both, so that I could send them to Rod for the main site, I cannot remember if I did or not.....anyway here there are, and I would like to thank Ian Gordon for allowing me to show them.
 
John, found this postcard to go with ya pics,baths on the right O0
 
Great photo many a happy Sunday morning spent here just after the War with my Dad & Uncle Jim who learnt me to swim :)
 
Many happy day for me to Alf, with the upper thomas st smimming teams & that free pass we got for swimming, I think it was two streches of that big pool. I used to like the little pool at the back used by most schools in the area.
spent many a saturday night watching the water polo from the balcony (That was before we had  a TV).
all our family learnt to swim in Victoria Road & that included my Nan, Grandad & Mom & Dad.
 
Neat Drawing of Victoria Road Baths which opened on 5th Oct 1892. A wooden floor could be layed over the baths in the Winter months so it could be used for gymnastic training.
 
The First Class Bath had a gallery which could accommodate a few hundred spectators
 
John the pictures are on the Aston mainsite, unfortunately they cant be viewed right now, the site is undergoing a lot of work. I'll see what I can do to make em viewable. AND praps upload the other picciess too
 
I well remember going there from school every week- that was Aston grammar, which had a gate almost opposite the back entrance to the Baths in Albert Road. I hated swimming after an experience in Kingstanding Baths when I was six, and was a bit sickly too, so I usually had to join the 'wallflowers' as the teacher called us, sitting on the balcony over the changing cubicles, where we had to read improving books. That was from about 1946 I think. I started at the school in 1944, and I don't think they let us schoolkids in at that time.
Peter
 
ALF DO YOU REMEMBER THE SMALL POOL THAT WAS BEHIND THE DOOR AT THE BACK OF THE DIVING BOARDS.THAT THE POOL WE DID OUR TRAINING IN UNDER MR MILNER OUR SPORTS TEACHER FROM UPPER THOMAS ST.
 
Do you know I cant for the life of me remember diving boards at Victoria Road, praps they had been removed? I do however remember the seemingly huge one at Woodcock Street. Might they have been praps able to be taken down and stored? It's funny how memories of some things fade, while other things seem as fresh as yesterday

Ive now made the older updates and added the above to the Aston Mainsite. Does anyone have Woodcock street Baths pictures?
 
Rod, I bet your younger than me they did take the boards down in the later years.
that board at Woodcock St, WAS LIKE JUMPING OF LEWISE'S. I only did it once had soar feet for weeks! :idiot2:
G.E.C Witton used to hold there annual Swimming Gala at Woodcock St Baths.Have still got the pewter tankard I won back in the 50s :angel:
 
Victoria road swimming baths.

:D Look what I've foung among all my old photo's. I used to swim for them coached by Kenny Williams. I used to train at coached by Bill Eggison. Kent street on a Wednesday and Woodcock street Saturday mornings. Bye for now. Jean. :D
 
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My old coach in his younger days.

:D Bill Eggison when he was in the Upper Thomas street swimming team. :D
 
Jean you have some real treasures. My Dad used to swim there so did his brothers and sisters. I have seen a photo of my aunt posed in a simmilar setting I must ask my cousin if I can have a copy. Keep up the good work Jean!
 
Aston swimmin club.

:D
Here is the 2nd photo.
Hi. I went into a pub at Water Orton the other day called the dog. They have a great photo on the wall of an Aston mens team. I used to swim there from 1956/60 and won the ladies cup three years on the trot. Kenny Williams and Jack middleton coached me and I had the privilage of early morning teaining free in the smaller pool. Bye for now. Jean. :D
 
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I was a member of the swimming club at Victoria Road Baths in the mid-1950's. The star, if I remember aright, was Graham Williams, who I think may well have been on an Olympic Team. I also remember Roger Perks, who was a terrific swimmer. The small pool behind the deep-end of the main baths was supposedly for "warming-up", but it seemed to me always a few degrees colder than the main bath.

I also remember getting on to a junior team for an event held at Woodcock Street Baths, which to me seemed about five times the size of Victoria Road, and rather scary....

Does anyone know when Victoria Road baths closed down?

Big Gee
 
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