Mittagong's leafy baths and zoo became Olympic Pool in 1959

MITTAGONG Baths was officially opened in February 1931 as the district's first municipal pool.

It was located in a leafy landscape surrounded by a sports ground, camping area and golf links. This area would develop into an extensive recreation area with the addition of tennis courts, bowling green and gymnasium.

When the NRMA opened a caravan park on adjoining land in 1931, it was the first of its kind in Australia, as there were then very few caravans on the road, but it heralded a new era.

The baths were created in a pool that had been a railway dam fed by the waters of Nattai Creek. The end wall was a concrete dam built by the railways in the 1860s across a natural shelf of rock.

An unusual and decorative rustic front entrance to the baths was completed in 1932. It was designed by Reg Boswell and swimming club members carried out the work, assisted by a number of unemployed relief workers, it being during the Great Depression. Maintained by club members, this facade remained in place largely unaltered until 2003.

During the 1930s a small zoo was created near the baths entrance with pens holding an emu, several kangaroos, a goanna, parrots, and other native animals. Picnic tables and seats for visitors were positioned along paths, with ferns, shrubs and palms interspersed among the gum trees.

It was a theme park on a local scale, and became a magnet for young people, many coming by train to happily walk from Mittagong station to the pool. For locals, young and old, and for families and visitors passing through it was a most enjoyable and pleasant place to visit.

The pool and picnic area was subsequently named Boswell Park, after George Boswell and his son Reg, who were instrumental in the creation of the facility.

During the early 1930s Mittagong Municipal Council drained the dam and concreted the side walls, removing or cutting smaller rock protrusions from the embankments, and built a diving tower with boards. The large protruding rock was cut and trimmed but left as it was.

The bathing pool was then connected to the town water supply in order to maintain a constant water level, and a large pipe was run underneath the pool base to allow the water of Nattai Creek to flow downstream. This method was only partly successful because, when the creek flooded, it overflowed into the pool, which in extreme cases had to be drained so that silt and debris could be removed.

In 1959, Mittagong Shire Council (an amalgamation of Nattai Shire and Mittagong Municipal Councils) expended 21,000 pounds - a large amount of money for the time - on restructuring the bathing facility.

The old dam wall was demolished to make way for a modern Olympic Pool, one of the first in the state to be built in a country area.

Restructuring involved cementing new floors and cutting back and removing the large protruding rock from the pool itself. A new brick structure was built which contained the dressing sheds and replaced old galvanized iron sheds at each end of the pool. The building also incorporated a modern shop to replace the kiosk built in the 1930s. Bill and Phyllis Goodwin took over the lease of both Mittagong Swimming Pool and the nearby Caravan Park in November 1959. Their daughter Leonie (now Knapman) recalls how her father almost died when preparing the new pool for the first Olympic carnival. While leaning over the edge to clean the top part of the empty pool's wall, he fell 12 feet into the deep end. He was in hospital while the carnival took place and managed to pull through.

The carnival of 1959 drew 600 entries from as far away as Broken Hill, Lismore and Canberra. It was a boon for competitive swimmers as there were not many Olympic size pools in NSW available for practice before competitions in Sydney.

The late 1970s brought a concern for council when it was found that the pool's base had sagged a little and cracked, allowing water to escape. A channel was dug beside the pool allowing the creek water to flow past rather than underneath. Once repairs were completed, the top of the channel was covered and landscaped and a carpark replaced the old zoo area.

Mittagong Swimming Pool, in its attractive leafy setting, continues to be enjoyed by locals and visitors during summer.

It's now 140 years since Oaklands schoolboys first swam there when it was a railway dam.

This article compiled by PHILIP MORTON is sourced from the archives of Berrima District Historical & Family History Society, Bowral Rd, Mittagong. Phone 4872 2169.

Email bdhsarchives@gmail.com.

Web: berrimadistricthistorical

society.org.au