Gladstone Park Swimming Pool. An open air oasis in Dollis Hill-1903
Gladstone Park Swimming Pool portrayed in art. From private postcard collection agj
Gladstone Park Swimming Pool
Gladstone Park Swimming Pool was set in a very pleasant family picnic park, and I believed originally its site was the bowling green nestling inside Gladstone Park. Opened by Lord Aberdeen the 18th July in 1903.
I was kindly informed via this site that the bowling green was at the top of the hill and the pool at the lower end.
Gladstone Park – Thanks to Brent Library allowing and helping my research 1994. Enlarge
Admission to boys and men was free on Monday, Thursday, Saturday
and Sunday and 3d on Tuesday and Friday. Wednesday was […]
Read more…Horsham Open Air Swimming Pool – Another pool in the Park
…Ladies Day with a charge of 3d in the morning and free during the afternoon.
A Chalet provided refreshments, but this was outside the perimeter of the pool. Changing cubicles overlooked the pool and were situated either side of the ticket office – males to the right and females to the left. Thanks to Brent Library helping and allowing my research 1994 + 1950s. Enlarge +
A haven for families and young children, it was a delightful kidney shaped pool, rendered and painted in light blue. Pictures 50s and 30s. It had a straight 25 metre length making it competition viable.
In terms of diving, because of the sloping sides, the pool had just two 1 Metre springboards, and a low firmboard. The depth varied from 2′ 6ins to 5′ 6 ins. The pool held 500,000 gallons of water which turned over every 8 hours
From the map, zoomed in you can just about see an outline of the pool
OUTCOME: Between 65-70 years old. The Lido was demolished to make way for new facilities which didn’t after all, happen on this site. The site is now a tranquil picnic area providing an alternative healthy outdoor living, and if you look carefully you can JUST make out the outline of the pool.
Modern day picture of fun in the pool. Thanks to Brent Library helping and allowing my research into the 1940s – 50s
Gladstone Park swimming Pool Site Geo reference 1937-61 – image. Will expand to full view.
What a shame it’s no longer there. Can anyone offer more info?
Many more pools in the Parks
I lived in Neasden in the 70s and early 80’s. My mum, dad, sister, Uncle, cousins, and myself would all come here to swim in the summertime. I remember it being packed! It was such a lovely place where i have found memories. I remember the old school turn styles where you would enter, i think they were gree, and there would always be an ice cream van in the car park. In the late 80’s it shut and was derelict. All the local kids would play in the empty pool, and we would take our skateboards down there as the empty pool made for a perfect surface. They knocked it down for no reason which is a big shame. Same with Gladstone house. Brent council should be ashamed.
Hello Charmian, What a lovely memory. Thank you.
Anne
As a child, I used to swim in the pool in the late 70s and early 80s. I actually learnt to swim there with my lovely, patient mum. I remember the sounds of happiness and contentment of kids playing in the pool; floating on my back with the warm sun shining on me; jumping into the pool with friends; the turnstile; the metal cages where you stored your clothes in the hut on the right of the turnstile. The sloped sides in the shallow end made it feel safer for unconfident swimmers and I reckon that’s a big factor of my learning to swim as I had a fear of the water before going there. It was a place where you could stay all day and the kiosk was situated outside of the pool, in the park. I remember paying 25p to stay all day. A wonderful place!
I was born in 1939 and spent many summers at the pool during the 50’s.
I can still recall the scent being given off by the privet hedge at the entrance as we queued at the revolving entrance stile.
The sloping sides had looped chains below the water to help us clamber out.
It was glorious and having moved away in 1959 I returned recently to find it just a memory.
Such is life!
I remember many fun days at the swimming pool. I also grew up on Kendal Road and went to Gladstone Park primary school in the early 50s.
I remember the temporary housing across from us on Kendal Road (in the park). Does anyone know where I can find photos from the early 50s of these houses, the pool and the primary school?
I grew up living opposite Gladstone Park -Kendal Road side 1950’s and 60’s. Spent many hours at the pool. I walked there over the iron bridge and up the hill. Needed a swim by the time we got there. I attended Gladstone Park Primary school 1954-1961 and we were taken to the pool for our swimming lessons. Wonderful memories.
I used to atten Wykeham Sec Modern School. Left in 1966. Spent many, many hours at this lovely lido forest king homework!! Such happy happy memories there. I lived prior to this in Brook Road nearby. I was so sad when many years later I excitedly took my son (I lived in Devon by this time) to see my childhood happy place had been turned into a car park!. I cried when I saw this. I had my Wedding reception at the Dollis Hill House. A beautiful setting – and now that has gone as well. I still long to return to this park and hope to by October and to walk those well trod paths with my husband of 52 years.
I went to Wycombe Sec Mod in Neasden and we would walk to Gladstone Park for our swimming sessions. I recall the kidney-shaped pool, where I first learnt to swim (well, doggy paddle) and the swimming lanes at the other end, where we would have our school’s annual swimming games.
This was 1965-69. It was a beautiful park and many a school pupil teenage crush was developed at the swimming pool. It was also healthier to swim out in the open and pools seemed to be more accessible to elderly and disabled users back in the day. Shame they’ve mainly all been closed and given way to indoor leisure centre complexes.
Thank you John for this lovely memory. Anne
I well remember Gladstone Park especially in the 40’s and 50’s as I went to Mora Road Infant and Primary School and visited the swimming baths regularly.I entered from the bottom of Olive Road opposite the Library and walked up past the old Nissan huts on the left where the large Fairbrother family lived and up over the railway bridge with the allotments on the right then along the path past the old round Ack Ack
gun base on the left past the children’s playground then past the old grandstand on the right where I remember we watched Midsummers Night Dream one night. Then on to the swimming baths I think we paid 4p to enter. One day at the end of the war a group of us watched a train go past slowly filled with American troops handing out sweets to the kids. I still have an old photo taken at school with our teacher Miss Gibbs handing out some of these sweets to our class of kids including Leon Brittan who went on to become the Home Secretary. Yes many happy memories . John Chipchase age 81 years 24th June 2021.
I was born nearby in 1957.My earliest recollections are going to the park and the swimming pool as a 3 or 4 year old with my Dear Dad who passed away in 2018.I remember the song “A Scottish Soldier” by Andy Stewart and “Wooden Heart” by Elvis playing on someone’s radio by the pool on a hot Summers day in 1960/61.Treasured memories of happy times. RIP Dad x
Oh my goodness! Thank you for sharing this. Anne
Many thanks for this item. I was a supervisor at this lido during the early 1970’s. I often used to sleep in the first aid room overnight, as my shifts, and the long journey home, made it more convenient for me. One night, my German Shepherd dog, who was normally quite placid, woke up growling. I thought there might be intruders, so I got up to investigate. What I saw was an apparition. It was a young female walking along the top tier, past the cubicle. It just disappeared. The locals told me that a few years easier, a young girl was assaulted then murdered there. Apart from that, I have very fond memories of working there.
Thank you Annig for bringing this to my attention. I have to say that my former website included a picture I had taken during a visit to the park, of the actual picnic tables where indeed I thought was the site of the pool. The area seemed to be carved out in the shape of the pool amongst the parkland, but somewhere I read that the bowling green was the site of the pool so this was the latest entry of mine.
It seems, with your description, I could have been correct in the first place! perhaps others will want to have an input. I’ll re edit at some point. Lovely to hear from you. Good you enjoyed the lido. My husband swam there too in his youth.
As I recall the lido was at the bottom of the hill near the small car park. The bowling green is at the top of the hill and always has been there as far as I can remember. I often went swimming in the lido and still live in the area, nothing has been built where the lido was, there are some picnic tables. It was a lovely place though, well used and I have lovely memories of going there.