As the games kick off in Paris, Stonehaven has an Olympic prize of its own – the Open Air Pool, currently celebrating its 90th anniversary.
As the UK’s only Olympic-sized, heated, open-air, seawater pool it has attracted its share of Olympians down the years, including swimmer Hannah Miley, of Inverurie, who opened the it this season.
As the beloved pool celebrates its 90th year, we’ve taken a trip down memory lane to shine a spotlight on its history, and the people who have kept it afloat.
Read on to find out:
- How the Stonehaven Open Air Pool came to be
- How it wasn’t originally heated
- How it was saved from the council chopping block
- And the stories of the people who use it today…
Stonehaven Open Air Pool in the 30s
It all started in the 1930s, when town councillors visited pools in Prestwick and Troon and, not wishing to be outdone, insisted Stonehaven’s pool be 165 feet long.
This was one foot over the required 164ft for an Olympic pool and would allow for competitions to take place.
Early proposals had included using iron as the construction material and filling and emptying the pool every few days with sea water, but this sparked concerns that it would be unhygienic.
One critic described it as “a menace to health” while others suggested having a tidal pool.
Ballot for Stonehaven Open Air Pool, and the arrival of heating
Eventually it was settled that the pool would be constructed in concrete. It would also have a circulation and filtration system.
In 1933, householders voted on the “Construction of Swimming Pool and Yachting and Paddling Pond”.
The vote passed by 656 votes to 539 and the pool was completed the following year, for the grand total of £9,529.
Designed by Gregory and Gall Architects and built by Wm Tawse Ltd, it was opened by Charles Malcolm Barclay-Harvey MP, later governor of South Australia.
More than 2,300 people queued for hours, setting the scene for what would become one of the pool’s early hiccups – more spectators than swimmers.
After the first season attracted 20,000 swimmers and 60,000 spectators, a heating system was installed.
That did the trick and on one day in 1935, some 3,000 people turned up for a dip.
During the war, it was thought the pool would keep people’s spirits up and the Gas Board allowed it to be heated five hours a day.
The pool’s fortunes ebbed and flowed in coming decades
High points included displays by a team of trick divers called the Javelins in the 1950s and international water polo matches.
Other events were the Miss Stonehaven pageant; Mr Muscles; Glamorous Gran and Bonnie Baby.
In 1958 a flood caused much damage and throughout the 1960s and 1970s several major repairs and changes were made.
Then the package holiday came along to places like Spain and the pool nudged towards an era of decline.
“It’s my happy place … even in the rain!” Pool fan Shona Burrows
Friends group started up to save the pool from closure
In the 1980s and 1990s the season was cut to eight weeks and in 1994 the council threatened to pull the cover over for the last time.
A Save the Pool campaign group proved successful and in 1995 the Friends of Stonehaven Open Air Pool was formed to protect it indefinitely.
Stephen Harris became chair of the Friends three years ago after some gentle persuasion from his wife.
He said: “The pool is my wife’s favourite place on the planet.
“While we’ve got people prepared to do all kinds of good things for the pool, the Friends couldn’t find anybody to chair them when the last person stood down.
“My arm was twisted and I’ve enjoyed doing it.”
How many Friends are there?
“It’s a bit like an onion,” said Stephen. “There’s a committee of six. Then about 50 Friends who paint and fundraise, that kind of stuff.
“Another 200 get the newsletter. Our Facebook page has 32,000 followers. It’s a broad support base. Across the UK people love it and are fascinated by it.”
“The pool is owned by the council and they do ‘the big stuff’.
“Over the past three years they’ve invested half a million pounds in the pool.
“It’s future-proofed for another 10 or 15 years. So we’ll definitely have a 100th birthday.
“We’re lucky to have a local authority that wants to keep the pool going and has invested in it.
“There’s a mutual willingness to make this thing sustainable and make it work.
“The biggest thing we’ve done recently was the slide. The council couldn’t afford or couldn’t justify £50,000 for a new chute. So the Friends paid for that.
Friends of the Pool have to fundraise
“We receive no funding from official sources so have to raise it ourselves,” said Stephen.
“We put a fair amount into trying to make it feel like a day out at the seaside.
“Generations of people have swum in the pool so there’s an emotional bond with it for many people. It’s part of our heritage.
“Last month we had a visit from Historic Pools of Britain which campaigns on behalf of historic baths or lidos.
“They were hugely impressed. It was great to see people who appreciate the history and what’s behind it go away thinking Stonehaven was wonderful.”
What sets it apart from other heritage pools?
Stephen said: “There are a number roughly the same age but I think what makes it so special is it’s part of the fabric of the town.
“The fact it’s so far in the north compared to other lidos gives it a sort of cult status.
“The Friends are so active and the pool looks very faithful to how a holiday Lido should look. Simple things like the colours of paint give it a great feel.
“The other thing that makes it unique is salt water. It’s one of its major attractions.”
How does water get to the pool?
Stephen said: “If you’re outside the cafe looking at the pool, to the right there’s a pump room.
“A pipe goes out from there out to sea. Water gets pumped in and there’s a filter which catches all sorts of interesting things.
“Then it goes under the terracing to the other end to the filtration and heating systems.
From the North Sea and into the pool
“And that’s how pure water ends up going into the into the pool, straight from the North Sea.
“They were topping it up a few weeks back and my wife was standing by one of the inlets and said: ‘My goodness is it cold when it first comes in!’.
“It starts at North Sea temperature then gets warmed up by the boilers.
“The momentum behind the pool at the moment is tremendous. In the past two years the numbers of people using it have been fantastic.
“There’s a desire to do more with it rather than less. Lengthen the season, look at cold water swimming seasons, things like that.
“We did a little survey last year and we’ve got a consultancy looking at the economic impact of the contribution the pool makes to the area.
“It’s a big part of Stonehaven summer. Last year we did 100 interviews with people visiting the pool and more than half had driven more than 20 miles to get there.
“It draws people into the town. On the last day last September it was blazing hot. Nearly all the people there were visitors.
“The place was packed and we were turning out the lights at 5 o’clock! So that’s one reason why we’re trying to keep it open more.”
Student Paul Thomson has fond memories of the pool.
He is now studying Politics and History at Aberdeen University but grew up in Stonehaven and went to Dunnottar Primary.
He said: “There was one day a year when the whole school went to the pool and we had it all to ourselves.
“It was one of my favourite days,” he said and recalls “getting sweets and chips and ice cream from the café”.
During the season, Paul would also visit the pool with his dad or his friends.
“It was an essential part of the summer routine,” he said.
“The shark slide was really fun. The ladies in the café, we knew them very well and they were really lovely.
“Then there was the ‘swoopee’, the big inflatable thing that goes across the pool, I think everybody called it that.”
Did you have to be daring to go on the shark slide?
Paul said: “When you were younger, it seemed quite scary. Looking back it wasn’t really scary. It was quite high up and it was a big slide.
“At the shallow end, half of you is in the water and the other half is out so the top half is absolutely freezing. On a cold day anyway.”
What does he think it does for the town?
“It’s very good because it brings in a lot of tourists. If you talk to someone who is not from Stonehaven they usually know about the pool.
“It’s an institution. I feel like I remember my granny saying she came to the pool when she was a child.
“I mostly remember it being warm. On cold days when you went in you could see the steam coming off the water.
“We used to dunk under the water to get warm and try to swim to the bottom of the deep end, which is a lot harder when you’re small.”
Stonehaven people share their memories of the pool
Several people shared their memories on the Stonehaven Chat page.
Jennifer Reid said: “My childhood summer playground. We all had junior season tickets and spent all day, every day, in all weathers at the pool.
“There were competitions such as Mini Miss, Junior Miss and Miss Stonehaven along with Mr Muscles and Knobbly Knees.
“We used to go down the old slide in twos, fours and ‘traineys’, everyone jam packed up the chute stairs.
“Learned to swim with Dunnottar primary sessions at the shallow end and recall the plumes of talc in the changing rooms afterwards!
“My cousin did the baskets for clothes in the 70s long before lockers were introduced.
“In 1983-84 I worked the pool cafe and served ice-cream to the Dons players who came to pose.
“Loved the midnight swims with my sisters and friends, and at season end, everyone got chucked in or jumped in the pool, clothes and all.
“My mum wasn’t happy that my shoes shrunk one year after squelching home!
“So many happy memories, we are so lucky to have this fab facility.
“I still love the pool and especially the aqua zumba sessions with the brilliant Shona Burrows, and I just went down the shark slide again last week being a kid again!
“It’s such a special place and in my heart.”
More memories of the Open Air Pool…
Michelle Black
“My dad took my mum on a date to a midnight swim back in the 1950s. He scooped her up and jumped in with her in his arms. Dad had never asked her if she could swim. She couldn’t. I very nearly never existed.
“My partner’s mum won the Bonnie Baby Contest back in the 1930s. They had loads of competitions for various things then every week right up into the 1970s.”
Patricia Lamont
“My mum back in the day taught me how to swim there as we holidayed there often. She told me to stay in the shallow end, but I followed her in to the deep end, she wasn’t pleased, but I’m still here to tell the story…
“Also got very badly sunburnt one time jumping in and out of the water for coins. My favourite place.”
Brian Thomas Calder Duncan
“I spent my summer afternoons at the pool throughout the fifties. As a student in the late sixties I worked as an attendant (except for 67, when I did something more lucrative).
“I still visit the pool sometimes when I’m in Stoney, for old times’ sake. I miss the benches, though they were a chore to set up and dismantle.”
To find out more about the pool or to become a Friend visit Facebook page Stonehaven Heated Open Air Pool.
Conversation