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I'm Ian Dungavell, and I'm Director of the Victorian Society. This was my swimming challenge.
There are only fourteen listed Victorian and Edwardian swimming baths in England still open to the public, and I swam a length in each one for every year it's been open. That's 1543 lengths altogether! I should have called it 'The 1543 year swim'...
In total, I covered a distance of over 22 miles. That's more than a Channnel swim! This site tells you where, when and why.
There are only fourteen listed Victorian and Edwardian swimming baths in England still open to the public, and I swam a length in each one for every year it's been open. That's 1543 lengths altogether! I should have called it 'The 1543 year swim'...
In total, I covered a distance of over 22 miles. That's more than a Channnel swim! This site tells you where, when and why.
St Luke's pool, Brighton
Opened 1903
St Luke's Terrace, Brighton, East SussexListed Grade II on 4 January 1995
Tunstall Pool
Opened 1889
Tunstall Pool, Greengates Street, Stoke-on-Trent, StaffordshireListed Grade II on 15 March 1993
Moseley Road Swimming Pool, Birmingham
Baths opened 1907; pool in 1908
Moseley Road, Balsall Health, Birmingham, West MidlandsListed Grade II* on 8 July 1982
Aston University sports centre
Circa 1902
Woodstock Street, Birmingham, West MidlandsFormerly City of Birmingham public baths
Listed Grade II on 8 July 1982
Manningham Baths, Bradford
Opened 25 July 1904
Carlisle Road, Bradford, West YorkshireListed Grade II on 21 June 2007
Queensbury Pool, Bradford
Opened 1891
Victoria Hall, Queensbury Sand Beds, Bradford, West YorksListed Grade II on 7 March 1985
Batley baths
Opened 1893
Cambridge Street, Batley, West Yorkshire.Listed Grade II on 11 February 1993
Beverley Road baths, Hull
Opened 29 May 1905
Beverley Road, Kingston Upon Hull, East Riding of YorkshireListed Grade II on 4 July 1990
Bramley baths, Leeds
Opened 1904
Broad Lane, Bramley, Leeds, West YorkshireListed Grade II on 11 September 1996
Why the 1000 year swim?
What is this all about?
Heritage swimming pools offer people a rare opportunity to immerse themselves in living history. With only 14 out of more than 50 listed Victorian and Edwardian pools still open for public use, we need to work hard to make sure no more of our historic pools go down the drain.
more...
Who?
Who is taking the challenge on?
Dr Ian Dungavell has been Director the Victorian Society for seven years. A keen swimmer, he was heavily involved in the fight to save his local pool, Grade II-listed Kentish Town Baths, which Camden Council recently pledged to refurbish. The pool is closed for restoration work until 2010, otherwise it would have been the fifteenth pool on Ian's list.
more...
When? It's all over!!
Where, when and how long will all this take?
Ian began his challenge, which amounted to a total of 1543 lengths or just over 22 miles, at Bramley Baths in West Yorkshire on Thursday 24 July.Over the following 36 days, he visited all 14 listed Victorian and Edwardian public swimming pools in England and swam a length for every year each pool has been open.
That's the equivalent of swimming across the English Channel! more...
