Glossop Road Swimming Baths

[Jimbobnakap]

Hi Choirgirl, I also went to St Stephens school from about 1958 - 1964 and well remember the trips to Glossop Road baths where I learnt to swim - we walked along Fawcett Street, up St Phillips Road onto Gell Street and across to Glossop Road. I remember a very stern lady used to walk along the side of the pool with a long pole in front of you - just out of reach. I too remember standing on the top board but never daring to jump let alone dive. (Never did learn to dive in). Butler's Cafe penny dips (dripping crusts) were the highlight after swimming. I thought about it only the other day when I passed Butler's Balti House and wondered if it's the same family who runs it. I remember playing with the girl who lived at the cafe - they had chickens in the back yard (fascinating). I only remember a few names from St Stephens - headmaster Mr Cotton (scary), teacher Mr Hessey (lovely bloke), George Baldwin (lived on Summer Street), John Taylor, Barry Hartley (my first boyfriend), Susan Robinson (my best friend), John Hacket (my second boyfriend, lived on Edward Street Flats and sent me my first Christmas card from a boy), Steven Woodward (came from a large family as I recall). My name was Jean Cottam and I lived on Mushroom Lane . Some of my happiest days were spent playing round Weston Park Museum, the Ponderosa which we called the tip and the boating lake in Crookes Valley Park. Also remember playing with a lad whose dad ran the Boomerang pub on Fawcett Street. Happy days

 

Steven Woodward was my unlce who sadly passed away aged 44

[COTTY]

Steven Woodward was my unlce who sadly passed away aged 44

 

OMG How tragic to lose him so young. He was a lovely lad and I bet he was a lovely bloke. I hope you have some happy memories of him. xx

[netta]

OMG the death toll rises! i went to Hunters bar junior school 1954-1960 during that time my class walked down from hunters bar to glossop road once a week for swimming lessons I seem to recall that one of the pupils collapsed and died one week as we walked round to the changing rooms

[fatrajah]

Part 1 of 6.

I was rather puzzled by the differences of opinion in this thread about Glossop Road Baths & so I have belatedly done a bit of investigation to clarify matters & unearth a few (hopefully) interesting facts about the baths' history. Part 2 to follow.

 

---------- Post added 31-10-2014 at 15:59 ----------

 

Part 2 of 6.

Firstly, I paid a visit to the Local Studies Library to have a look at the plan of the baths dating from 1895 when the baths were up for sale. The plan shows a building which was rather different from the one we all remember. About half the plot was taken up by "Baths Buildings" which were shops & flats fronting onto Glossop Road. Where the later ladies pool, reconstructed 1898, was, there was a 40 feet by 30 feet pool dating, probably, from when the original baths were built in 1836. This pool was described as miserable & dungeon-like in the local press at the time the baths were purchased by Sheffield Corporation. Part 3 to follow.

 

---------- Post added 31-10-2014 at 16:07 ----------

 

Part 3 of 6

The mens pool, opened 1878 to replace one of the 1836 pools, was shown as being 26 yards by 10 yards with a semi-circular deep end. This was certainly not the case in the late 1950s when I was a regular swimmer there. The semi-circular part must have been filled in at some point giving a pool length of 21 yards at most. This agrees with my recollections of the pool's size. This work was probably carried out in conjunction with the construction of the first-class pool. Strangely enough, the mens pool hall was used to stage plays with the audience being seated in the empty pool & the performance taking place on the boarded-over semi-circular part.

Part 4 to follow.

 

---------- Post added 31-10-2014 at 16:14 ----------

 

Part 4 of 6

Secondly, I trawled through the local newspapers of the time. I found that the first-class pool was opened in July 1910 & was built on the site of Baths Buildings. The only dimension given was that the new pool was 100 feet long. However, there was an incident in 1911 when an unfortunate swimmer was pinned to the bottom of the deep end in 7 feet of water by a water polo net that had slipped. This agrees with my recollection of the depth of the deep end. Interestingly, the opening of the new pool coincided with the introduction of mixed bathing for the first time in Sheffield though it seems that only married couples were admitted.

 

---------- Post added 31-10-2014 at 16:21 ----------

 

Part 5 of 6

In general, pools built in the late 1800s to early 1900s lacked both filtration & chlorination plants. The pools were drained, cleaned & refilled weekly. This resulted in "clean water days" & "dirty water days" the latter being a couple of pence cheaper. It was also a feature of pools of that time that the deep ends were relatively shallow, typically 6 or 7 feet. This did not deter the pool designers from specifying potentially dangerously high diving platforms.

 

---------- Post added 31-10-2014 at 16:26 ----------

 

part 6 of 6

Finally, in an attempt to show that potentially dangerously high diving platforms were a common feature, I have found a couple of photos on the picturesheffield website; photos t00413 & t06985 illustrate this quite well.

 

I did try to submit these replies all in one go but the website wouldn't let me. I don't know why those smilies are there; the dates are 1898 & 1878 respectively.

Edited November 6, 2014 by fatrajah

[pjkay]

No. You've got the right pool. I went from about '53 to '59 with Pomona street school and later with Greystones. We got the bath cards and used them during the school holidays. All the cubicles had doors on them and the horrible coconut matting. Did my first dive off the top of the steps. Looked really high but I suppose it was only about five feet from the pool side. The mixed bathing pool was where they had the dances on Saturday afternoons run by Walter Collinson. I used to go to his dance school on Havelock Square and he used to have his medal presentations at Glossop road. I used to lead off with him when he was doing a dance his wife didn't like.

But back to the swimming. We never bothered with the vending machines but we used to go to the cafe on Convent Walk (opposite the entrance to the boy's baths) for a doorstep dripping crust. It cost a penny (lovely). Does no-one remember the cafe?

See you went to collinsons to dance..did you remember a girl called Shirley Chilton..She used to teach there??

[Plain Talker]

fatrajah:-

the reason that the "smiley" appeared is that the letter 8, plus a bracket , so:- ) gives a smiley of , it's something to do with the coding that gives us a "winking" smiley, if we type a ; plus a ) - or a smile if we type : plus a ) so:-

[fatrajah]

fatrajah:-

the reason that the "smiley" appeared is that the letter 8, plus a bracket , so:- ) gives a smiley of , it's something to do with the coding that gives us a "winking" smiley, if we type a ; plus a ) - or a smile if we type : plus a ) so:-

 

Thanks for the info, Plain Talker. The smilies didn't show up as I typed the post in, but appeared when I pressed "save".

[pdmiltonst]

I lived in Milton Street, also went to Springfield and learned to swim here in the late 50's. The baths were amazing. My abiding memory is being in the school (or may have been St Silas Scouts) swimming competition and being beaten into 2nd place in the diving competition by David Belt. Great memories.

[JOHN HABS]

I lived in Milton Street, also went to Springfield and learned to swim here in the late 50's. The baths were amazing. My abiding memory is being in the school (or may have been St Silas Scouts) swimming competition and being beaten into 2nd place in the diving competition by David Belt. Great memories.

 

Hello, I also went to Springfield School ( and then on to Tapton ) you must have been at Springfield the same has myself. The Headmaster and Head Mistress was Mr. Mrs Holdsworth

Due to it being that long ago, I've forgotten the names of the teachers - apart from a Miss Hall.

 

Don't know if you remember but at Springfield every year, they use to award a free swimming pool pass to any pool in Sheffield for the best boy and girl swimmer of that year in the school - I was fortunate to win one of those passes along with a girl called Sandra South who lived on Broomspring Lane - I lived in Victoria Street.

 

One of my mates was David Belt and I swam in the gala for my house ( Red badge - Cavendish ) before the diving event commenced. David Belt went off the top board of the mixed bathing pool.

 

JOHN HABS

[IRONMONGER]

I was at Lydgate School and Mr. Farley used to take us to Glossop Road every Wednesday afternoon (circa 1957). I loved swimming but when it came to diving I was scared and used to feign sickness every Wednesday to avoid school. At a School open day Mr. Farley asked my mum why I didn't go swimming any more? Mum told him that I was frightened to dive in. Mr. Farley said of course he doesn't have to dive in at all. So I went back swimming and within weeks was diving in anyway - ah, that's kids for you.

I also hated School sports days, held at Darwin Lane, cos I couldn't bloody run but one year the Lord Mayor came and presented me with a certificate for swimming 880 yards, and I was chuffed to bits.

We also joined Sheffield Family Swiming Club which met at Glossop Road one evening a week.