Bilgoman Aquatic Centre in Darlington closes through the winter months and last week, after some refurbishments, it was open to the public again on Saturday 2nd November. A photo taken in 1968 below shows the new pool with no shelters, tall light poles for evening use, and the Pool Manager’s house on the hill where he lived on site with his family (note the washing on the clothes line).
Before the pool was built the only place for local children to learn to swim was John Forrest National Park pool where the water was a bit muddy, shared with the resident white swans, and at the shallow end of the pool the soft mud squelched up through your toes as you walked in.
Many visitors came by train for day trips but for local children, without motor transport, it was a long trek home up the hill after cooling off on a hot day.
Bilgoman Pool 1968
John Forrest National Park 1947
John Forrest National Park 1940s
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