anyone remember the swimming pool in Endclife Park

well you've suprised me there mate i used the park regular when visiting my cousins in the early to mid 70's and don't remember it.

The pool disappeared, a long time ago.

You can see roughly where it was, at the far end of the flat (ish) field (which is currently looking a real mess, due to the digging works.)

it was sited near the statue of Queen Victoria, by the wooded area.

It had definitely gone by the late sixties, or early seventies, when I used to play in the park, as a child.

PT

You'd need to be getting on a bit, it was closed in 1938! It was originally the dam for the Endcliffe Wheel, and was filled in and the area landscaped.

I lived near Endcliffe Park from 1949 to 1980 [with a few absences]. I remember that part of Endcliffe Park , near Victoria's statue. The entrance to the park was roughly where the centre of the traffic island is now. When we were about 8 to 11 years old [1949-1953 ] , the old swimming pool fencing was still there , just as someone said -----on the right where you go in the present day entrance. All the fencing was rotten and falling apart by 1950 and we used to play chasing and Hide and Seek round the perimeter.
However , I do remember , vaguely , being told it was a bit dangerous and I THINK there was still some water there in the bottom--------but it's a long time ago , so could be mistaken.

The pool was closed about 1936. 1937 a very hot evening as kids 10 or 11yrs old we got over the wood fence for a swim,it was very dirty,even a dead cat floating on the top.The park keeper chase us off. Would like to know the date it opened,was it for Males only.

Originally posted by kenjenkinson
The pool was closed about 1936. 1937 a very hot evening as kids 10 or 11yrs old we got over the wood fence for a swim,it was very dirty,even a dead cat floating on the top.The park keeper chase us off. Would like to know the date it opened,was it for Males only. Can't help on the date, but it was definitely men only!

With a dead cat floating in it, you were welcome to it!

But I am fascinated in this thread. More please!

Originally posted by kenjenkinson
The pool was closed about 1936. 1937 a very hot evening as kids 10 or 11yrs old we got over the wood fence for a swim,it was very dirty,even a dead cat floating on the top.The park keeper chase us off. Would like to know the date it opened,was it for Males only. Hi Ken, still no firm date but apparently ithe mill finished working in the 1880's, and the dam appears marked as a swimming pool on the1903 OS map. Hope that narrows it down a bit:thumbsup:

Originally posted by kenjenkinson
The pool was closed about 1936. 1937 a very hot evening as kids 10 or 11yrs old we got over the wood fence for a swim,it was very dirty,even a dead cat floating on the top.The park keeper chase us off. Would like to know the date it opened,was it for Males only. Hi Ken, still no firm date but apparently ithe mill finished working in the 1880's, and the dam appears marked as a swimming pool on the1903 OS map. Hope that narrows it down a bit. Incidentally there are a couple of photos of the pool on Picture Sheffield, search under 'swimming'.:thumbsup:

Originally posted by algy
Hi Ken, still no firm date but apparently ithe mill finished working in the 1880's, and the dam appears marked as a swimming pool on the1903 OS map. Hope that narrows it down a
bit:thumbsup:

Hi Algy
It sure does. Thanks

Originally posted by Ousetunes
With a dead cat floating in it, you were welcome to it!

But I am fascinated in this thread. More please!


Hi
What esle was in the pool ? we will never know,
it was free.

Originally posted by kenjenkinson
Hi
What esle was in the pool ? we will never know,
it was free. ken please check your pm box click pm inbox on left near top you not read message yet sent you couple of weeks back

Hi Ken, a bit more information for you, from a letter to the Local Studies Library from someone who remembered it in the 30's. "The pool was quite shallow, there was no part in which one could not stand up: on one side, boarded up to shut out the view of the exclusively male bathers from passers-by, the water was no more than inches deep. That fact not being apparent to a newcomer on a day when the pool was crowded and the water murky, he dived in and split open his skull on the granite setts which floored the pool in that area. ... The water ws clean enough. It was safe to dive after undressing in a kind of log cabin built at the foot of a steep slope mostly planted with oaks: one could swim to the opposite side which had instead of boards a thick screen of hugely-flowering rhododendrons. There is one death recorded at Endcliffe (possibly the diver mentioned above?) There were no fish in the pool except minnows and sticklebacks.
At Forge Dam there was a changing hut, but only an occasional swimmer: now all gone."

Originally posted by algy
Hi Ken, a bit more information for you, from a letter to the Local Studies Library from someone who remembered it in the 30's. "The pool was quite shallow, there was no part in which one could not stand up: on one side, boarded up to shut out the view of the exclusively male bathers from passers-by, the water was no more than inches deep. That fact not being apparent to a newcomer on a day when the pool was crowded and the water murky, he dived in and split open his skull on the granite setts which floored the pool in that area. ... The water ws clean enough. It was safe to dive after undressing in a kind of log cabin built at the foot of a steep slope mostly planted with oaks: one could swim to the opposite side which had instead of boards a thick screen of hugely-flowering rhododendrons. There is one death recorded at Endcliffe (possibly the diver mentioned above?) There were no fish in the pool except minnows and sticklebacks.
At Forge Dam there was a changing hut, but only an occasional swimmer: now all gone."

Hi Algy,
Thanks for the information. I remenber a kind of a log cabin with open front,also the minnows and sticklebacks.
( " now all gone " ) and the memories are slowly fading,all very interesting.
Cheers Ken.

Expanding the topic a bit , has anyone got any more information on what was in Endcliffe Park in the , "old days "?
I can easily remember the pond just beyond the cafe as you walk towards the Riverdale Road exit. It had a wooden boat house , boats could be hired and you had to be pretty sharpish to obey the , "Come in number X " , shout or you were in trouble. That was closed down , due to vandalism [ sounds familiar ! ]. There were swans and ducks on the pond and I hope there still are ?
I also remember the old woman with the weighing scales who used to turn up with her old-fashioned , shiny , brass weighing -scales , on Sundays , outside the cafe . Whatever she charged , you got your money back if she couldn't guess your weight within 2 lbs. , either way , before you got on.
However , my father , who was born on Ecclesall Road , in 1899 , used to tell me stories of his childhood round Endcliffe Park and area but unfortunately , I only remember a few and nothing to do with the park.
For example , when was it first opened ? How did it get its name and when did the adjoining Tennis Club put in its appearance. I can't check it in the library as I'm a long way from Sheffield !

Hi Fareast, it was originally called Endcliffe Woods, and it opened in 1885. William Goldring, a leading figure in landscaping was commissioned to adapt the woods for public use in that year. He laid out the paths, added the stepping stones, turned the outfall from the dams into cascades. A bandstand was added, and the lowest dam became a swimming pool for men and boys, the next one became a boating lake, and the top dam became an ornamemtal lake with swans etc. several Sheffield parks had bandstands, and a programme of evening concerts was a regular feature. It was demolished after a decision by the Council in 1958 to remove the bandstands from several parks.The swimming pool and the boats are gone, but the remaining two dams are still there, complete with ducks , geese etc, but no swans at the moment.The name Endcliffe is the name of the area. Cliffe means a steep slope, and the slopes around that area are the last in the series of similarly sloping ground along the valley. After Endcliffe the valley opens out with less sloping ground, so maybe that's how it got the name. It appears on the 1st edition OS map in the early 19th century as Endcliffe Wood, and part of it has been identified as one of the few remaining 'ancient woodlands' in South Yorkshire. There's a local group called Friends of the Porter Valley, which has a lot of their newsletters online, and Endcliffe Park is part of their 'territory', so you might like to check it out. www.portervalley.fsnet.co.uk/

I found some photos of the swimming pool in Endcliffe Park :)

Looks nice...

http://www.picturesheffield.com/cgi-bin/picturesheffield.pl?_cgifunction=form&_layout=picturesheffield&keyval=sheff.refno=s10351

if a bit cold...

http://www.picturesheffield.com/cgi-bin/picturesheffield.pl?_cgifunction=form&_layout=picturesheffield&keyval=sheff.refno=y01343

in fact very cold :D ...

http://www.picturesheffield.com/cgi-bin/picturesheffield.pl?_cgifunction=form&_layout=picturesheffield&keyval=sheff.refno=y01390

Fareast, - imsgine your father will have spent some time here :)

Thanks for making the photographs available , Greybeard -------really very interesting .
As I may have mentioned , my Dad didn't mention much about swimming in Endcliffe Park , or at least , I can't remember if he did . However , I do remember the odd story from that far-off era .
There was a building , a place of worship which stood near where the Porter Brook runs underneath Hickmott Road. It was built entirely of metal and the locals called it ' Daddy Hodgkins ' Tin Chapel '. I believe there's a brick -built church stands on the site now .
If the local kids took a dislike to someone , they would collect a pile of horse manure from the street , parcel it up and post it to the victim .
{ Moving to the 1920's ? } My grandfather was a very regular boozer and after he'd retired spent most lunchtimes in the Lescar . About 3 p.m . he'd order some sort of horse and dray to take him home [ taxi , friend ? ] and stagger to bed for a kip .
Horses obviously played an important role in life in those days !

that tin-church was (and is still) called the Wycliffe Independent Church. This area is an area I grew up in, and used to hang about in, so I know the building well.

It's only in the last fifteen years or so, that it was rebuilt as the solid brick-built building you see now.

PT

Thank you Plain Talker for the info. re----the Chapel .
I must walk round with my eyes [ or brain ?] shut , as I 'd never noticed when the change took place from a 'Tin" Chapel to a brick one . I just assumed it'd happened way back .
I ,too , spent most of my life round that area , until 1980 , and although I have visited it since , I missed the rebuilding . Also , it's one of those buildings that seem , " tucked away " and one wouldn't notice it much , except for a special reason.
All in all , I think the area from Greystones to Town , bounded by Glossop Road and Abbeydale Rd , must be one of the nicest and most interesting in the country !

Me and my pals used Endcliffe Park a lot and all I can remember was the boating lake in the 40s. Did a Flying Fortress come down in the woods during the war? I've always thought so but never found out for certain.

yes, floridablade,

a plane certainly did come down, during the war, into the wooded area at the endcliffe side of the park, not 100% sure if the model of plane was a flying fortress, or not...
if you do a search on here for posts about the "Mi Amigo, " you'll find a really long thread about it.

(In fact it's not long since been the anniversary of the crash)

PT

Thanks P.T. I'll do that,My Friend,excuse the pun.

I also used to hang around Endcliffe Park - mainly late sixties & early seventies. Loads of mates in and around the area. Wonder if I knew any of you!!!

Cheers