Manuka Pool celebrates 90 years since official opening

It was Jo's idea to gather the kids and head to Manuka Pool for a swim. Little did they know that it was 90 years to the day since it was officially opened.

"I love the art deco architecture," she said.

While it was a normal, socially-distanced day at the pool on Tuesday, the 90^th birthday won't pass without a number of celebrations and activities.

A day of family-friendly entertainment will be held at the pool on Sunday, February 7 with a jumping castle, face painting and sausage sizzle lunch.

The Friends of Manuka Pool will also host two talks and showcase memorabilia and photographs from the pool's history.

President Rebecca Scouller said she discovered her passion for swimming and connected with the Manuka Pool community when she moved to Canberra.

"For me it's my favourite place in Canberra," she said.

The original design for the pool was an ambitious proposal including a 200 feet by 60 feet pool (61 metres by 18.5 metres), a heating system, hot showers and sunbathing area. But the 20,000-pound project was deemed too extravagant for the Great Depression era.

A more modest design featuring a smaller pool without heating or a roof to the cost of 10,000 pounds was approved.

One of the quirks of the pool is its non-standard size, 100 feet long by 40 feet wide (30.5 metres by 12.2 metres).

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The pool was first used on Christmas Day in 1930. Wet weather delayed the construction of the women's dressing room so a roster of single-sex bathing was in place for the first weeks of the inaugural season.

An official opening was held on January 26, 1931 and The Swimming Pool, as it was known before the Civic Pool was built, became an instant success. Carnivals were held each weekend which were called live on the radio and attended by hundreds of spectators.

In the mid-1960s the children's wading pool was built featuring Sammy the unicorn as its centrepiece.

In 2019, the ACT government invested $2.4 million in a major renovation which involved completely retiling the pool with tiles imported from the Czech Republic.

In preparation for the exhibition of memorabilia, the Friends of Manuka Pool are calling for people to share their personal photographs and objects. The group is also selling gold swimming caps as fundraiser and is planning to install a plaque to pay tribute to pool stalwart, Merv Knowles.

Talks by historian Frances McGee and David Hobbs from Philip Leeson Architects will be held at Manuka Oval in late March.

In the meantime, Manuka Pool is open daily but online bookings are essential.

"I'd encourage everyone to come and visit whether it's just to swim with your family, relax on the lawns or swim some odd-lengthed laps," Ms Scouller said.