Swimming in Arlington
The young girls above are enjoying a rarity in Arlington County: swimming in an outdoor pool.
Although there are private swim clubs all over Northern Virginia, Arlington has only one outdoor public pool, at Upton Hill, which is part of the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority, not the county.
Young people in Arlington were still able to learn to swim. The county was unique in that by 1968, there were indoor pools and instruction at every public senior and junior high school. However, swimming outside during the summer could be more difficult. The Department of Parks and Recreation tried to help with their summer day camp program. New in the summer of 1953, campers went biweekly to “the Marine Corps pool” and “the Middleburg pool” according to the annual report. That report specifically stated “[b]ecause of lack of facilities, swimming and golf are not a part of the Department’s sports activities.” Today, classes are still offered through the county – year-round, inside.
What About You?
Where did you go swimming in Arlington? Did you attend the county’s day camp? Do you know anything about “the Marine Corps pool” and “the Middleburg pool”? Let us know what you remember!
I graduated from Yorktown High School in June 1972. That spring they were constructing the indoor pool at Yorktown. There was no indoor pool there in 1968. We did not go anywhere else for instruction.
I graduated from Washington-Lee in 1969. There was no pool, nor was there one being built. There was no swimming instruction during that time. I believe the 1968 date is in error.