The Verdun Natatorium is an

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

natatorium A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, paddling pool, or simply pool, is a structure designed to hold water to enable Human swimming, swimming or other leisure activities. Pools can be built into the ground (in-ground pools) or built ...

Verdun, Quebec Verdun (; , ) is a borough (''arrondissement'') of the city of Montreal, Quebec, located in the southwestern part of the island. Long known as a working class neighbourhood, it has experienced significant gentrification and social change in the 21 ...

Origins

While the City of Montreal's official website states that the facility was built in 1930, the ''Verdun Guardian'' newspaper reported on the official opening on July 12, 1940 and inaugurated by

Johnny Weissmuller Johnny Weissmuller (born Johann Peter Weißmüller; June 2, 1904 – January 20, 1984) was an American Olympic swimmer, water polo player and actor. He was known for having one of the best competitive swimming records of the 20th century. H ...

, with the pool hosting the 1940 Dominion Swimming and Diving Championships, shortly afterward.

Finances

The city of Verdun took out a $200,000 loan to fund construction. Once open, the pool's admission revenue covered operating costs and allowed Verdun to pay back its loan. The city paid back $9,500 each year from 1941 to 1945, and approximately $11,000 each year from 1946 to 1951. By 1951, the Natatorium had never lost money and was projected to fully pay off its loan in ten more years. Many of the workers were men that were receiving "workfare" a benefit for people out of work due to the great depression. Skilled workers such as steamfitters were paid to build the Natatorium for the city.

Facility

The city of Montreal states that the main pool can accommodate 1,150 bathers while in 1951 the ''

Montreal Gazette The ''Montreal Gazette'', formerly titled ''The Gazette'', is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Three other daily English-language newspapers shuttered at various times during the second half of th ...

'', reported that the pool could handle up to 6,000 swimmers on a daily basis. This difference may be due to changes to the facility and/or safety regulations over time. In the summer 2005, a heated wading pool was added, with a capacity of up to 250 children.

References

{{coord , 45.4436, N, 73.5759, W, display=title Art Deco architecture in Canada Sports venues in Montreal Swimming venues in Quebec Buildings and structures in Verdun, Quebec 1940 establishments in Quebec Sports venues completed in 1940