Pittsburgh’s South Side Sally

One of my best friends, Noreen would have us come over.  Her mom and dad had a small rectangle pool in their back yard.  We were about 5 or 6 at that time.   We would love to get wet and stay cool.  We also used the hose tied to a close line to run through.  This was of course another way to beat the heat.  So… cool.

Summer’s here and that brings back memories of the pool at 22nd Street Ormsby Pool.  The rec center and pool are there now but look different.  The pool configuration has changed.  Back in my good old young days that pool was just a rectangle shape.  The deep end had a diving board,  the low water started about 3 feet.

One could see the dusty street.  No one could take towels out.  We were restricted to time for girls, time for boys, then they had family time and adult time swims in the evening.  We’d line up in mass, back then no one except the Arcade Theatre had air conditioning.   Pool Time was a premium.   We started going down to the pool when we were about 6 or 7 years old.   Several of us would walk down together.  Things were seemingly different then.  For the most part, they were safer.  Girls had to wear bathing caps.  What a pain to remember them.  If you wanted to swim, you had to have one.  Well, I really didn’t swim as much as doggy paddle.  Noreen was trying to teach me to swim, she could swim underwater.  Boy did I admire that.  She also like to stay out and lay in the sun.   I always got sun burnt.  I think I did this to be with my friends.

Another place our families went to often was a place called “Mineral Beach” .   Can’t quite remember where it was located, but did I love piling up in the car with suits, towels, grills and food for a day at the beach:  Ken, me, Mom, Dad and Rose in our car.  Jimmy, Noreen and her parents in their car.

So I learned my swimming strokes at South High School.  All I could do was the doggy paddle and tread water before that.  Then, oh then,  I discovered the Oliver Bath House.  I love that place, although I haven’t been in the pool in years.  Some of my best very best fun times in the water were there.  The water was nice and warm most of the time.  Free style, back stroke, butterfly 45 years ago…..  Did you ever take a look at the neatest fish on the outside architecture of that place?   Now I have rediscovered my love of the water at my new place the YMCA in Franklin Park in the North Hills, close to my home.  I’ve taken up swimming again.  It’s like swimming at the Bath House.  I’ll keep up the 20 laps of the 25 meter pool for awhile before I up the anty so to speak.  Right now it’ll be changing the pace to a faster one for some of the laps.

The Oliver Bath House was originally built to serve the local community when there were not showers or bath tubs.  People could go there and shower, take a swim and relax from the work a day world of the steel mills.  It’s been there for years and years.  Amazing it has out lasted the steel mills.  Great place…maybe I’ll visit it one day and take another swim.