Elephant building detail, Coventry, UK

Triangulist Elephant building detail, Coventry, UK

'April 2015
Coventry Central Baths & Elephant
by Lou Robson

'The shabby foyer of Coventry’s central baths holds few clues to the magnificent arena perched above. A modern kiosk is shoehorned into a corner and vending machines obscure the stone plaque marking the opening in 1966 by a Lord Mayor who boasted they were the finest baths in Europe.

The Luftwaffe pilots who devastated the city did not spare Coventry’s pools. Four of the five, including the old central baths, did not survive the war. For a decade after the conflict, the city rebuilt. Once the major cogs of reconstruction – the precinct, the ring road, Basil Spence’s cathedral – were in place, aldermen turned to citizens’ leisure needs.

It took another decade for plans to crystallise and four years to build before Coventry Baths opened on April 23 1966 (with an inaugural dip by international swimmers Graham Sykes, Graham Symonds and Bobby Lord, a display by the Miss O Jones Synchro Swimming Team and a gala of 20 swimming and diving events). In 1977 it gained a quirky and solid extension – the zinc-panelled Elephant – a homage to the city’s emblem.

The Grade II listed complex and its pachyderm companion (unlisted) are now under threat. In August Coventry Council approved plans to close the centre and replace it with a £37 million leisure centre holding a pool half the size of the 50m original.'

For more information see:-
c20society.org.uk/botm/coventry-central-baths/

Taken on: November 1, 2018

Tags:

Swimming

Pool

Centre

Coventry

1966

Elephant

Building

Triangulist « less

Sets appears in: • Coventry November 2018 • Architecture

Groups appears in: • UK Flickr users • UK Photography Club more » • Architecture Travellers • West Midlands • Blue For You • Birmingham Post and Mail • Art-Pix • "U.K. Photo Gallery" ( All Welcome ) • Coventry (England) • in explore • 6,000 Views Unlimited 6000 « less

Camera: Canon EOS 650D, f/9.0, 1/30 sec, 20mm, ISO 200 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon EOS 650D
Aperture:	f/9.0
Exposure Time:	0.033 sec (1/30)
Focal Length:	20mm
ISO:	200
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Adobe Photoshop Elements 15.0 (Windows)
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