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Northland School
Northland School Centennial
Swimming Pool
The opening of the Instructional Swimming Pool took place on Saturday 1st March, 1941, at 3:00pm in the Northland School grounds. The Prime Minister of New Zealand, Mr Peter Fraser, lived along the road and he was invited to open it.
The pool was the first primary school pool in Wellington.
A heating system was installed in 1975, making it slightly warmer than the ice-cold dip students remember. However, because of the constant problems with leaking, the pool was removed in 2005, leaving a useful area for playing space.
A poem about the Pool was written by Marie J Clelend-the great grandmother of one of our current pupils-
It began as a dream
Came up as a scheme
Met approval from all at the meeting;
The money was raised
The teachers be praised
As inciters- to them be the greeting!
The 'Home and School' aim
Is Ever the Same
To supply to the school what is lacking:
With parents' support
Good work can be wrought
Northland residents give them your backing!
With the will came the way
Till these school baths today
Show attainment through co-operation;
Now full to the brim
That your children may swim
They'll bring more dreams to realization!
So, Three Cheers! Today
To the "H and SA"
And our teachers-a requisite factor;
To the girls and the boys
Who make all the noise;
To their parents and to the contractor!
Before Northland School opened their own pool, students had used St John's pool, situated in the Kaiwharawhara Stream, which is now at the entrance to the Karori Sanctuary.
The School committees of Kelburn and Northland Schools had upgraded the pool in 1933, by building a new concrete dam across the stream and installing a diving board and a concrete path.
In 1937, however, the Karori Pool (back then an outdoor pool) opened, shortly followed by school pools built at Northland and Kelburn.
St John's pool became disused, though its remains can still be seen today.
