Ambleside pool fondly remembered on 60th anniversary

The Kingsmen Pool on a busy afternoon in 1954.

image credit: West Vancouver Archives

Many North Shore residents growing up in the '50s, '60s and '70s took their first swimming lessons at Kingsmen Pool in Ambleside Park.

Overlooking Stanley Park and Lions Gate Bridge, the outdoor pool was once a popular hangout on sunny days.

The photo above was snapped on a busy afternoon in 1954, the year the pool opened.

At first the landmark location was heavily used, but attendance began to decline when the West Vancouver Aquatics Centre was built nearby.

In 1977, less than 11 months after the new indoor facility was created, the Kingsmen Pool was filled in.

This year marks the pool's 60th anniversary.

The landscape has changed a skatepark and basketball courts now take up the area but memories haven't faded.

And there are calls to bring back an outdoor pool to West Van.

More:
Ambleside pool fondly remembered on 60th anniversary