Construction of the Worthington Pool Looking South, Summer 1954

This black and white image depicts the construction of the Worthington Pool during the summer of 1954. From this vantage point looking south can be seen the foundations of the diving bay, which was 12 feet deep, and the deep end of the pool. In the distance is Dublin-Granville Road. The fields and trees beyond it are the farm tracts then owned by St. John’s Episcopal Church. These fields would be developed as Kilbourne Village in the early 1960s. The little white building in the upper left is the pumping station for the village of Worthington’s water supply.

The completed pool opened August 15, 1954. It was managed by the non-profit Swiminc organization and open to residents of the Worthington School District. The single pool was 120 feet long and 50 feet wide, except for the diving bay area where it was 82 feet wide. The pool held 300,000 gallons of water, which was re-filtered every eight hours on site. It could accommodate up to 500 swimmers.

The photographer, Albin Vinyard Shirk, commonly known as A.V., grew up in Colonial Hills and graduated from Worthington High School in 1956.