Artes Pool
by Pat Sides
In the 1920s, Evansville officials pursued an aggressive program of expanding the city’s recreational areas, which had been prompted by the development of Garvin Park in 1915. By the end of the decade, five public pools offered swimmers an opportunity to beat the summer heat, making “our little folks happy,†as the Recreations Department reported.
The largest pool was at Garvin, situated where the Deaconess Aquatic Center is currently under construction. Other municipally operated swimming facilities were in Howell and on the northeast corner of Pennsylvania and Ninth Avenue, as well as the Booker T. Washington pool for African Americans.
This image depicts a busy Artes Pool on Evansville’s north side in the 1940s. It had opened in the 1920s on Keller Street, a block south of Cedar Hall School, in a neighborhood conveniently populated with many children. Artes attracted thousands of swimmers annually for many decades before closing; a large athletic field and playground now occupy the site.
