Old Open Air Bathing Pool

The oldest bathing pool in the country is in the Fellows Garden, Christ's College, Cambridge. It has been saved from becoming a lily pond or a playground for ducks after a fund raising campaign by the college. The pool and summerhouse were first recorded in 1763 but thought to have been there before, at least 1688. The design is classic with it's perimeter decorated by busts of it's notable alumni. A memorial urn on the east side contains the ashes of C.P.Snow. The pool was originally fed by Hobson's Conduit, the 400 year old water course provided by the carrier Thomas Hobson to bring clean water to the disease ridden town. I wanted to get the summer house in the picture and the row of busts are at the opposite end, not in view. The gates are kept locked when the college is open to the public for safety reasons, but I found a gardener who kindly unlocked them for me after I explained about my daily picture for blip. He seemed very interested and was going to look it up, so maybe there will be more blips from the college.