The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-04-06
I. THE CITY BATHING BEACH
Preparations Being Made for the
Opening of the Season.
How The Popular Institution OriEi-
nated-Due Principally to the Eff
forts of AZ y. Steyens-Approprin-
tions by Congress for It's Support.

forts of AZ \. SteYens-ApProprin-
lions by Congress for It's Support.
The work Of putting the Bathing Beach
IL shape for the coming season has be
gun and it viii be opened to the public
in few weeks The Beach is one of
the most popular places about the city
during the warm months and thousands
of men and boys flock there every aft
ernoOn for swim. Special hours il the
early morning are set aside for women
and life guards are always on hand TO
give aid in case OF accidents
Tho history Of the Beach is interesting.
/ it is located in the tidal reservoir near
The Washington Monument. This tidal
reservoir was intended originally as a
pool for the accumulation of water at
high tide from the Georgetown channel
OF the Potomac River, in order that it
might he used on the ebb tide to flush
the Washington channel between the
Long Bridge and the Arsenal Point. The
Bathing Beach owes its origin princi-
paIy TO the enthusiasm of Mr. W "
Stevens, who, with five others, in 1889, Or
gained an unincorporated association
styled the Washington Bathing Beach
Associs ton, and requested the Commits
/ sioners TO grant them the privilege of
Z
shore Of the tidal basin adjacent TO the
Monument Grounds. and that we and all
other respectable and weIl-behaved per
/ sons be permitted to use the said Beach
in accordance with the rules of the as
sociation-"
It was also requested that adequate
police surveillance be provided.
one of the principal arguments used by
the projectors of This resort was that as
. life saving proposition it would more
than reqIite the efforts made for its es-
tablishment, as it would furnish a place
where the youth Of the District could go
for aquatic diversion under supervision
that would reduce to minimum the haz-
ard incident TO river bathing. and at the
same time preclude the rudeness which
boys viii exercise toward each other
when assembled at such places without
restraint. It is a singular fact that the
/ protector of this institution was but an
/ Indifferent swimmer.
| The municipal authorities had no power
/ TO grant the use OF any portion Of the
| tidal reservoir as requested, nor
was any of the executive officers Of
| the general Government vested with such
authority. Thereupon the Bathing Beach
/ Association resorted to Congress, ard Sc
/ cured the introduction in the House Of
/ II. r 1856, establishing "a free bathing
beach on the Potomac River near the
Washington Monument This bill was
referred BY the House Committee on the
District of Columbia to the Commission
ers who recommended its enactEEeUt- =
became a law on September % 1880, -l-d IS
as follows
An act establishing free public bathing beach
On the Potomac River near Washington N9nu-
meHJ
Be IT enacted by the Senate and House OF
Par1-rssT4t4+yr. OF the United States OF America,
IL Congress assembled That the Commissioners
Of ,he District OF Columbia are hereby author
lied and permitted 10 construct 4 beach and
dressing houses upon the east shore OF the tia4t
reservoir against the Washington Monument
grounds and to maintain the same Tor the Pur-
pose OF frcc pIblic bathing, under such regl.2-
lions as they shall deem to be FOR the public
welfare and the Secretary OF War Is requested TO
permit such use Of tire public domain as RAY
6e required 10 accomplish the objects above set
section ,. That the sum Of three thousand dol
l.=; j. hereby appropriated from the revenues Of
lie District of Columbia 10 be immediately
available Tor the purposes OF tins act
/ Pursuant to this Law the Secretary OF
! War auDroved of q plan of setting ASIDE
l $50 feet Of the front of the beach of the
! ciGal reservoir. Immediately west OF the
! Washington Monument At TINS time the
bottom Of this portion Of the reservoir
was = mass Of aIluVium, into which The
{ VeutureSome bather would SINK I ms
knees and rI.L the risk OF being ineNtT1-
ca bly, miTed '.V+n II ne dld not nave tile
worse fate AZ slipping into some or the
manr deep depressions which nlled ms
( venture with danger
The bottom of the beach was graded by
taking dirt from the banks and elsewhere
+ to an approximately gradual slope from
/ the shore line 10 deep water, ana thel
/ coated with sand; but the work was poor
: ~ done. and for some years the many
: deDreSSions in the bottom were A source
/ Of constant soIiCitude 10 The authorities
3 4 ono HTTF04 = n 4
the Beach induced the Commissioners, as
/ q concession TO public sentiment, to direct
that the BsEch be closed for that season
: Through the iuterCeSSlon OF DIT W lIliain
| TjudaU the Secretary 10 the Board. the
I Commissioners directed him TO lnYeStt-
/ gate the matter and recommend "hat
should be done to eliminate the sources OF
1 danger. Certain additional safeguards
/ were recommended and adopted. The
! Beach was Ihereup0n reoPened and no
fuIt her accident occurred that season.
/ No other appropriation was made Tor
the Bathing Beach after the approprta-
/ lion Of 5000 in 1899, until 1894 when $i,VVJ
was provided by the District ApDropria-
/ ton act OF that year. During the inter
( regnum the running expenses or the
! beach were met by charge upon bath
erS for the use Of bathing SUITS anu 0th-
/ or privileges. The number OF batherS at
/ this time was not very large and the eN-
/ penses of their surveillance We're CORE
/ spondinSly small. \ small appropriation
! WAS made. in 1885. 1886, and 1881
} Mr. Stevens, with the support OF the
! commissioners, secured an appropriations
T in thf. District Appropriation Law OF June
/ H. 1895 of $1,000. 70 be used toward
/ ;.daDtiug the inner basin on the Potomac
Flats for a public bathing pool. with the
! approval Of the Secretary of War. Work
I on This project. according 10 4 plan made
I bv Mr. Stevens. was promptly begun by
: the depositing of several thousand cubic
+ Yards of sand on the bottom of the ba-
E sin After cOnsidera bic progress had
/ been made with the work. it was discov-
/ cred that il was not practicable TO deposit
/ the sand upon the bottom with d surface
/ even approximately uniform; nor 70
/ grade il 10 such Il surface after it had
( been deposited
/ Ia consequence Of this embarrassment.
I tie Commissioners decided that it WAS
/ not adviSa bic to proceed with the work
without a more thorough study of the
I details of execution The work was
I therCuDOn suspended and has not been
! resumed. The UueXpended balance of that
I augmentation was made applicable to the
Improvement and repair OF the old Beach.
and no further appTOprIa lions have been
made for the execution Of This plan
( Aside from the opinion OF the Commits
/ Sicners that the further progress of the
work shOuld be deferred until an expert
investigation and report upon its feast
bility and cost should be made. the ne
CCSsity for all the available revenue OF
the District in other directions has con-
strained the Commissioners 10 withhold
/ any estimates FOR this purpose, although
I the project 70 convert the inner basin
( into bathing plant has also been made
the subject of an elaborate study and
report by Assistant Engineer ". J Doug