BLAST FROM THE PAST


1923 Candid shot of a swim team practice from the late ‘50s. Sadly, we have no photos of the “Preposterous Diving and Ridiculous Swimming” event from 1923.


THE POOL IN ALUMNI GYMNAS IUM was part of the building’s original construction in 1923. That same


year, on November 7, four new world swimming records were set in that pool by Olympic hopefuls Sybil Bauer, Johnny Weissmuller (later known to American moviegoers as Hollywood’s Tarzan—in fact he swam in


the pool several times during 1923 and 1924 as a member of the Illinois Athletic Club), John Farley, and Harold “Stubby” Kruger (who went on to be an actor and stuntman, and, coincidentally, once starred as himself opposite Weissmuller in a comedy called The Human Fish). The first 75- foot tank in Chicago, the pool in Alumni Gym became a favored site for swimming, relay, and water polo championships for teams around the nation. But, like all things, the glory days could not last. The pool has not been operational for several years and is currently used for storage.


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LOYOLA UNIVERSI TY CHICAGO


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