Hutchinson Leader - Lost Hutchinson: Bath house - Comments

As a certified water safety

Dr.Remulak — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 14:07:28 -0600

As a certified water safety instructor and Sr. Lifeguard, I spent many summer days enforcing the rules of the ol' millpond as one of the lifeguards in the early 1970's. The bathhouse as well as several other historical buildings in Hutch should never have been torn down. Living just a stones throw up the river, I grew up loving the Crow, and all the summer and winter activities on the river. I am not too sure how the new dam will be, but time marches on...
Lazy days on the river were some of the best times of our lives and for those too young to remember, the pictures do not do it justice. I wonder if the kids that pee'd on the bathouse floor in 1973 and got banned from the pond the rest of the summer will read this? Oh, the stories that the millpond could tell! The death that helped close the Millpond for good happened a summer or two after I left. I believe it was Tom Getzke that was on duty at that time and he was unable to see the victim due to the cloudy water and he had to feel around, but by then it was too late...

No don't remember that

Peanut — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 21:06:20 -0500

No don't remember that picture. Must of been before my time. I do remember the high diving platform.

A water slide brought people

Matt McMillan — Mon, 16 Jul 2007 10:57:29 -0500

A water slide brought people over the dam. The photo here shows it. Anyone remember this?

Lost Hutchinson water slide at mill pond

I remember years back when I

Peanut — Sun, 15 Jul 2007 18:50:55 -0500

I remember years back when I was in grade school some kid went over the dam. He lived to tell the story. I remember him saying it wasn't a pleasant experience. LOL

Wonder how many other people have gone over that dam.

This forum is an invaluable

ragnyb — Sun, 15 Jul 2007 01:54:31 -0500

This forum is an invaluable piece of MN history.
There has always been an attraction for Hutchinson.
It has prospered vastly from what I've know.

Find Hutchinson - the city has loads of archived newspapers available in the library (square in the middle of town).

Your support on all solid city ethics.

Wow I wasn't born unitl 1985

Kate — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 23:40:52 -0500

Wow I wasn't born unitl 1985 so I was not around for any of this...how fun to read about this history!

Yes, it is true. It was a

Raymond Norton — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 22:51:25 -0500

Yes, it is true. It was a precious young girl. There were other close calls too. Although the river can be muddy, it was the location of the mill pond that created the problem. Tons of silt would drop off near the top of the dam, and much of it made its way into the swimming area.

I heard years ago someone

Peanut — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 22:04:04 -0500

I heard years ago someone jumped off the high board and got stuck in mud head first. So I think that maybe a true story.

The crow river is disgusting

ragnyb — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 19:56:02 -0500

The crow river is disgusting to look at, and I can't imagine swimming in the water.

I heard someone drowned when they jumped off the high board and were stuck in the muddy bottom.

Please verify this...?

Thanks for everyone who

TxJames — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 19:25:14 -0500

Thanks for everyone who submitted pictures and comments ... this sort of history needs to be kept vibrant ...

Just wondering ... no one has brought up the subject of sticking in the bottom mud off the high tower !! YUCK !!!

Oh, the memories those

jaccola — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 09:56:56 -0500

Oh, the memories those photos bring back! My siblings and I used to spend most summer afternoons there. We went down after lunch (about 1:00) and would stay until the Kraft plant (where ShopKo is now) blew their whistle for the shift change at 4:00. The deck and low boards on the diving tower were about 5 feet above the water; there were also boards at 10 and 15 feet. I remember jumping off the higher boards; I don't know if I was ever brave enough to dive from them, though I did dive from the 5 foot boards.

More great bath house and

Matt McMillan — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 13:40:01 -0500

More great bath house and swimming beach photos from tobybryan. These are three shots I've not seen before. Thanks for posting them. The Leader has a winter shot, too. People skated on the river and used the bath house as a warming house in the winter.

I talked to a guy last week who taught swimming lessons at the millpond in the 1930s or 1940s. He said his family lived on the river, and he canoed to work each day.

He was paddling home one afternoon, and a tornado came down and made its way east on the river. He had the smarts to swamp his canoe and swim under the water while it passed overhead.

His family's dock and boat flew out of the water onto land and were demolished. Luckily, he survived and so did his canoe.

This story was told by retired Air Force Colonel Spannus -- who now lives in Midland, Texas. I believe he said the diving platform was 30 feet, and the water depth was eight feet.

Bathing Beach post card from

tobybryan — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 00:29:06 -0500

Bathing Beach post card from 1955:

Bigger:
http://x78.xanga.com/ab6c311038236129998575/w94635936.jpg

A couple close ups from the same postcard:

Bigger:
http://xcf.xanga.com/d58d8b1b46235129998251/w94635664.jpg

Bigger:
http://xe4.xanga.com/5a6d841449335129998440/w94635824.jpg

A photo of the beach is in

Matt McMillan — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 18:17:56 -0500

A photo of the beach is in the print edition of the June 12 Leader. We've found another photo of the slide taken from below the dam, too. All photos will be published this fall in a Lost Hutchinson magazine.

Many, many days were spend

txgopher — Thu, 14 Jun 2007 17:51:34 -0500

Many, many days were spend in and out of the bath house by the dam. Some of us in our pre-working days spend almost every afternoon there swimming, diving and laying in the sand looking at the girls. Probably the bath house should be accompanied by photos ( if possible) of the docks, cat walk and the fantastic diving complex out in the river. Not much to rival that now a days. The bath house is a great memory!

Lost Hutchinson: Bath house

webmaster — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 12:29:12 -0500

This fieldstone bath house was designed and built in the “park architecture” style in 1937.