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Series
1.
Administrative Records. 1945-56.
Arranged chronologically.
1.45 cu. ft. (2 boxes)
RG 34 Public Bath Commission (1949-59)
History
Baltimore was one of the first American cities to provide
public baths. In 1894, the municipality created the Public Bath
Commission to maintain three bathing shores. The commission was able
to enlist the support of Henry Walters who, in 1899, donated $50,000
to build two permanent bathing houses, the first of which opened in
1900. Walters also built three more houses, the last in 1922. In
1900, the mayor appointed a seven man commission to oversee the
operation of the bath houses and the city's public comfort stations.
In 1916, the commission built the first bath in a public school, which
led to the inclusion of bathing facilties in all new schools after
1924.
By 1939 the commission maintained free bathing in six houses
and twenty-seven public schools. It also operated fourteen portable
showers during the summer months. For a nominal fee of five cents, a
bather was entitled to a bar of soap, a towel, and a hot bath or
shower. Laundry rooms outfitted with tubs and drying racks were
located at several bathhouses. By 1953 the commission also supervised
several outdoor swimming pools.
Attendance at the baths began to decline in the early 1950s.
The need for public baths was diminished by slum removal projects and
new housing regulations of the health department that required a
bathtub or shower in every dwelling unit by January 1, 1956. The
commission was attacked by the Commission on Government Efficiency and
Economy in 1957, and two years later it was abolished. The school
bath program continued under the Department of Education (RG 31).
Records Summary
Few records are available for the Public Bath Commission. The
attendance records (series 1) consist of statistical information and a
few notations. The cash book (series 2) has statistical information
about the commission's finances.
Series
1.
2.
Attendance Records. 1949-59. 3 lin. in. (3 vols.)
Arranged chronologically.
Cash Book. 1956-59. 2 lin. in. (1 vol.).
Arranged chronologically.
58
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