Baker Municipal Natatorium - Baker City, OR - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

The Baker Municipal Natatorium building served as a community center and natatorium for Baker City from 1921 until the beginning of World War II. The building had steambaths, showers, meeting rooms, a maple floored ballroom, and an full Olympic sized pool. By the late 1930s use was dropping and with the start of World War II use further declined so the City decided to close in Natatorium. The building was converted to a war production in 1943. Following the war the National Guard used the building for drills for a while. The pool was filled and capped with dirt and used for a variety of purposes including 4-H barn, city garage and a temporary fire station. By 1975 the people of Baker City considered the abandoned building as an eyesore and the a contract was let to demolish the “Nat”. Following delays the Baker County Historical Society proposed the creation of a museum in the “Nat” and the City agreed to lease the building at no cost to the BCHS as long as the building was run as a museum. Thousands of hours of volunteer labor and donated funds resulted in the opening of a small museum in 1982, occupying two rooms. Today the Oregon Trail Regional Museum operated by the BCHS occupies the entire building. The above information comes from the Oregon Trail Regional Museum visitor handout.

Street address: 2470 Grove Street Baker City, ORegon United States 97814 County / Borough / Parish: Baker Year listed: 1977 Historic (Areas of) Significance: Event, Architecture/Engineering Periods of significance: 1900-1924 Historic function: Recreation and Culture Current function: Museum Privately owned?: no Season start / Season finish: From: 04/01/2008 To: 10/31/2008 Hours of operation: From: 9:00 AM To: 5:00 PM Primary Web Site: [Web Link] Secondary Website 1: [Web Link] Secondary Website 2: Not listed National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Please give the date and brief account of your visit. Include any additional observations or information that you may have, particularly about the current condition of the site. Additional photos are highly encouraged, but not mandatory.

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Date Logged Log User Rating   11/27/2020 OregonTrailRanger visited it 07/10/2017 wildernessmama visited it 10/12/2010 redheadsrule visited it 06/22/2008 Relic Hounds visited it 02/12/2008 Volcanoguy visited it

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