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Current Use: Ocean baths.
Condition: Good.

1923
A photograph of Avalon shows bathing beauties at a natural rock pool. It seems local residents re-arranged some rocks to enlarge the swimming zone and reinforce the walls.

Late 1920s
The Avalon pool was deepened by Warringah Council. Rocks were blown up to deepen the swimming area and walls were constructed. There was no path to the pool and no club house and the young Norfolk Island pines were still protected by tree guards.

1930
Warringah Shire Council topped the pool's walls.

1997
Registration for junior activities for the Avalon surf club included a timed pool swim for proficiency at the Avalon Beach Pool.

1998
A couple of episodes of the popular US television series Baywatch were filmed at Avalon. The Baywatch crew even blew up a yacht off the rock pool without warning the community or stating such a plan in their filming application. Swimmers were asked to get out of the rock pool because Baywatch was filming a rescue scene by the pool. A woman in her eighties, who was hurrying out of the pool, cut her arm on the side of the pool and was given first aid by the TV crew.

The proposal to use Avalon as the location for the whole Baywatch series (filming seven months a year for six years) caused turmoil. Many of the local residents were not keen to attract any more weekend visitors to their village and beach. Among other things, filming would have restricted access to the beach and the rock pool.

An Anti-Baywatch Action group, that attracted support from both surfies and business people, started collecting signatures for a petition. Following strong negative sentiments expressed at a meeting called by Council, plans for further filming at Avalon were abandoned.

2001
An off-duty policeman rescued and resuscitated a woman washed into the sea and smashed against rocks while sunbaking near the rock pool.
 

An 1837 land grant to Father John Joseph Therry covered almost the entire peninsula from Newport to Whale Beach, including Avalon and Bilgola beaches. After Father Therry's death, the Jesuit order sold these lands to finance the construction of a new Catholic cathedral for Sydney on the site where St Mary's Cathedral had burned down.

1906
Warringah Shire was formed.

1921
Developer Arthur J. Small chose the name Avalon when subdividing the area. After Avalon's sand dune was destabilised and mined, the freshwater swamp was filled, creating a camping ground used until the 1960s.

1923
There were only ten houses in Avalon and some of those were only used at weekends.

1992
Pittwater council was formed to administer what had been the northern part of Warringah Shire.

1998
Avalon had over 9,000 residents.
 

National Trust of Australia (NSW)

The baths are historically significant because the development of the Avalon rock pool coincides with the growth of amateur swimming clubs, the pursuit of aquatic sports, the move to mixed bathing on beaches and baths and the use of ocean pools as training facilities for lifesavers and others. Development of the ocean baths assisted Avalon's development as a residential area and a tourist destination.

Assessed significance: Local
Current heritage status: Not given heritage status.
 

Related Topics Artworks & artists Council involvement Petitions & protests Police Real estate agents Surf clubs

Studies & References National Trust listing EJE Landscape Architects & Christa Ludlow. Survey of Harbourside & Ocean Pools of the Sydney Metropolitan Region. Prepared for the National Trust of Australia (NSW), 1994.