Verdun Natatorium

I will start to bring over ,some of the 144 videos we had posted on our Multiply Social Media Network,hopefully this will suffice as a new home (perhaps temporarily) but at least a spot to view some of the old videos we saved. Many (most) available on youtube or NFB etc etc
 This first one is some neat footage from the pool in Verdun affectionatly known as 'the Nat'



  The following are some of the comments that appeared a few years back under this video topic.

edit delete reply lesf wrote on Jan 30, '09 Did you notice just how close the fence of the Nat & the Boardwalk are to the River....... Checkout Google Earth for that same location now & you will see the earth is at least 100 feet further out to the river nowadays................ "the times they are a changing"---Bob Dylan HF&RV

delete reply petermeyers wrote on Jan 30, '09 Boy do I ever remember those days. 25 cents to get in. Had the best bag of chips at the concession stand on the roof. 5cents.That was my second home. I remember the swimming and diving meets there that the parks put on. I swam for Brown Blvd. park. I used to swim in my age group and then move up to swim against the adults. I still have a couple of swimming medals. All the rest.....lost in the moves.

edit delete reply lesf wrote on Jan 30, '09, edited on Jan 30, '09 petermeyers said Boy do I ever remember those days. 25 cents to get in. Had the best bag of chips at the concession stand on the roof. 5cents.That was my second home. I remember the swimming and diving meets there that the parks put on. I swam for Brown Blvd. park. I used to swim in my age group and then move up to swim against the adults. I still have a couple of swimming medals. All the rest.....lost in the moves.  Hi Peter,.and don't forget the best 'Toasted Hot Dogs ' around No Steamies up there, it was always the way to wind up the day with a treat on the roof,.and Remember dropping a few chips to some hungry friends who were still in the pool area..........HF&RV

delete reply kenmcl wrote on Jan 30, '09 I noticed the river being very close too. Yea the old boardwalk ran up quite close to the back fence. Lots of landfill along the old Verdun waterfront compared to once upon a time. I do wonder what it would have been like back in the day with the extended waterfront we have now. I mean there were thousands of kids in Verdun in those days and the numbers almost certainly will never go that high again, unless there is another baby boom. There is now 3 times as much park for one third the kids. Ken McLaughlin

delete reply sandywest wrote on Jan 31, '09 very cool !

delete reply jumper01 wrote on Jan 31, '09, edited on Jan 31, '09 I'm pretty sure that the guy putting his comb in his bathing suit on the low board is Dickie Dickson

delete reply k2fighter wrote on Feb 9, '09 Les, how the heck do you find this stuff!!!! Fantastic find. Earl.

delete reply 1947navion wrote on Sep 6, '09 I left Verdun in 1949 and came to California but remember swimming at the pool in the evenings after work during the summer. Great pool. J.B.California

edit delete reply lesf wrote on Sep 6, '09, edited on Sep 6, '09 Your right on,.it's a cool pool,.once the largest outdoor pool in La Belle Province, Did you bring any old photogrpahs of Verdun/ Montrea etc etc with you to California ,if so & if you feel like sharing them,we'd love to see them.......the era you lived there would be neat to see,we've compiled several Boardwalk pictures over the years,as the boardwalk, the Natatorium & of course the Auditorium were a big part of all Our lives........... HF&RV ps: We Appreciate your input....

delete reply 1947navion wrote on Sep 8, '09 Sorry don't think I have any pictures of the pool. I will check my old albums and if there are any will send them. J.B California

edit delete reply lesf wrote on Sep 8, '09, edited on Nov 15, '11 I am amazed actually at how much traffic certain threads generate ,I certainly would never guess these amounts ,if it were not for the built in traffic counter. It seems we have an incredible amounf of traffic,to view the threads posted,but not always a lot of individual responses. Either way we do see the amount of people at least reading our input& we appreciate that. Oddly enough we have a lot of readers who just surf by or just read our post's & look at our pictures,Which (that's how ya spell it ,isn't it ?) We are happy to have all traffic,whether you read or post ,your welcome: If you feel like sharing some photos or stories,and if you need help to figure out "How To" anything ,..then just ask,we will be happy to try & help

delete reply sandywest wrote on Sep 10, '09, edited on Sep 11, '09 oh for the good ole days when you could read and enjoy a site without being stalked by your isp number - I personally stay away from places because of this - but that is the internet today - out of control - btw Les I loved the video of surfing in the ice - what a whacko that guy is! at least he had sense enough to wear a helmet - and yes, you spelled it correctly - it's which - unless you are talking about "witch" - the kind that ride on brooms - those are my personal favorites - favorites - spelled the American way - the nation of retards as one of the members referred to us. Tomorrow is 9/11 - may all those people rest in peace - lest we forget!

edit delete reply lesf wrote on Sep 10, '09 Thanks Sandy I hope you continue to read & enjoy most sites,we didn't request the traffic count,but it comes automatically with each persons post (that is each persons thread ,so if you start a thread ,you will know who has at least looked at it,...... As for VerdunConncetions we absolutely Do Not collect ISP 's nor do we aspire to look into or collect any data,) We appreciate your input & readership,regardless of where it comes from. I just thought I'd mention how much this Naatatorium Video has generated,......pretty cool I think....... I agree with you though there are some sites that make people feel unwelcome,I assure you that is & was not my intent. .........I wonder also where there could possibly be a Nation of Retards,certainly if we are referring too our nations politics ,then perhaps I could cautiously assume that every Nation has their share ie: Cheney /Rove who probably ran the world into the ground, under the guise of the GW admin, but your correct in taking exception to being collectively thrown into the same basket,which I don't believe was the intent of the reply you were referring to.Thanks for your Input .always appreciated: HF&RV ps: we don't care if you read or post ,but we do appreciate your passing by (posting is better though......hahahaha ) where's those bolts when you need them.......................

delete reply quok wrote on Nov 8, '09 I look at the video of the old swimming pool.Brings back a lot of memories.I still go to the pool to-day and the cost to ge at in is 2.00$.The only place you and go and spend the day.You can even bring your own chair to sit on.If any one knows Jimmy Gill to let you know Jimmy pasted away. I grew up in verdun and my dad was a policeman.I now live in the west island but am planning to sell my house this spring and move back to verdun.There is now a lot of great places to eat also.. Bill J

delete reply vicsailin wrote on Jun 11, '10 Hey Les and Bill J.!!! Just like you folks and the other postees, my brother and I and neighboring kids used to go from Gertrude St. and then 1st Ave. out to the Nat. almost every morn that was nice and sunny in the summers from June until late August during the 1940-1950 era. It was 10 cents to get in back then and wll worth it! We spent the morning there, carried our lunches in sacks, thenh spent the afternoon out by the Power House in Ville Lasalle. Plenty of hiking/bikeing but well worth the effort. Ahh, those were the days! I knew a Jimmy Gill on 1st Ave. and his brother Billy. (They'd be in their 70's now.) So many friends are slipping away. Les, thanks for the videos and pics. Victah

edit delete reply  wrote on Jun 11, '10, edited on Jun 11, '10 Hi Vic , the Nat was a big part of all the kids in Verdun & plenty of them from the Point too.. Walk , Bike Hike , like you say, Money Well Spent for sure, we generally had an annual pass,but if you went early in the morning prior to 10am (I think it was) they let you in free.....One of the albums I posted the other day had a bunch of Nat pics in them too, Also a big deal was the small bag of chips for a nickel & a soft drink/pop & they had the best Toasted Hotdogs, remember those with the special flat buns................Cheers !! HF&RV

delete reply  wrote on Mar 4, '11 Ah yes sitting up on the roof with a bag of Maple leaf chips or an ice cream cone. Just checking out the girls. Never a wasted summer. Or doing fancy dives off the high board to impress the girls, then a nice easy five minute walk home. What wonderful summers I spent there.

edit delete reply  wrote on Mar 4, '11  said Ah yes sitting up on the roof with a bag of Maple leaf chips or an ice cream cone. Just checking out the girls. Never a wasted summer. Or doing fancy dives off the high board to impress the girls, then a nice easy five minute walk home. What wonderful summers I spent there.  Agreed........great summers for sure: Cheers !! HF&RV

delete reply wrote on Mar 4, '11 And just a few yards from the pool was "the pit" a small depressed area in the grass with bushes. We use to hang out there . Or under one of the red tops on the benches. Verdun and the Point hold many good memories for me.

edit delete reply  wrote on Mar 5, '11  said just a few yards from the pool was "the pit" a small depressed area in the grass  I also remember that Verdun gendarmes seem to know where it was at times.........hahahaha when a hasty departure was a wise move,,,,,,, Cheers ! HF&RV

delete reply wrote on Aug 9, '11 Holy Cow! Best memories ever. Grew up in Verdun, lived at the Nat...ate those hotdogs.....