Druid Hill’s Memorial Pool
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While biking through Druid Hill Park I stumbled upon a large public pool filled with dirt and grass. An information tablet, though nearly aged beyond readability, indicates that the strange oasis is a memorial to the struggles of racial segregation and those that endured its hardships. During the first half of the 20th century Druid Hill Park operated under strict laws of separation, blacks and whites assigned to their own swimming and tennis facilities. In 1948, young tennis players of both races staged a collective competition on the segregated courts adjacent to pool no. 2. With around 500 spectators in attendance the historic event proceeded without incident until the police arrived and shut the exhibition down. The participants staged protest by refusing to leave the courts and a lengthy legal case followed. The event was an important and influential act in the nationwide civil rights movement that was rapidly taking shape as the 1950s approached. By June of 1956 the city’s parks were fully integrated. The memorial landscape was designed by artist Joyce J. Scott.
