Peebles Swimming Pool

Indoor Activities
On the lower ground near the river is Peebles Swimming Pool, designed in 1983 by the Edinburgh architects Morris & Steedman. The pool occupies the site where the Rood Mill was located which was first mentioned in town records in 1461.

About Peebles Swimming Pool

On the lower ground near the river is Peebles Swimming Pool, designed in 1983 by the Edinburgh architects Morris & Steedman. If you have time, the pool provides an excellent opportunity for a relaxing swim. The pool occupies the site where the Rood Mill was located which was first mentioned in town records in 1461. This grain mill was converted to a walking mill in the 18th century and it continued in use until it was burned down in 1965. The water which powered the mill was diverted into the lade from the cauld which you can still see in the River Tweed.

On the higher ground on your right is the site of the town's Royal Castle, which was built during the reign of King David I (1124 – 1153). It was in Peebles that his son, Henry, drowned in 1152. The prince was buried in Kelso Abbey, near the Royal Castle of Roxburgh. The Castle guarded the approach to the Old Town from the south (over Tweed Bridge) and from the east (over the Tree Bridge). Protection would also have been given to the ‘new‘ town which had begun to be built to the east sometime in the 12th or 13th century.
The castle was probably deliberately demolished by the Scots during the Wars of Independence in order that it did not fall into the hands of the English. After 1327, the castle no longer appears in official documents and this would seem to indicate the time of demolition. Between the removal of the final remains of the Castle in 1685 and construction of the first parish church in 1783, the ground was used as a bowling green.

In 1828 a local gas company was formed in the town and the council decided to install gas street lamps. The first site suggested for the gas works was a pan of the Old Town Green just over the Cuddy but it was decided to site the works behind the Parish Church. Here they remained until 1905, when an increase in gas use led to the works being re-sited to the east of the town - although these have since been removed.

More like Peebles Swimming Pool