Piece of History: Desegregating Ellis swimming pool

This photo from the 1940s shows the first public swimming pool in Cedar Rapids at Ellis Park. The pool, which opened in June 1941, initially barred people of color from entry, but that policy was dropped in 1945 after the NAACP threatened to sue. (The History Center)

The entry to the Ellis Park swimming pool in Cedar Rapids was built in 1941, the same year the pool opened to the public. (The History Center)

Cedar Rapids’ first municipal swimming pool in Ellis Park opened in June 1941.

Robert Johnson, a student at Coe College, was denied admittance to the new Ellis Pool due to his race during the summer of 1942. Johnson and his family organized a fight against that policy.

Johnson’s aunt, Viola Gibson, helped reactivate the Cedar Rapids branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. With help from the NAACP — and the threat of a lawsuit — the pool’s policy changed in phases.

At first, specific hours were set aside for integrated swimming. In 1945, restrictions were dropped and the pool was open to all.

Segregated public pools continued to be topic of national debate for decades, with public pools desegregating in Washington, D. C., in 1950, in Baltimore in 1956 and in Birmingham, Ala., in 1962.

In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled no private swim club could exclude someone from becoming a member due to their race.

In Cedar Rapids, Gibson continued to champion racial justice. She pushed for the first Black history classes for local students. When parents pushed back, she opened the classes to adults as well. In 1964, she led a campaign to get Iowa lawmakers to vote for the Civil Rights Act, which prohibited discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin.