M.M. Cloutier
Special to the Daily News
A century ago in Palm Beach, Olympic swimmers and aquatic stuntmen performed to the delight of affluent winter residents and visitors.
After all, swimming pools back then, still a relatively new concept in America, were often as much about spectacle as they were recreation.
The island was home to two pool complexes where, for several years, women were required to wear long frocks and opaque stockings when taking a dip.
If you wanted to witness lifeguards riding a 500-pound sea turtle in a pool, you went to a saltwater swimming-pool complex, called Gus’ Baths, which opened in 1910 across the street from today’s Midtown Beach.