Hepburn Pool, Historic swimming pool in Hepburn Springs, Australia
Hepburn Pool is a 50-meter outdoor swimming pool in Hepburn Springs where Spring Creek flows through the natural basin. Stone walls and terraced seating areas define its edges, creating a structure that blends with the surrounding landscape.
Hepburn Pool was built in the early 1930s for the Zelman family's Bellinzona Guest House and hosted Victorian swimming championships that decade. It closed in 1969 when an Olympic pool opened in Daylesford, then filled with silt. Volunteers led by Merv Keating of the Savoia Hotel conserved it in 1993–95 using old photographs, and it was added to the Victorian Heritage Register after Lisa Gervasoni's nomination and comparative analysis of pre-Olympic pools.
The pool was named Victoria's Favourite Built Place in 2004, during the state government's involvement in the International Year of the Built Environment. It was added to the Victorian Heritage Register after Lisa Gervasoni nominated it and compared it with other pre-Olympic pools in Victoria. Volunteers led by Merv Keating of the Savoia Hotel restored missing features in 1993–95 using old photographs.
Entry to the site is free, though swimming is currently not permitted for safety reasons. Visitors can walk around and explore the historic pool structure and the natural surroundings without restriction.
A concrete weir and stone walls shape the natural creek basin into the swimming pool, with an outlet valve that maintains the creek's natural water flow. This design shows how environmental considerations were built into the structure from the start.
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