Public bathing

Public baths originated from a communal need for cleanliness at a time when most people did not have access to private bathing facilities. The term public is not completely accurate, as some types of public baths are restricted depending on membership, gender, religious affiliation, or other reasons. As societies have changed, the need for public baths has reduced as private bathing facilities became more commonly available. Public baths have also become incorporated into the social system as meeting places. As the title suggests public bathing does not refer only to bathing. In ancient times public bathing included saunas, massages and relaxation therapies. Members of the society considered it as a place to meet and socialize. Public bathing could be compared to the spa of modern times.

History

Indus Valley Civilization

The earliest public baths are found in the ruins in of the Indus Valley Civilization. According to John Keay, the "Great Bath" of Mohenjo Daro in present-day Pakistan was the size of 'a modest municipal swimming pool', complete with stairs leading down to the water at each one of its ends.

Asser Levy Public Baths

The Asser Levy Public Baths, now part of the Asser Levy Recreation Center, is a historic building located at the corner of Asser Levy Place and East 23rd Street in Kips Bay, Manhattan, New York City. It was named after Asser Levy, one of the first Jewish citizens of New York City, and a strong and influential advocate for civil liberties; it was built in 1904-06 and designed by Arnold W. Brunner and Martin Aiken of the firm Brunner & Aiken.

The baths were an important part of the drive to alleviate sanitary problems in the city. Many New Yorkers, especially immigrants living in overcrowded tenements, had no place to bathe – an 1896 survey found that there was one bathtub in the Lower East Side for every 79 families– and progressive social reformers pushed for the construction of public bathhouses modeled on those of ancient Rome. In 1895, the state passed a law requiring that localities build public baths, but New York City did not built its first bathhouse, on Rivington Street until 1901. In 1903, the city's Department of Docks and Ferries released land for a new bathhouse on 23rd Street, which was originally called the East 23rd Street Bathhouse. The design by Brunner & Aiken in Roman Revival style was inspired by Roman baths and the "City Beautiful" movement as well. The building now houses two swimming pools, one outdoors for use in the summer, and one indoors for the rest of the year, and a public health club. It is part of the Asser Levy Recreation Center, which also includes the Asser Levy Playground next door.