When Barbara Brandy was nine years old, a group of her family and friends tried to come into the Engman Public Natatorium to swim. At the time, the city-owned pool was segregated by day. Monday was the only day African Americans could swim. Barbara and her friends came after church on Sunday. The white man behind the ticket booth told them, “No.” 

This day was just one in the 68 years she spent in South Bend. The racism she faced, the life she was able to lead, and the stories she told, have inspired countless others. 

Read Barbara Brandy’s recollection of her experience at the Natatorium from a 2009 article in the South Bend Tribune: http://articles.southbendtribune.com/2009-02-09/news/26736874_1_natatorium-bathing-suit-red-today

Learn more of South Bend’s History from Michiana Memory: http://michianamemory.sjcpl.org/. 

Title music, “History Explains Itself,” from Josh Spacek. Visit his page on the Free Music Archive, http://www.freemusicarchive.org/.