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Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The public dunkerquois baths, also known as Bains Jean Bart, were built between 1895 and 1896 under the leadership of Mayor Alfred Dumont. Designed by the architects Louis Gilquin, G. Boidin and Albert Baert, the building consists of three distinct bodies: an entrance building with the director's apartment, a swimming pool covered with a roof with a lantern, and a space dedicated to bath-dowels and washbasins. The stone facades and mosaic decorations of enamelled bricks reflect the industrial aesthetics of the era, while exterior and interior staircases served the different levels.

As a hygienist, the establishment met the social needs of the 19th century by offering a swimming school, public baths and a washhouse. The interior was transformed in 1921, but the monument suffered major damage during the Second World War, losing its entrance bulb and chimney. The pool functioned until the 1960s before being abandoned. Today, despite its partial inscription in the Historical Monuments in 1982 (facades and roofs), the future of the Dunkerquois Baths remains uncertain.

The building illustrates the utility architecture of the late 19th century, mixing brick, stone and metal structures. The entrepreneurs involved — Ch. Tellier (masonry), L. Lecomte (terrace), P. Lecomte (zinc), and Reybaud (ferronry) — show a technical collaboration typical of the major construction sites of the period. The location, between the Rue de l'Écluse-de-Bergues and the Quai au Bois, highlighted its central role in the daily life of Dunkerquoise, before its gradual decline.

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