Waikiki War Memorial Natatorium — Lewis P. Hobart, Honolulu

📷 More photos

💡 5 things to know

1. Duke swam firstThe pool opened on 24 August 1927, Duke Kahanamoku’s birthday, and the Olympic champion made the first ceremonial swim. Source Source Source Checked
2. Closed since 1979The pool was closed to the public in 1979 over safety concerns. Since then city political support has swung between renovation and demolition. Source Source Source Checked
3. The 2025 rebuild planIn June 2025 supporters backed a $30-35 million plan to rebuild the walls and pool, keep the arch and bleachers, and add two ocean openings for water circulation, aimed at the 2027 centennial, according to Beat of Hawaii. KHON2 put the cost at about $35 million. Source Source Reported
4. Mayor: ‘a long shot’In late August 2025 Mayor Rick Blangiardi called restoration ‘a long shot’, with costs now put at $50-100 million, and said he could not see a viable way forward, according to Beat of Hawaii. The city’s stated priority became the seawall protecting Kaimana Beach. Aloha State Daily later summarised his position as restoration being ‘no longer feasible’. Source Source Reported
5. 2026 bill went nowhereHawaii Senate bill S.B. 3291 (2026) proposed $30 million in state bonds to rehabilitate the natatorium and build a war memorial center. On 8 February 2026 it was removed from its only scheduled hearing, set for 9 February, and the bill died in committee. Source Source Checked

📍 Where it is

🗓️ Sightings

1. 192724 Aug

   Opens; Duke Kahanamoku swims first

2. 198011 Aug

   Listed on the National Register

3. 201711 Jan

   Photo: arch, seawall and pool from the beach · camera date

4. 202131 Oct

   Photo: entrance arch, gate locked · camera date

5. 202210 May

   Photo: facade and worn seawall · camera date

6. 202511 Jun

   Fenced off; $30-35M rebuild plan backed

7. 202527 Aug

   Mayor calls restoration ‘a long shot’

8. 202619 Oct

   Still standing, closed, no plan in motion

Green stamps mark dated photographs; amber stamps mark records or reports; red stamps mark loss. Publication dates are not camera dates.

🗞️ In the sources

✅ The facts

Official name

War Memorial Natatorium (National Register name); also Waikiki Natatorium War Memorial Source Source Checked

Architect

Lewis P. Hobart, San Francisco (first prize in the design competition) Source Source Source Checked

Built for

The Territory of Hawaii, authorised by the 1921 Territorial Legislature (Act 15), as a World War I memorial Source Source Source Checked

Opened

24 August 1927 Source Source Checked

Honours

About 10,000 people from Hawaii who served in World War I; the number who died is given as 101 by Friends of the Natatorium and 102 by Honolulu Civil Beat. We lean to 101, the figure of the memorial’s own support group. Source Source Conflicting

Pool size

100 m × 40 m, saltwater Source Source Source Checked

Style

Beaux-Arts; triumphal entrance arch and concrete bleachers thirteen levels high Source Source Checked

Closed to the public

1979, over safety concerns (the state bill, Star-Advertiser, Wikipedia and Friends of the Natatorium all say 1979, which we follow; Historic Hawaii Foundation’s page says 1970, and Wikipedia notes an earlier official closure in 1963 while use continued) Source Source Source Source Source Checked

National Register of Historic Places

Listed 11 August 1980, reference no. 80001283 Source Source Checked

Endangered list

National Trust’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places, 1995; named a National Treasure by the Trust in 2014, according to Friends of the Natatorium Source Source Checked

Restoration cost

Reliable reports differ by date: ‘at least $30 million’ (Civil Beat, Jan 2025), $30-35 million (Beat of Hawaii, Jun 2025), then $50-100 million as cited by the mayor (Beat of Hawaii, Aug 2025). We lean to the newest figure as the current official view. Source Source Source Conflicting

2027 centennial target

In 2025 the city and Friends aimed to have something to unveil for the August 2027 centennial; after the mayor called restoration ‘a long shot’ in August 2025, no new date has been reported. Source Source Source Reported

Status

Standing but closed to the public since 1979 and decaying; newest dated report 19 October 2026, newest dated photograph 10 May 2022. No demolition or restoration decision is reported Source Reported

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Last checked: 10 November 2026 · How we verify art