The first tepid bath was built in 1914 in Auckland as an indoor public pool on the earlier site of a small drydock. In the first two months, it has already gained general consent and had about30, 000 visitors. A major renovation took place in 2012; the bath was reopened and also won the New Zealand Project Management Institute’s (PMINZ) Public Sector Project of the Year Awards.

The Kahanamoku Swimming Carnival was the first competition that was held at the tepid baths in 1915. The game was named after Duke Kahanamoku, a swimming celebrity from Hawaii who paid a visit to New Zealand in 1915 and swam at the tepid baths.

Initially, the tepid baths were rented from the Auckland Harbour Board, and they contained two separate pools; a female (18m, four lanes) and a male (25m, six lanes). In the whole of New Zealand, the male pools were the largest, and they were heated with hot water from a close tramways power plant. This system was recognised as the engineering model of its time.

About 1931, the pools were used for several activities, which included recreational and competitive swimming, and in one instance, it was used for baptism by a Pentecostal minister. Two custodians were managing the pools – Billy Savidan (A runner) and Malcolm Champion (A swimmer) who was known for his frequent swims across the harbour to the North Shore home.