Once known as the East 54th Street Public Baths and Gymnasium, the recreation center has undergone some changes in the past hundred years, but its underlying purpose has remained the same: to offer low-cost public bathing and gym facilities to New York City residents. Built in 1911, when most of the city's working class had little access to running water, the primary goal was to provide a place to bathe and a swimming pool that was open to children in the summer and adults during the rest of the year. In addition, a gymnasium was constructed. Today, the history of the Recreation Center can be seen in the building itself: at four stories, the neoclassical exterior is imposing, with brick columns leading to its two entrances. Inside, the staff is welcoming, and a window in the lobby opens onto the pool, which is reminiscent of how it must have looked in the early days of the twentieth century.