Outhouses

Before World War II few people in the rural areas of America had indoor plumbing. They had to resort to the "outhouse" for waste disposal. Most of them were made of wood boards. Few would win any design awards.....but they were built for function; not fashion. Most of them were "two-holers" but some had more or less than two.

In early times, corn cobs served as clean up items. Two red ones and one white one usually did the trick. Later, mail order catalogs repleced corn cobs.....a quantum leap in comfort

There was usually only one outhouse per family. It had a latch on the inside to insure privacy. Everyone had to wait their turn. In case of emergency, the woods or behind the barn "had to do". Churches and other places of public gatherings usually had two outhouses to satisfy gender needs. People spent little time contemplating in the outhouse. It was too "aromatic" for that. The outhouse also provided homes for insects and other undesirable critters. That added to the less than homey ambiance inside. This also contributed to the short tenure of occupants.