The pages were softer and more absobent, more like newsprint, instead of the 
slick, glossy photo catalogs we see today. They also provided reading 
material.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Lonny J. Watro" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, May 01, 2007 6:48 PM
Subject: Re: [VA-HIST] Before the Portable Toilet


> Corn husks! Right? That old discarded corn cob at the out house must have 
> had some purpose. And for the life of me, I never could fathom using the 
> old dried out cob. I figured they used the husks. In the woods, I would 
> hope they knew what poision ivy, oak and sumac looked like. Yikes! And in 
> the early 1900's did they really did use the pages of the Sears Roebuck 
> Catalog?
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Selby, John" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Tuesday, May 01, 2007 2:17 PM
> Subject: Re: Before the Portable Toilet
>
>
> While the discussion has been informative, there must have been
> considerable folk wisdom concerning the best leaves for cleaning, what
> insect havens to look for, what to do in the winter, and so on.  Do
> readers of this list know of books, perhaps from European history, that
> cover these matters in detail?
>
> John Selby
> Roanoke College
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Discussion of research and writing about Virginia history
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Brent Tarter
> Sent: Tuesday, May 01, 2007 10:36 AM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Before the Portable Toilet
>
> I noticed yesterday that in preparation for the Thursday visit of Queen
> Elizabeth to Richmond the grounds staff has placed more than 75 bright
> blue and green portable toilets in Capital Square, where a large crowd
> is expected. They add a dash of color to the scene, but I am not sure
> that on they whole they classify as a thing of beauty and a joy forever.
>
> I wonder, though, for all the centuries before portable toilets, what
> corresponding preparations got made for large, protracted gatherings of
> people at such events as revival meetings, political rallies, and the
> like. Several thousand people spent the day on Jamestown Island in May
> 1857 celebrating the first settlement of the colony, for instance, but
> accounts of that event that I have seen  mention speaking and eating and
> drinking but nothing else.
>
> I suppose that people researching such events may have encountered some
> references to that important subject, even though once upon a time it
> might have been regarded as improper to mention it. Students of social
> history or public health may also have knowledge of this subject, but I
> confess that I do not recall seeing any references at all.
>
> Perhaps somebody out there can satisfy our purely empirical curiosity
> about that part of the past.
>
> Brent Tarter
> The Library of Virginia
> [log in to unmask]
>
> Visit the Library of Virginia's Web site at http://www.lva.lib.va.us