What is the history of "going to the bathroom"? What did people do before toilets and outhouses?

Question

I have never seen this subject researched. Is there a book about it? A writer would have to have a lot of intestinal fortitude to bring the subject up but I bet it would make a good seller. But it seems interesting to me for some reason. How did people in cities, castles and villages get rid of body waste long ago? They could not have just buried it nearby or they would run out of places to put it.

Answer 1

They'd just go out into the fields and fertilize it.  Or the rascally ones would go to the hamlet down the road and take a dump on the front porch and bang the door gong.  At least that's how they did it in China.  Europe was much different.  Their method didn't work very good cause it caused the plague.

Answer 2

The wealthy people in like the 1800s had little nice bowls and then their maids would clean them out.

During the medieval time, they just threw all contents out on the streets.

The sad thing is, in some parts of the world even today, towns have a ditch where the whole town goes to use the restroom.  

I do remember watching a video on Pompeii when I was in middle school saying how some historians believe them to have a version of a bathroom that we see today.

Answer 3

ewwww why do u even wanna know

Answer 4

The plague was caused by fleas on rats. But good try to all who blamed it on poo.

Answer 5

They pooped in a pot and then threw it out the window to the alley below, that's why men walk on the outside --in case of flying pot contents or horse carriages splashing by. The black plague was probably promoted by these less than hygienic practices. In ancient Rome and Greece they had public potty's, holes bored in slabs of rock like benches, I guess the p**p just fell below!