> -----Original Message-----
> From: Heidi Harendza
> Sent: January 14, 2000 6:16 PM
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Outhouse!


> Do you have any idea-- is this a non-mechanical outhouse, or might it have
> originally had running water? This would be an even cooler discovery if it
> originally had running water. I've been looking for a picture of a set-up
> like this for a while. I did research on an Italianate townhouse
> in Trenton
> that I believe originally had an attached 'water-closet' that was only
> accessible from the outside. I've read about them, but I've never seen an
> example in person.

If the outhouse is contemporaneous with the construction of the house in
1893, it's not likely.  The city did not have a water system until 1887, and
then it was a privately owned system only for fire fighting in the central
core.  It wasn't until the early 1900s that the city bought the water works
and began to develop the system for potable water.  and this house was built
on the northern part of town outside the original 1-mile square, prior to
its being annexed.

It will take more careful analysis than my quick walk around afforded to
determine the full and exact pedigree of this serendipity.