State of the Art … for it’s time.
Have you ever seen such an elegant “4 seater” ? I ran across this one in Kernersville, North Carolina. It was the outhouse for an elaborate estate known as “Korner’s Folly”.
The estate was built in the late 1880’s by Jule Gilmer Korner who was an artist and interior designer. His creation was so unique that a cousin dubbed it his “folly” and the name caught on. The owner even set the name in tile outside the front door.
The day that I was there we had arrived too late to get in on the tour but we did peek in the windows and walk around the grounds.
That was when I spied the outhouse and one of the staff explained how it was used.
The central area (under the archway) was actually a waiting room where the guests could sit while they waited for a “hole” to become vacated !! It was considered quite a luxury during it’s day but I can’t imagine that it afforded much privacy.
The room to the right of the “waiting room” boasts a child-sized hole and a larger one for the ladies. The room to the left is the men’s area which is worn away now but is said to have housed two large holes. I guess that meant that enterprising gentlemen of that day could continue to carry on their business deals even when they were … dealing with their business !
posted by Ginnie at 11:23 AM
6 Comments:
It reminds me of a joke where somebody mistook WC to mean Wesleyan Chapel -- which seated 150 or something like that.
Wow, I am so grateful for my old bathroom! It is a neat looking building though. Love Di ♥
One of the most unusual public toilets I have ever seen was in the Roman ruins of Ephesus. A public toilet--with marble seats, all lined up. Apparently you could catch up on gossip while you...well, you get the picture.
I had to smile at this. My father told me that in his youth they had a 3 seater at the farm. I was shocked at this but now see that they were really upscale for the times.
WOW! I've never thought about anyone having more than a 1-2 seater at home.
What a interesting privy. It is an improvement upon the public washroom I used in Geneva years ago. There you didn't even get to sit down. You sort of suspended yourself over a hole in the floor.
I enjoy our outhouse which has only one hole but it is situated where you can leave the door open and enjoy the view and all of God's little creatures that pass by.
Our summer cottage had a two holer and my mother always took company with her. Women still seem to like go the the restroom with company. I have never understood this. What on earth do the talk about!
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