Growing up in a century-old house came with quirks\u2014creaky floors, drafty windows, and a spooky basement. But what puzzled<\/p>\n
me most was the lone toilet sitting out in the open down there. No walls, no sink\u2014just a toilet. We never used it, but it stuck in my mind.<\/p>\n
Years later, while restoring old homes, I discovered this wasn\u2019t unique. These were called \u201cPittsburgh potties,\u201d<\/p>\n
common in older homes, especially in industrial cities like Pittsburgh. Back then, steelworkers and laborers<\/p>\n
would enter through basement doors to clean up before going upstairs, helping keep the house tidy.<\/p>\n
But these toilets served another purpose\u2014flood control. Before modern sewer systems, backups were common during<\/p>\n
storms or overuse. These basement toilets, placed directly above sewer entry points, acted as overflow relief.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Growing up in a century-old house came with quirks\u2014creaky floors, drafty windows, and a spooky basement. But what puzzled me most was the lone toilet sitting out… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":42306,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42305","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n