Pittsburgh Basement Bathroom 1945

A Pittsburgh toilet A Pittsburgh toilet, or Pittsburgh potty, is a basement toilet configuration commonly found in the area of Pittsburgh in the United States. It consists of an ordinary flush toilet with no surrounding walls. Most of these toilets are paired with a crude basement shower apparatus and large sink, which often doubles as a laundry room.

Basically, cleaning up a concrete floor in an empty basement is easier than cleaning up a nice bathroom! That's also why refinishing one's basement wasn't a thing back then. Opinions vary, but one thing is for sure: toilets in the basement are an outdated concept. Find out what a Pittsburgh potty is.

This way, the Pittsburgh potties prevented any nasty messes in the finished areas of the home by containing sewage backup to the unfinished basement, where the concrete floors were much easier to clean than a nice bathroom or kitchen. Thankfully, plumbing has come a long way since then. And if you're lucky-well, it's actually quite probable-your basement will be home to a Pittsburgh potty.

In many Pittsburgh houses built before World War II, there is a toilet in the basement-but there's not a full bathroom. With no walls surrounding it, the toilet is usually just sitting there against a wall in the middle of the room. What Is the Pittsburgh Toilet? A Pittsburgh toilet is a precarious toilet you'll find in some homes made before World War II.

It's typically located in the basement of a home. However, while a standard bathroom would offer some privacy, these toilets don't have walls and provide minimal amounts of privacy. Early 20th century homes in Pittsburgh and other northeastern cities have a feature that's long been the butt of jokes: a lone toilet in the basement.

Chances are if you grew up in the Pittsburgh area or even visited one of its homes growing up that you noticed a toilet - not a full bathroom, but a toilet. Basement toilets can come in handy, especially if there are multiple people living in an older house with only one finished bathroom. But Pittsburgh's basement toilets often lack any accompanying sinks, showers or, more notably, walls.

Pittsburgh has been known historically as a 'Steel City'. It is thought that many workers had these toilets in their basements so they could come home from work, clean themselves off, and use the bathroom before going upstairs.