At your last festival, carnival, or outdoor event, you may have found yourself searching for a "pot of gold" at the end of the rainbow: the porta potty.
Humble Beginnings
Before indoor plumbing became widespread in the 20th century, people relied on outdoor facilities. Outhouses stored waste in buried pits and were moved when full. Chamber pots--ceramic or metal vessels--served as portable alternatives, typically kept under beds and emptied each morning, often by household servants.
The Necessities of War
Despite indoor plumbing becoming common by the 1920s, modern portable toilets emerged during World War II. Navy personnel needed quick restroom access at docks. The initial designs were crude constructions of wood and steel--heavy, difficult to maintain, and prone to absorbing unpleasant odors.
Present-Day Porta Potties
Today's portable restrooms come in multiple configurations: standard-size, deluxe-size, handicapped-accessible, and luxury units. They're ubiquitous at carnivals, festivals, construction sites, and outdoor celebrations--far advanced from their humble origins.
Porta Potty Direct delivers thoroughly cleaned and sanitized units nationwide, available 24/7.