Growing Up in Williamsport, Ohio

The Outhouse
 
Since the backyard and garden were low lying and got muddy every time it rained, my Dad and brother poured a cement sidewalk to both wells and to the outhouse. They did a good job because the sidewalk was still in good shape when I sold the lot they were on in October 2018.
 
I don’t know if the outhouse was there already or if my Dad purchased it. It was white but was natural wood on the inside. It looked new to me. I think it had one hole but may have had two. I didn’t like outhouses because I was always afraid of bees, spiders and snakes. Nevertheless, my family’s motto has always been, “You do what you have to do.”
 
I told the following story to my grandchildren and they found it to be unbelievable, so I thought it was worth repeating here. What did you do when the accumulation of “stuff” in the outhouse became a mountain? Well, you hire someone to come and clean it out. He came wearing hip boots. He had a team of horses pulling a wagon with two black, metal barrels in it. He opened a bottom hinged door in the back of the outhouse and commenced to shovel. The “stuff” was deposited into the barrels and then carted it off.  I don’t know where he carted the “stuff” to afterwards. I always watched everything that went on but I didn’t hang around too close to see that.
 
If your kids or grandkids think they have hard lives, tell them this story. It was a terrible job but somebody had to do it.
 
Oh, and my parents didn’t have a bathroom with a commode until I was in college (1956-1960). Today when I have plumbing problems, I panic.

©Marilyn Francis Ferguson 2019
Photography/graphics by Michele Ferguson Schuck