It's quite common to see portable toilets nowadays, whether at construction sites, large gatherings, events, etc. But did you know that portable toilets got their big start during the 1940's during World War II?
It was during that time that the first crude portable toilets were used on a large scale basis at the Long Beach Shipyards in California. At the time, (besides all of the other war efforts like war bonds, aircraft building, munitions, etc) there was a huge need to build and repair the naval vessels used in the war effort. This involved many laborers, (including many women that joined the workforce for the first time -- up to 6 million nationwide -- which were collectively and affectionately called "Rosie the Riveter"), which had to travel quite a distance every time they needed to use the bathroom.
Below is an aerial view of the Long Beach Shipyard, along with Reeves Field Naval Air Station and Roosevelt Base in 1958:
Photo courtesy of "RustyBattleship" at worldaffairsboard.com
The area has undergone many transformations since World War II. The next photo is another aerial view of the Long Beach Shipyards, from the opposite direction, taken in 1993:
In order to save time, small wooden 'cabanas' were made, which used modified 55 gallon drums as a waste tank, and were placed on board the ships that were being worked on. The waste tanks within these "portable toilets" would be emptied as needed, and the workers would save anywhere between 10 to 40 minutes for each trip they had to make to the restroom. This may not seem like a lot of time, but when you multiply it times hundreds or thousands of collective trips each day, you can see how it was important! The added bonus was that, while toilets were heavy compared to today's standards, they were easily moved; hence the term "portable". So the toilet could be moved around, as the construction or repair on the ship progressed.
After the war, and with the return of the troops to the mainland, the housing boom started, and the portable toilets were found to be perfect in the construction industry. Slowly, the design of the toilet changed; first to fiberglass walls, and then to plastic (polyethylene), which is still widely used today, because of its light weight, its imperviousness to water and the fact that it does not absorb odor.
In addition to the construction industry, the portable toilet is used extensively today for large gatherings and events, where standard toilets simply cannot handle a large amount of traffic.
To see a vast array of portable toilets available to rent, check out the CALLAHEAD Corp. in New York -- you'll be amazed!
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