It is often incorrectly quoted that the toilet was invented by a Mr Thomas Crapper in the 18th century. Actually, simple toilets have been used since Babylonian times. In 1596, John Harrington invented an indoor water closet for Queen Elizabeth I. But Harrington then published a book with tasteless puns about his own invention. The toilet then dropped into obscurity for nearly 200 years. In 1775, London watchmaker Alexander Cummings patented the forerunner of today’s toilet. the standard flush toilet.
There was a Mr Crapper around at the time – he happened to be a successful plumber, appropriately.
The British word for toilet, “loo”, derives from the French “garde a l’eau!” In medieval Europe people had little conception of hygiene and threw the contents of their chamber pots out the window into the street below. In France the practice was preceded by “garde a l’eau!” (“watch out for the water!”). In England, this phrase was Anglicized, first to “gardy-loo!”, then just “loo”, and eventually came to mean the toilet/lavatory itself. The American word for toilet, “john”, is called after the John Harington mentioned above.
In 1913, the Russian airline became the first to feature a toilet on board. The movie Psycho is said to be the first film to show a toilet being flushed. Toilet paper is thought to have been introduced in China at around 850, long before the advent of the toilet as we know it.
TV commercial: Swedish self-cleaning toilet
View Comments to “Modern toilet invented by watchmaker”
Toilets are cool
It FlUsHeS!!!!! and the gut who invented it had the last name CRAPPER!!!! I feel good!!!
hey! yo yo yo! i love toilets!
i love toilets. they rock…to bad elvis died on one…
“But Harrington then published a book with tasteless puns about his own invention.”
I'd like a copy of that book!
yo!!! toilets are the best hoime!!!
who needs toilets when you've got nappies!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ROFL “crapper” and he inventd the toliet lmaooo
thomas crapper isnt the inventor it was J.F. Brondel who invented the flushvalve toilet Crapper just had alot of panents for different types of toilet products lucky for you guy im doing a report on toilets!
im doing a report on toilets for social studies
Well, it's really useful to know the name of the movie where the first toilet flush occurred.
I am doing a report on toilets for National history day
i am also doing a report on toilets too!!!!
omfg i am doing a report on toilets too
John Crapper may have been a plumber but let's face it if he hadn't been willing to get the 'dirty' work done back then, up to and including the first toilet installed in the building where they have the royal crownings and stuff do you really thing they would be so common now? If not we might still be throwing the chamber pot contents out the window after yelling a warning to those that might be walking by below ! ! ! Inventors get kudos, the salesmen and installers get shoved into the background … somehow that seems a bit unfair !!!
The first television show to air the sound of a toilet flushing was “All in the Family”.
[...] just shouting “Garde a l’eau!” (from which we get the word “loo” for toilet). Plagues in the 14th century encouraged tidier behaviour. But the Industrial Revolution brought [...]
I'm not finished read this yet, but it's so fabulous 'n I'll back again when I was finished my job :D
That is quite unusual, but definitely I love this thing on my toilet.