The White OutHouse

In researching 1835 for a screenplay I'm writing, I needed to find out about plumbing and the existence or lack thereof.

Indoor plumbing was spotty at the time and I had to decide if my character's humble abode had a water closet or an outhouse.

From there, my addled brain took a turn to the White House. Which of our august chief executives had the privilege of a toilet and who had to trek out to the Rose Garden for a little hands on fertilizing?

Who knew the White House had few amenities for a long time? Congress apportioned funds for building and renovations, and back then they were spendthrifts instead of today's porkbellies.

When Adams took office (Washington didn't live in the Presidents House... later to be called the Executive Mansion, and only after it was burned down by the British in 1815 and was rebuilt that it became the White House), there was no water at all. Servants had to carry it in from 5 blocks away.

The first toilet was installed in 1902. No wonder so many of our early presidents had sour looks on their faces for their presidential portraits.