The Down-low
Acts of architectural daring are one of the few lasting memorials that will keep a name on people’s tongues – art, fashion, entertainment; all of these may pass into history based on the fickle opinion of the public, but, build a two-story bathroom and people will remember you.
From wikipedia (emphasis mine):
The Hooper-Bowler-Hillstrom House was built in 1871 in Belle Plaine, Minnesota by Sandford A. Hooper […] In 1886, it conveyed to Samuel Bowler, a founder of the State Bank of Belle Plaine and lumber-yard owner. Bowler added a new kitchen, buttery, and a five-hole, two-story outhouse that is connected to the house via a skyway.
I’m no outhouse expert, but five holes just seems decadent – I mean, for an outhouse.
OK, that clearly says “outhouse,” right? As in “no plumbing, waste drops through a hole in the floor into a ditch,” right? I just have to be sure because I will NEVER sit on the first floor of that outhouse.
My first thought exactly, but apparently there’s a false wall in the ground level room that allows, uh, uninterrupted flow/usage.
I commend this man on his ingenius lazyness.