Technological Advances (3.1)

Flushing Toilets

1755 - s-trap invented by Cummings, sealed the bowl, prevented foul air
1856 - George Jennings opened a toilet business, small amount of water was retained in the pan
by the end of the 1950s, all new homes had to have a toilet
1875 - Thomas Twyford developed 'wash out' trap toilet
1888 - toilet pan refilled with clean water, this remained the standard through the 19th and 20th centuries

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waste usually piled up on land or in rivers
system of flushing gates to control flow was invented by John Doe in 1842
1870s/80s - flushing gates combined with hydraulic pumps to ensure constant flow - made them self-flushing
still emptied into natural systems
1912 - scientists at manchester uni developed sewage treatment method involving sludge

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provision down to private companies, slowed down release of tech to make more profit
1802 - Lambeth waterworks extended to supply Kennington and replaced wooden planks with cast iron ones
1808 - West Middlesex waterworks installed cast iron pipes
1822 - Southwark water company pumped water from the River Thames to customers. It was collected and stored in a tower before this
1829 - Chelsea waterworks company installed a sand filtration system to purify the water taken from the river thames
1838 - Grand Junction waterworks company built a pumping station near Kew Bridge at Brentford on the river thames to house three steam pumps
as the century progresses, water companies built reservoirs to enable a reliable supply of water to be pumped to houses

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