:: mike errico diary ::

:: Friday, July 22, 2005 ::

Let's put an end to the debate.
Source: RotoRooter.com

Did Thomas Crapper really invent the toilet?

The debate over who Thomas Crapper was, or even if there was a Thomas Crapper at all, continues. Below are some of the facts flushed out by Dr. Andy Gibbons, historian of the International Thomas Crapper Society, and Ken Grabowski, a researcher and author who is writing a book on Crapper's life.

Myth: Thomas Crapper as a person never existed.

Fact: Though we do not know his actual date of birth, we can say a man, Thomas Crapper, was probably born in September, 1836, since he was baptized the 28th of that month. He died on January 27, 1910.

Myth: Thomas Crapper invented the toilet.

Fact: Although from 1861 to 1904 Crapper did have a successful career in the plumbing industry, holding nine patents for plumbing-related products in England, he did not invent the toilet. Albert Giblin holds the 1819 British Patent for the Silent Valveless Water Waste Preventer, a system that allowed a toilet to flush effectively. Giblin worked for Crapper as an employee and the most likely scenario is that Crapper bought the patent rights from Giblin and marketed the device himself.

Myth: The word crap is derived from Thomas Crapper's name.

Fact: World War I doughboys passing through England saw the words T. Crapper Chelsea printed on the water tanks and coined the slang crapper meaning toilet.



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:: mike 2:14 PM [+] ::