An Old Marble-Top Lavatory
With the perfecting and cheapening of plumbing fixtures came an increased demand for their use, and the attention of public-minded citizens turned to means for providing the people less favored with worldly riches with means for cleansing the person and apparel. Liverpool, England, was the first of modern cities to establish public bath houses. The first bath in that city was established in 1828, and is known as the Pierhead. It contains eleven private baths, two vapor baths, one douche, one plunge 46 x 27 feet, one plunge 40 x 27 feet, and two small private plunges. In all, Liverpool has at the present time nine public baths.
Birmingham, England, was next in point of time. It now has five bath houses, the first of which was built on Kent Street, and opened May 12, 1851. In this establishment a Turkish bath can be had for a shilling.
London, England, follows on the heels of Birmingham, with eleven bath houses, the first of which was erected in 1854. At present municipal London has invested over $2,500,000 in public baths and laundry establishments, which cost $550,000 annually to maintain.
A Modern Porcelain Enameled Lavatory
Provisions for free public baths were made in New York in 1870 by the erection of two floating baths. These bath houses, however, could only be used during warm weather, so could not be considered, in the full sense of the word, bathing establishments. The New York Association for Improving the Condition of the Poor, realizing this and the lack of public bathing facilities, undertook to supply the deficiency as far as possible, and in 1891 opened the first real public bath house in the United States, at 9 Centre Market Place. Yonkers, N. Y., however, claims the credit of being the first city in the United States to establish a municipal bath house, supplied with hot and cold water, open all the year round, and maintained at the public expense.