Night Soil & Outhouses

The issue of night soil disposal is one that appeared in local newspapers in the late 1880s and 1890s. A special meeting was held by the Ipswich Municipal Council in May 1895 to consider passing a by-law for the better regulation of night soil.

In 1910, the Deputy Health Commissioner visited Ipswich to inspect the site selected at the rear of the cemetery for a sanitary depot and in 1911, the Council took over control of the sanitary service in Ipswich which had previously been run by Henry Carr. In July 1911, members of the Council and others visited the new depot south of the cemetery.

12 men worked at the Depot including the manager Mr. J. G. Wiseman. An article in the Queensland Times on 3 July 1911 described the visit and the depot:

There are four sanitary carts – three two-wheelers and one single-wheeler. These carts are neat in pattern and appear to run very lightly. The service will be carried on during the day time, but it is expected that it will conducted in such a cleanly fashion that no annoyance will be caused to the public. The cars will be expected to be out of the business portion of the city by 8 o’clock in the morning. The remaining portion of the city will be attended to during the day, and it is believed that the work will be finished by 3 or 4 p.m. For the carting away of rubbish there are two garbage-carts, and one spare dray.

 

The buildings at the depot, consist of a large shed for housing the carts with good stabling for the horses, manager’s office, and a tin-smith’s shop. The appliances for cleaning and disinfecting the pans are on up-to-date principle. In the grounds there is an ordinary copper, fitted up with a patent top. In this copper the pans are immersed, and, while hot, they are painted inside with boiling tar. A large shed has been built to hold saw-dust, spare tins, and so on. Under the roof of this shed there are two bricked-in boilers for soaking the pans and for disinfecting purposes. There is also a bath-room for the use of the men.

 

Thirteen horses will be put in use in the carrying out of the service. As these animals had been criticised at a meeting of the City Council, by one of the aldermen they came in for a good deal of attention on Saturday afternoon. One of them was a bit lame through having been kicked on the previous evening. The horses were harnessed and exercised in the vans for the benefit of the visitors. Generally speaking, the animals were regarded as a very good lot, and most of the business men present were of the opinion, in the purchase of these horses, the council had got very good value for their money.