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Young Blonde Girl In The Bathtub
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In 1883, Standard Sanitary Manufacturing Company and Kohler Company began producing cast-iron bathtubs. Far from the ornate feet and luxury most associated with clawfoot tubs, an early Kohler example was advertised as a "horse trough/hog scalder, when furnished with four legs will serve as a bathtub." The item's use as hog scalder was considered a more important marketing point than its ability to function as a bathtub. Everyone knew what a hog scalder or horse trough was, but many people at that time had never bathed in a tub. The tubs eventually caught on because of the sanitary and easy-to-clean surfaces that prevent the spread of disease.
A few years later, Thomas Twyford created the first valveless toilet constructed from ceramic. Before this time, toilets were normally made from metal and wood. Thomas Crapper would gain fame as the inventor of the modern toilet when he bought the rights to a patent for a "Silent Valveless Water Waste Preventer", but he did not invent the toilet.
The end of World War I resulted in a housing construction boom in the United States and a new conception of the purpose-built modern bathroom. Bathrooms prior to World War I were typically converted bedrooms or spare rooms, not rooms built originally to contain bathroom fixtures. Complete with toilet, sink, and tub, the modern bathroom was a feature of 100% of new homes by the end of the 20th century, whereas only 1% of homes had had bathrooms in 1921.
In the latter half of the 20th century, the once popular clawfoot tub morphed into a built-in tub with a small apron front. This enclosed style afforded easier maintenance and, with the emergence of colored sanitary ware, more design options for the homeowner. The Crane Company introduced colored bathroom fixtures to the US market in 1928, and slowly this influx of design options and easier cleaning and care led to the near demise of clawfoot-style tubs.
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