History of public restrooms in St. Petersburg

The development of a city is evidenced by its infrastructure and residents' attitudes toward hygiene issues. St. Petersburg's location, difficult soil conditions, and constant flooding problems turned the installation of urban utilities into a complex engineering challenge. Additionally, many urban myths and legends are associated with the creation of public restrooms in St. Petersburg, and some of these structures could have been considered architectural monuments had they survived to the present day.

Concern for St. Petersburg's hygiene began with its founder, Peter the Great, who sought to create a city modeled after European examples. According to his decree, public restrooms were to be established in all crowded places — in markets, parks, at the port, at inns, etc. The first "retiradniks" in St. Petersburg were essentially ordinary wooden houses with a hole in the floor above a cesspit. These establishments were serviced by "zolotari" (night soil men) — one of the most important professions in the city. During festivals, temporary public toilets were also set up, enclosed by plank fences and without a roof.

Throughout the 18th century, virtually nothing changed in this regard, as there was no plumbing or sewage system.

In the 19th century, "retiradnye mesta" (retiring places) began to be actively built for the upper class, and such projects were often undertaken by very famous architects.

In the 1790s, architect Giacomo Quarenghi (who created the Hermitage Theatre and Academy of Sciences buildings) designed a pavilion-toilet for servants, located near the Alexander Palace in Tsarskoye Selo. Externally, it looked like a small park pavilion. Similar pavilions were built not only in royal residences but also by aristocrats on their estates.

However, for the majority of St. Petersburg residents, the problem of public restrooms in the city remained acute. The situation only changed with the appearance of a combined sewage system and centralized water supply (1858).

The first public toilet in St. Petersburg is considered to be the retiradnik in the square near the Manege on Mikhailovskaya Square. It was built in 1871 according to the design of engineer-architect I.A. Merz, a professor of architecture at the Imperial Academy of Arts. The author of the project described it in the journal "Zodchiy" in 1872: "The retiradnik was designed as wooden, made of logs covered with boards on both sides, on a stone foundation and with an iron roof. It contained a place for a urinal, two water closets, and a small room for a watchman; it was abundantly supplied with water, illuminated by gas, and heated by a cast-iron fluted stove burning coke, while the watchman's room had a small Russian stove."

Following the design of I.A. Merz, five more public toilets were built in the 1870s: in the Summer Garden, near the Alexandrinsky Theatre, opposite the Nikolsky Market (Nikolsky Rows), near the Lion Bridge, and on Malaya Konyushennaya Street.

However, this number was insufficient for the city.

By the end of the 19th century, pissoirs (from French pissoir) appeared on some St. Petersburg streets, following the example of European capitals. These were painted structures made of thick sheet iron, measuring approximately three by one and a half meters and slightly over two meters in height. Entrances without doors were located on the sides. The toilets were illuminated by gas lamps, and cleanliness was maintained by continuously flowing water. Such structures were located in the Alexander and Summer Gardens, Isaakievsky Square, near the General Staff Building, Konnogvardeisky Boulevard, and near the Anichkov Bridge. However, this form of public restroom in St. Petersburg could only function during the summer months.

Further organization of heated public restrooms was associated with the construction of horse-drawn trams, and later, electric tram lines. Public restrooms began to be organized at route terminals for the convenience of drivers and passengers.

In the early 1900s, identical mansions with turrets began to appear in different parts of the city, giving rise to one of the city's curious urban legends.

Merchant Georgy Alexandrov, a well-known city philanthropist, fell in love with a baroness in his old age. The lady gladly accepted his courtship, but when Alexandrov proposed to her, she rejected him—and even ridiculed him. The lady could be understood—the merchant was old, of peasant origin, and moreover, married.

Deeply offended, Alexandrov decided to take revenge. At his own expense, he built a public toilet directly opposite the baroness's house, exactly replicating her famous countryside mansion known throughout the city. The insulted baroness moved to another district of St. Petersburg, but soon an identical mansion appeared under her windows there too. The lady changed her address for the third time—but the story repeated itself there as well... In the end, she was forced to leave the city.

It is difficult to judge how authentic this legend is, but the pavilions were indeed built during the laying of the tram line with Georgy Alexandrov's money, according to the design of engineer-architect A.I. Zazersky.

Currently, three such structures remain in the city—near the Blagoveshchensky Bridge, on Alexandrovsky Prospekt, and on Theatre Square. Two are still used for their original purpose. Photographs from the 1920s show the metallic top of the pavilion, which has not survived to the present day.

Another unusual toilet in the form of a miniature country villa with turrets was located in Alexandrovsky Park (at the site of the Gorkovskaya metro station). The building was constructed in 1906, designed by the same architect A.I. Zazersky. The pavilion combined a public toilet and a waiting area for horse-drawn trams, and later for electric trams. In addition to separate men's and women's sections, this toilet had separate facilities for boys and girls. It existed until 1968 and was dismantled due to the construction of the metro station.

By 1916, St. Petersburg had 33 public toilets (not counting pissoirs).

By 1917, St. Petersburg had no more than 40 public restrooms, but by 1927 their total number exceeded 70. These were mainly brick and reinforced concrete structures built according to standard designs. They often still functioned as tram stops.

The public restroom on Vosstaniya Square, built in 1927, housed a tram dispatcher's office. During the Great Patriotic War (World War II), the building was converted into a pillbox, and in 1944 it was dismantled.

There were attempts to build street restrooms of a "new type." For example, in 1920, Soviet architect A.I. Gegello—one of the ideologists of constructivism—proposed a project for an underground toilet. However, the project was never realized.

With the beginning of perestroika, the number of public toilets decreased—premises began to be privatized and repurposed. This affected not only standalone structures but also restrooms located in semi-basement floors of buildings.

Today, these spaces house small shops, bars, cafes, and restaurants. For example, not far from the Church of the Savior on Spilled Blood and the Mikhailovsky Garden, the restaurant "Park Giuseppe" operated for many years in the building of a former public toilet; now a restaurant called "Marso Polo" has opened in its place. At the site of the "Povari" restaurant on Bolshoy Prospekt of the Petrograd Side, another bar has opened. Some establishments close, others open... Nevertheless, many facilities are still managed by "Vodokanal" (Water Utility) and continue to operate for their original purpose.