The privy midden (also midden closet) was a toilet system that consisted of a privy (outhouse) associated with a midden (or middenstead, ie a dump for waste). They were widely used in rapidly expanding industrial cities such as Manchester in England, but were difficult to empty and clean. A typical comment was that they were of "most objectionable construction" and "usually wet and very foul".[1] They were replaced eventually by pail closets and flush toilets. Similar systems still exist in some developing countries, but the term "privy midden" is now an archaism.
The privy-middens are of the most objectionable construction ...they are usually wet and very foul ... [excrement is] carried out by wheelbarrow or basket for some distance to the streets where the matter is often again deposited before its removal. This operation is performed by scavengers in the employ of the Corporation