During WWI, British and American troops found these devices in the brothels that they frequented, leading them to assume that they were only used by women for vaginal douching. In other words, men no longer use them. The material of choice among colonial America was corn cobs.
Wiping in the Medieval Times
Before toilet paper was even a concept, people just used whatever was available to wipe. This included items such as hay, wood shavings, corn cobs, and even iron cables.
Leaves, sticks, moss, sand and water were common choices, depending on early humans' environment. Once we developed agriculture, we had options like hay and corn husks. People who lived on islands or on the coast used shells and a scraping technique.
In the late 15th century, paper became readily available, so newspaper was commonly used as toilet paper.
The ration size Waldorf Toilet Paper Reproduction is filled with usable tissue. These packs appeared in many of the Ration sets, including K-rations. Waldorf Toilet Paper was made for the US Army by Scott Tissue. Waldorf brand toilet paper dates back to 1890, when it was the first paper sold in rolls.
"This toilet paper packet was issued to soldiers daily during World War I and World War II. Since the United States did not join the war until 1917, it is likely that these packets were not issued until then."
Use the latrines
Toilets – known as latrines – were positioned as far away as possible from fighting and living spaces. The best latrines came in the form of buckets which were emptied and disinfected regularly by designated orderlies. Some latrines were very basic pit or 'cut and cover' systems.
In the 1700s, colonial Americans began using old newspapers and catalogs to wipe. In 1792, American Robert B. Thomas put a hole through the corner of the Old Farmer's Almanac so it could be hung from a hook in the outhouse. The idea was that you could read a page while doing your business, then wipe with it [*][*].
The Romans cleaned their behinds with sea sponges attached to a stick, and the gutter supplied clean flowing water to dip the sponges in. This soft, gentle tool was called a tersorium, which literally meant “a wiping thing.”
Before that, they used whatever was handy -- sticks, leaves, corn cobs, bits of cloth, their hands. Toilet paper more or less as we know it today is a product of Victorian times; it was first issued in boxes (the way facial tissue is today) and somewhat later on the familiar rolls.
Bidets in Japan are very popular. A bidet is a small bathroom fixture that sprays water to clean your bottom. You can use a handheld bidet to clean yourself after using the toilet.
Why are all the toilet seats missing in Italian public bathrooms? Seat-free toilets are seen as more hygienic because strangers aren't sharing the same toilet seat. Toilet seats are also often broken by patrons and are expensive and difficult to replace.
A lot of this deforestation supplies the luxury consumer – recycled paper isn't as gentle on your tush. Yet 70% of the world's population doesn't use toilet paper at all. Big areas of southern Europe, Africa, and Southeast Asia use water instead.
However, even a King or a Queen needs to use the (Royal) Potty sometimes, so where did they use it? Within their own properties, there were rooms specifically for their own private use. The Close Stool or Privy was the Medieval and 16th-century versions of the modern toilet.
In Europe, toilet paper is certainly an option for sanitation, but most occupants overseas prefer to use the bidet for cleaning themselves post toilet use. Bidets feature a mounted spout that sprays water when the occupant is in place and able to press a button.
What Did People Use Before Toilet Paper? Paper itself is said to have contributed to a Golden Age in China, with the pulp making process attributed to a chap called Ts'ai Lun (pictured right), a Chinese court official who mixed mulberry bark, hemp, and rags with water.
The ancient Romans also practiced dental hygiene.
They used frayed sticks and abrasive powders to brush their teeth. These powders were made from ground-up hooves, pumice, eggshells, seashells, and ashes.
Ancient Greeks often used stones ("pessoi") or fragments of ceramic ("ostraka") to wipe. Pessoi as wiping objects are found in Ancient Greek art, writings, and even proverbs. For example, an ancient Greek wine cup depicts a squatting man mid-wipe with a cane in one hand and a pessoi in the other.
Public baths and toilets, many “gender neutral," were the norm in ancient Rome. Rome collapsed and public baths and toilets disappeared, because there was no longer the infrastructure or public money to support them.
From Seashells to Communal Sponges
In very ancient times, wiping with stones and other natural materials and rinsing with water or snow was common. Some cultures opted for seashells and animal furs.
The first commercially available toilet roll appeared in 1857 thanks to Joseph Gayetty who sold “Medicated Paper for the Water Closet” which was sold in packs of 500 sheets. A few decades later the first perforated toilet paper rolls appeared on the market in 1890 thanks to the Scott Paper Company of Philadelphia.
Although modern-day toilet paper was invented in the United States in 1857, the introduction of toilet paper to Australia came decades later and coincided with the building of city sewers. Adelaide had a drainage system by 1885, while Sydney's was only partially complete by 1876.
The stink of war
Then there was the smell. Stinking mud mingled with rotting corpses, lingering gas, open latrines, wet clothes and unwashed bodies to produce an overpowering stench. The main latrines were located behind the lines, but front-line soldiers had to dig small waste pits in their own trenches.
The ship's toilet was typically placed at the head of the ship near the base of the bowsprit, where splashing water served to naturally clean the toilet area.
The job fell to the American Graves Registration Service, the Transportation Corps, and thousands of civilian employees. Moving from country to country, they located graves, disinterred and formally identified remains, prepared bodies for permanent burials, and sent them home by ships and trains.