[PW] Re: original meaning of 'lavatory'

[John P. Dyson]

Quoting AllenAmet at aol.com:

> Hi,
>
>  I have come across an interesting conundrum, i.e. what the word "lavatory"
> usually meant around 1913 in Atlanta, GA.
>
>  In Leo Frank's courtroom statement, regarding his presence in the pencil
> factory, he said that around 4pm, he "happened to go out to the lavatory."  *
>
>  So what did he mean?  Further away, at the very end of the building, there
> was a bathroom toilet in an enclosure. but without a sink. Closer to his own
> office, there was a sink (by itself) with which to wash up.


Hi Allen,

Wasn't Frank raised in Brooklyn? What "lavatory" meant in Atlanta may 
not be relevant to what he said.

In the part of the south where I was raised, lavatory was always a 
plumbed wash basin. I thought "bathroom sink" was a funny construction 
when I went north (and I still do), since sinks for us were only found 
in kitchens, wash houses or other work areas.

FWIW,

John Dyson