[Block 7B]

A necessary or "outhouse." Since people did not have indoor plumbing in the early 1800s, they had to get their water from the river or Chouteau's Pond (few successful wells were dug in colonial St. Louis). There were also no indoor bathrooms, so a "necessary" or simple pit toilet (called an "outhouse" by most people today) stood in the backyard of most homes.

Outbuildings or "dependencies" might also include a stable (in French an étable or écurie), shed (hangard), hen house (poulailler), corn house (cabane à mahis) and/or an oven (four). Richer habitants owned slaves; some slaves lived in cabins rather than the main house (cabane à négres). Even though these outbuildings once outnumbered the houses of the habitants, few if any Colonial era outbuildings have survived, even in relatively well-preserved towns like Ste. Genevieve, Missouri.