A lavoir (wash-house) is a public place set aside for the washing of clothes. Communal washing places were common in Europe until industrial washing was introduced, and this process in turn was replaced by domestic washing machines and by launderettes. The English word is borrowed from the

French language French ( or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages. French evolved from Gallo-Romance, the Latin spoken in Gaul, and more specifically in Nor ...

, which also uses the expression ''bassin public'', "public basin".

Description

Lavoirs were built from the seventeenth to the early twentieth centuries. With Baron Haussmann's redesign of Paris in the 1850s, a free lavoir was established in every neighbourhood, and government grants encouraged municipalities across France to construct their own. Lavoirs are more common in certain areas, such as around the

Canal du Midi The Canal du Midi (; ) is a long canal in Southern France (french: le Midi). Originally named the ''Canal royal en Languedoc'' (Royal Canal in Languedoc) and renamed by French revolutionaries to ''Canal du Midi'' in 1789, the canal is considere ...

. Lavoirs are commonly sited on a spring or set over or beside a river. Many lavoirs are provided with roofs for shelter. With the coming of piped

water supplies Water supply is the provision of water by public utilities, commercial organisations, community endeavors or by individuals, usually via a system of pumps and pipes. Public water supply systems are crucial to properly functioning societies. Thes ...

and modern drainage, lavoirs have been steadily falling into disuse although a number of communities have restored ancient lavoirs, some of which date back to the 10th century. There are also ''bateaux-lavoirs'' ("laundry boats") in some towns on the banks of large rivers such as Paris and Lyon.

Gallery

Image:Groix-lavoir.jpg, A lavoir at Groix Image:Bourgogne_Noyers-sur-Serein_lavoir.jpg, Lavoir at

Noyers-sur-Serein Noyers (; often referred to as ''Noyers-sur-Serein'') is a commune in the Yonne department in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in north-central France. There are half-timbered houses, ashlars, pillars and pinnacles. There are many cobbled lanes and small ...

Image:Lavoir-gunstett.jpg, Lavoir at Gunstett Image:Imm015BateauxLavoirsLavalFrance050105smallGFDLMelusin.jpg, Laundry boat at

Laval Laval means ''The Valley'' in old French and is the name of: People * House of Laval, a French noble family originating from the town of Laval, Mayenne * Laval (surname) Places Belgium * Laval, a village in the municipality of Sainte-Ode, Luxem ...

Image:MHNT PHa 912 T144.jpg, Laundry boat in Haute-Garonne, 1901 Image:Vellisca (Cuenca) lavadero público (RPS 27-09-2014).png, Lavadero público in Spain about 1874 at

Vellisca Vellisca is a municipality located in the province of Cuenca, Castile-La Mancha, Spain. According to the 2004 census (INE INE, Ine or ine may refer to: Institutions * Institut für Nukleare Entsorgung, a German nuclear research center * Instit ...

in the

Province of Cuenca Cuenca is one of the five provinces of the autonomous community of Castilla-La Mancha. It is located in the eastern part of this autonomous community and covers 17,141 square km. It has a population of 203,841 inhabitants -- the least populated of ...

Image:Tanque das Lavandeiras - comunitario II.jpg, Public wash-pool at Cabeção, Portugal Image:Lavoir San Miguel de Allende.jpg, Public washbasins at San Miguel de Allende ( México) Image:Fourneau St-Michel - Lavoir (Saint-Remy).jpg, Fourneau Saint-Michel - Lavoir (Saint-Remy)

Description

Gallery

See also

References

External links