In 1886 Thomas William Twyford, (1849-1921) an English pottery manufacturer from Staffordshire, invented the first ceramic toilet (see TidBits n.15). It was very similar to today’s toilets and already had a removable seat. The astute and modern entrepreneur registered his patent first in England (in August 1886) and then in the USA (July 1887). In 1849, his father, Thomas Twyford, had founded Twyford Bathroom company in Bath Street, Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent and his son, Thomas William, was considered a pioneer in the realm of hygiene and sanitary devices. Today, the company is part of the Sanitec Group, the largest European manufacturer of bathroom fixtures. In 1999, Twyford Bathrooms became part of the Royal Warrant, a mark of recognition that groups together suppliers of goods and services to the British Royal Family.

It is curious to note that, exactly at the same time, in Alabama, USA, John H. Engelhardt Jr. patented a special seat protector made of “sturdy” paper because, as he himself advised, “...lightweight paper breaks easily...”. A very modern endeavor because it satisfied the need for civil hygiene, and even futuristic if we consider that it did indeed protect the toilet bowl seat, that’s true, but of a toilet bowl that did not (yet) have a seat! It then comes naturally to ask what it was intended to be: whether a “very sturdy” seat protector or a very light toilet seat!

Surely posterity was able to develop even better ideas. Mr. Engelhardt supplied a great starting point to Gustaf E. W. Miller from Massachusetts, who in 1909 filed a project for a disposable seat protector made of tissue paper, officially patented the year after, in July 1910. His invention perfectly adapted itself to the shape of modern seats and featured an adhesive side that could be fixed to the porcelain fixture.

Picture 1 – A page from the 1879 catalogue showing the DELUGE WC model toilet.

Picture 2 – Headquarters of the Twyford Bathroom company.

Picture 3 – H. Engelhardt Jr.’s 1886 patent: seat protector or paper seat.

Picture 4 – G.E.W. Miller’s patent for a seat protector made of tissue paper (1909).

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