Cropped 1876 map of the Centennial Exposition. The comfort stations are labelled (14). Memorial Hall (2) is in the lower right-hand corner. The Horticulture Building (160) is in the upper left-hand corner
The two buildings are perhaps the only extant restrooms from a nineteenth century international exposition. They were constructed of brick with wooden elements, slate roofs and copper detailing. Each is about 20 feet (6.1 m) by 22 feet (6.7 m) and one story tall.[1] Seven public comfort stations were built for the exposition, among over 200 other buildings. Only four Centennial buildings survive on their original sites: Memorial Hall, the Ohio State Building, and the two comfort stations.[3][4]
The Horticulture Building was one of the few buildings at the exposition intended to be permanent, and the comfort houses were likely built of brick so that they could continue to serve the Horticulture Building. When the Horticulture Building was destroyed in 1955, they were used as storage space and greatly deteriorated.[5]
A new Horticulture Center was constructed for the 1976 United States Bicentennial immediately north of the comfort stations.
Renovation of the stations began in 2011 for use by the Shofuso Japanese House and Gardens, the eastern station as an exhibition space, and the western as a restroom. The eastern station renovation has been completed, while the western station is still in use as storage space.[1][6]
During renovation, before 2016, the buildings were served by a port-a-potty.
^Several Centennial buildings were disassembled and relocated after the exposition. These include the Strafford Station in the Philadelphia suburbs and the Swedish Cottage in New York's Central Park.
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