Come and discover the history of the Vincelles wash houses.
The first washhouses appeared in the Enlightenment, but they were still only prototypes. In France, the epidemics of cholera, smallpox and typhoid prompted Parliament to pass the law of February 3, 1851, which granted a special credit to subsidize 30% of the construction of covered washhouses.
The construction of the wash houses became more common thanks to the increased administrative autonomy of the municipalities of 1884. At that time, many other buildings such as town halls, schools, market halls, come to enrich the communal heritage.
The construction of wash houses in France is part of a collective awareness of the importance of public health and basic principles of hygiene.
It is therefore to combat epidemics and increase cleanliness that cities and villages are freed from their ramparts, widen their streets and distance cemeteries to the periphery.
Water becomes the object of increased attention: ensuring its purity is an imperative because we understand at that time that a single point of water is used for multiple uses and carries diseases. This is why the places where water is used specialize: water troughs, washrooms, fountains.