“Imagine women gathering here their voices mingling with the splash of water. This is the Lavoir de la Place de Lenche. It is a public washhouse that once played a vital role in the lives of the people of Marseille.
The Lavoir sits next to the Place de Lenche market. It once stood alongside small kiosks. The destruction of part of this area of the Old Port in 1943 changed its surroundings. It also changed the streets visible in old photos.
Contrary to popular belief women did not usually wash clothes at the Lavoir. They came here to rinse them. The Lavoir was the last step before drying. Washing clothes only needed a few buckets of water. This could be done at home where clothes piled up before the big wash. Rinsing needed large amounts of clean water. This was only available in streams or captured springs.
Washing at home caused problems. Steam would dampen the walls. Water would flow everywhere. Clothes were only washed twice a year. By the 1900s washing became monthly. In the 1930s it was weekly. The very poor kept their clothes until they were worn out.
These big washes were called “buées”. They usually lasted three days. On the first day clothes soaked in large wooden tubs. This was to remove the first layer of dirt. On the second day clothes were washed in the same tubs. They might be washed in other tanks. The tubs were covered with a cloth. Boiling water was poured over a thick layer of ash. The ash contained potassium carbonate a great cleaning agent. On the third day clothes were rinsed and wrung out at the Lavoir.
The edge of the Lavoir usually had a sloping stone. Women knelt in wooden boxes called “garde genoux”. They threw the clothes into the water. They twisted the clothes folding them many times. They beat them with a wooden beater on the stone. This wrung out as much water as possible. A strong horizontal wooden bar stored the wrung-out laundry. Then the women carried it back home to dry. They used hoods wheelbarrows carts or wagons.
Before public washhouses people washed clothes by rivers or wells. This used precious water. Washerwomen were often the lady of the house. Sometimes wealthy families hired help. Laundry was done rarely. It was collected for months in attics.
The “grande buée” or “grande lessive” was a three-day washing tradition. Purgatory was a full day of soaking to loosen stains. Hell was when laundry went into a wooden barrel. Whitening agents were added like eggshells and lavender. Natural herbs and fresh ash were also used. Boiling water was poured over the top. This process was repeated. Heaven was a full day of rinsing. Women took heavy wet loads to the central Lavoir. They knelt on wooden boxes with little cushion. They beat and scrubbed the laundry. This removed soap and ash. Clean clothes were hung under the Lavoir’s roof or on bushes to dry.
By the late 18th century public basins became common. This was to prevent diseases like cholera and typhoid. In 1851 Napoleon III allowed state subsidies for construction. Lavoirs increased. So did the frequency of washing. Lavoirs became status symbols like clock towers.
Eventually tap water and washing machines replaced the Lavoir. The buildings decayed. Many were destroyed. Recently people have recognized their historical importance. Associations maintain lists of them.
Here at the Lavoir can you hear echoes of women’s voices? They are sharing gossip as they work.”