Portable Sanitation Pioneer Bob Thrush
Leaves Legacy of Family Values
Leaves Legacy of Family Values
By Jo Ann Hustis- Special to The Sanitation Journal
"Really, we sort of introduced porta-potties to the county," Bob Jr. noted.
"This kind of thing didn’t exist here before. Carpenters build the portable
toilets with the half-moon cutouts, backed with silver, on the doors. The
potties were rented out at $1 per day, $30 per month, including delivery,
weekly service, and such."
In the early days of the business, inventiveness was the name of the game.
The modern chemicals used in the portable toilet business today were not
available, so Thrush pretty well relied on his own inspiration.
"They used Pine-Sol for a deodorizer," Bob Jr. said. "Instead of urinal
blocks, they cut a bar of soap in half and threw it in there as a fragrance
enhancer. They mixed up a salt brine solution in the winter, similar to what
sea water would be, so the porta-potties wouldn’t freeze up in the cold.
They had all sorts of crafty little deals they could do and still function in bad
weather."
"This kind of thing didn’t exist here before. Carpenters build the portable
toilets with the half-moon cutouts, backed with silver, on the doors. The
potties were rented out at $1 per day, $30 per month, including delivery,
weekly service, and such."
In the early days of the business, inventiveness was the name of the game.
The modern chemicals used in the portable toilet business today were not
available, so Thrush pretty well relied on his own inspiration.
"They used Pine-Sol for a deodorizer," Bob Jr. said. "Instead of urinal
blocks, they cut a bar of soap in half and threw it in there as a fragrance
enhancer. They mixed up a salt brine solution in the winter, similar to what
sea water would be, so the porta-potties wouldn’t freeze up in the cold.
They had all sorts of crafty little deals they could do and still function in bad
weather."
Thrush also discovered the interior walls of the hapless portable potties will forever be the butt of endless jokes,
bad rhymes, and pictographs.
"When we brought the potties back in from a job, there were all these poems and what-have-you written inside the
dog-gone things. We’d have to repaint them nearly every time because the wood absorbed the markers and paint
in the writings and drawings, and you couldn’t clean them off," said Bob Jr.
The eldest of six children, Bob Jr. basically grew up in his father’s sanitation operation.
"Dad and I were very close. As a youngster, I was with him and my grandfather when they pumped septic tanks.
We dumped the waste at the local landfill with all the trash. It wasn’t like today where there’s a lot of criteria for
disposal," he said.
"In later years, my father decided to get away from a vacuum pump as such, and he drew the vacuum right off
the intake manifold of the engine itself. He crafted a bit of an overflow device that wouldn’t allow the waste to get
up into the engine. However, he wasn’t real successful all the time, and consequently, he went through a few
motors."
Throughout his high school years, Bob Jr. worked at Thrush Sanitation, filling in while his father was on duty as a
firefighter.
"Dad worked a 24-hour shift in the fire department, then was off the next 48 hours, and he could conduct his own
business on those two days," he said. "There were times, though, when things had to be done, and Dad wasn’t
available. So I was called from school to run porta-potties out to ComEd while the company was building La Salle
Nuclear Station, and such."
Thrush Sanitation began as an inspiration, after Frank Thrush was given the bill for contracting help to pump the
septic tank at his home.
"He was amazed at the price. He said, ‘Heck, I could build a truck and pump them cheaper than that, and still
make money.’ So, he built his own truck from a boiler tank, put a pump on it, and got into the business," Bob Jr.
noted.
"His cousin, who lived across the street from him, was a bit of an artist, and he asked her do a logo, which we
have to this day - the little skunk with the shotgun and coonskin cap."
Thrush ran the service from 1958 to 1984, then sold it to Bob Thrush Jr., and his wife, Pamela. The purchase
included about 35 portable toilets, and a service truck and trailer.
"I’ve been part of Thrush Sanitation for a good long time. I’ve learned a lot from my dad - he passed along a lot of
real good values - things that we live by today. The company’s grown significantly. We’re right at a thousand
portable restrooms, and we also operate the septic tank pumping business. We began our commercial and
residential trash service almost two years ago, plus a roll-off Dumpster service," he added.
Some of the larger sanitary disposal services have approached Bob Jr. on selling his business.
"I just don’t see that happening, though," he said. "It’s like selling the family farm - it’s just something we’ve not
interested in doing. My two older sons work here full-time, and I’ve got two grandchildren who come here quite
often. My goal is to pass the business on to the next generation, and the generation after that. The good Lord
willing, that’s the direction we’re headed - passing on the values of my grandfather and my dad to the coming
generations."
Name recognition, hard work, and lending the community a willing hand has stood the company in good stead,
said Bob Jr.
"The business has really done well, and I owe that to my father and my grandfather. We’ve always tried to help
people, and to be reputable and honest. We’ve always tried to assist with any problem, and we try not to exploit
anyone. If someone was in dire straits on a Sunday afternoon, we’d take care of it," he said.
"Those are values these two fellows passed on to us, and we try to live by them today. We try to keep our pricing
affordable. We started the trash service two years ago, and we’ve yet to raise the price on a customer, put on a
fuel surcharge, or any of that. We’re trying to stick as long as we can by the price we quoted them initially."
Robert A. Thrush Sr., 76, the retired firefighter and a decorated ex-Marine of the Korean War era, died of colon
cancer on Oct. 2, 2005.
"The cancer was a terrible blow to him. He was given six months to two years. He lived 13 months. During that
time, though, what a soldier he was," said Bob Jr..
"The old fireman, the old Marine, came out in him. He could have taught John Wayne about bravery. He was
pretty tough through the whole thing. He was always for the other person. Talk about people’s glass being full -
well, his was overflowing most of the time. A month ago, he told me, ‘You know, I still think I can beat this.’"
During the wake preceding the funeral, Robert Thrush Sr. was posthumously presented the Fireman’s Medal of
Honor.
"My father, years ago, saved the life of a little girl. The mother gave birth to her in the toilet, of all places. She
called 9-1-1. My dad answered, got there, and revived the newborn," said Bob Jr.
"Some time later, he and my mom were at a local function, and the mother introduced him to her young daughter.
‘You saved her life,’ the mother said. Dad was himself, kidding around with the youngster and such. The neat part
of this is, the little girl, now grown, was at his wake."
bad rhymes, and pictographs.
"When we brought the potties back in from a job, there were all these poems and what-have-you written inside the
dog-gone things. We’d have to repaint them nearly every time because the wood absorbed the markers and paint
in the writings and drawings, and you couldn’t clean them off," said Bob Jr.
The eldest of six children, Bob Jr. basically grew up in his father’s sanitation operation.
"Dad and I were very close. As a youngster, I was with him and my grandfather when they pumped septic tanks.
We dumped the waste at the local landfill with all the trash. It wasn’t like today where there’s a lot of criteria for
disposal," he said.
"In later years, my father decided to get away from a vacuum pump as such, and he drew the vacuum right off
the intake manifold of the engine itself. He crafted a bit of an overflow device that wouldn’t allow the waste to get
up into the engine. However, he wasn’t real successful all the time, and consequently, he went through a few
motors."
Throughout his high school years, Bob Jr. worked at Thrush Sanitation, filling in while his father was on duty as a
firefighter.
"Dad worked a 24-hour shift in the fire department, then was off the next 48 hours, and he could conduct his own
business on those two days," he said. "There were times, though, when things had to be done, and Dad wasn’t
available. So I was called from school to run porta-potties out to ComEd while the company was building La Salle
Nuclear Station, and such."
Thrush Sanitation began as an inspiration, after Frank Thrush was given the bill for contracting help to pump the
septic tank at his home.
"He was amazed at the price. He said, ‘Heck, I could build a truck and pump them cheaper than that, and still
make money.’ So, he built his own truck from a boiler tank, put a pump on it, and got into the business," Bob Jr.
noted.
"His cousin, who lived across the street from him, was a bit of an artist, and he asked her do a logo, which we
have to this day - the little skunk with the shotgun and coonskin cap."
Thrush ran the service from 1958 to 1984, then sold it to Bob Thrush Jr., and his wife, Pamela. The purchase
included about 35 portable toilets, and a service truck and trailer.
"I’ve been part of Thrush Sanitation for a good long time. I’ve learned a lot from my dad - he passed along a lot of
real good values - things that we live by today. The company’s grown significantly. We’re right at a thousand
portable restrooms, and we also operate the septic tank pumping business. We began our commercial and
residential trash service almost two years ago, plus a roll-off Dumpster service," he added.
Some of the larger sanitary disposal services have approached Bob Jr. on selling his business.
"I just don’t see that happening, though," he said. "It’s like selling the family farm - it’s just something we’ve not
interested in doing. My two older sons work here full-time, and I’ve got two grandchildren who come here quite
often. My goal is to pass the business on to the next generation, and the generation after that. The good Lord
willing, that’s the direction we’re headed - passing on the values of my grandfather and my dad to the coming
generations."
Name recognition, hard work, and lending the community a willing hand has stood the company in good stead,
said Bob Jr.
"The business has really done well, and I owe that to my father and my grandfather. We’ve always tried to help
people, and to be reputable and honest. We’ve always tried to assist with any problem, and we try not to exploit
anyone. If someone was in dire straits on a Sunday afternoon, we’d take care of it," he said.
"Those are values these two fellows passed on to us, and we try to live by them today. We try to keep our pricing
affordable. We started the trash service two years ago, and we’ve yet to raise the price on a customer, put on a
fuel surcharge, or any of that. We’re trying to stick as long as we can by the price we quoted them initially."
Robert A. Thrush Sr., 76, the retired firefighter and a decorated ex-Marine of the Korean War era, died of colon
cancer on Oct. 2, 2005.
"The cancer was a terrible blow to him. He was given six months to two years. He lived 13 months. During that
time, though, what a soldier he was," said Bob Jr..
"The old fireman, the old Marine, came out in him. He could have taught John Wayne about bravery. He was
pretty tough through the whole thing. He was always for the other person. Talk about people’s glass being full -
well, his was overflowing most of the time. A month ago, he told me, ‘You know, I still think I can beat this.’"
During the wake preceding the funeral, Robert Thrush Sr. was posthumously presented the Fireman’s Medal of
Honor.
"My father, years ago, saved the life of a little girl. The mother gave birth to her in the toilet, of all places. She
called 9-1-1. My dad answered, got there, and revived the newborn," said Bob Jr.
"Some time later, he and my mom were at a local function, and the mother introduced him to her young daughter.
‘You saved her life,’ the mother said. Dad was himself, kidding around with the youngster and such. The neat part
of this is, the little girl, now grown, was at his wake."
OTTAWA, Ill - Bob Thrush got his first whiff of the portable toilet
business in 1960 from his brother, Bud Thrush, a construction worker.
"He came home one day from a project in Southern Illinois, and he told
my dad, ‘You won’t believe it, but I was on a job where they had what
they called a porta-potty,’" said Bob Thrush Jr., owner/operator of
Thrush Sanitation in Ottawa since 1984.
"They made it out of plywood,’ Bud said. ‘They cut a 55-gallon barrel
lengthwise, and they fashioned a seat on it, and they rent these dog-
gone things out for a dollar a day. I think you need to get into that,’ he
said to my dad."
Bob Thrush, a lieutenant on the Ottawa Fire Department, was operating
Thrush Sanitation on the side. His was a small neighborhood septic tank
pumping business begun in 1945 by their father, Frank Thrush. He took
his brother’s tip and ran with it. He hired a local carpenter and built a
dozen portable toilets from plywood and 55-gallon steel barrels.
business in 1960 from his brother, Bud Thrush, a construction worker.
"He came home one day from a project in Southern Illinois, and he told
my dad, ‘You won’t believe it, but I was on a job where they had what
they called a porta-potty,’" said Bob Thrush Jr., owner/operator of
Thrush Sanitation in Ottawa since 1984.
"They made it out of plywood,’ Bud said. ‘They cut a 55-gallon barrel
lengthwise, and they fashioned a seat on it, and they rent these dog-
gone things out for a dollar a day. I think you need to get into that,’ he
said to my dad."
Bob Thrush, a lieutenant on the Ottawa Fire Department, was operating
Thrush Sanitation on the side. His was a small neighborhood septic tank
pumping business begun in 1945 by their father, Frank Thrush. He took
his brother’s tip and ran with it. He hired a local carpenter and built a
dozen portable toilets from plywood and 55-gallon steel barrels.
The units were the first porta-potties in La Salle County - geographically the largest county in Illinois.
Thrush’s big break - his first major portable potty rental - came during construction of the G.E. Plastics Company
near Ottawa, which furnished work in the early 1970s for about 500 tradesmen and laborers. His next big job
stemmed from the construction of La Salle Nuclear Generating Station 15 miles southeast of Ottawa. More than
1,500 workers were employed during the peak of the project, which began in the mid-1970s and lasted nearly 10
years.
Thrush’s big break - his first major portable potty rental - came during construction of the G.E. Plastics Company
near Ottawa, which furnished work in the early 1970s for about 500 tradesmen and laborers. His next big job
stemmed from the construction of La Salle Nuclear Generating Station 15 miles southeast of Ottawa. More than
1,500 workers were employed during the peak of the project, which began in the mid-1970s and lasted nearly 10
years.
This Picture was taken in 1962
of Bob Thrush Sr. along with
son Bob Thrush Jr.
of Bob Thrush Sr. along with
son Bob Thrush Jr.
| Bob Thrush Sr. |
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