Yvonne Gallagher Sep 28, 2014:

You should post it Taña so it's in Glossary. Also agree with Catherine that "night-soil men" was a common term

Adela Porumbel (asker) Sep 28, 2014:

I see now I had already found gong-farmers but didn't make the connection. Thank you!

Taña Dalglish Sep 28, 2014:

Thanks Catherine.
Adde: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gong_farmer
Gong farmer (also gongfermor, gongfermour, gong-fayer, gong-fower or gong scourer) was a term that entered use in Tudor England to describe someone who dug out and removed human excrement from privies and cesspits; the word "gong" was used for both a privy and its contents. Gong farmers were only allowed to work at night, hence they were sometimes known as nightmen. The waste they collected, known as night soil, had to be taken outside the city or town boundary or to official dumps for disposal, from where it might be taken to be spread as fertiliser on fields or market gardens.

Catharine Cellier-Smart Sep 28, 2014:

Agree with Tana Also known as "gong farmer" or more commonly as "night soil man"

Taña Dalglish Sep 28, 2014:

Archaic words
http://www.skyscript.co.uk/glossarytt.html
Night-farmers Those who collect and clear away human excrement from occupied areas. Emptiers of cesspits.