Community Happenings

Garbage Men & Women Doing Good in the Community

Here you will find a selection of our stories from the communities we serve and the environmental heroes who are part of the Meridian Waste team.

10 Major Dates in Garbage History

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Did you know this respected profession goes back to at least 3000 B.C.?

This holiday season, we want to remember the impact that garbage workers have had on our history. Here are 10 milestones in garbage history:

1350 A.D. – The first garbage men got their jobs when England passed a law requiring front yards to be clean after nearly 25 million people died during an outbreak of the plague. These first garbage workers were called Rakers.
1388 A.D. – English Parliament banned the dumping of waste into ditches and public water ways.
1757 A.D. – Benjamin Franklin started the first street cleaning service.
1760 A.D. – The Industrial Revolution hit its stride and so did an increase in industrial waste production.
1785 A.D. – England passed the Public Health Act to guarantee public health and protection from sewage and industrial waste.
1920-1940’s A.D. – First modern garbage truck was developed. The Garwood Load Packer was the predecessor to almost all waste collection vehicles today.
1934 A.D. – The Supreme Court banned dumping waste into the oceans.
1937 A.D. – First Landfill opened in the United States in Fresno, California.
1940’s A.D. – The United States emerged from WWII as a world industrial super power and the average amount of waste produced increased by 67%. Good thing the waste management industry was ready to go into high gear.
1990’s A.D. – Present – Advances in technology led to new ways of managing waste including Reducing the need for, Reusing, and Recycling many items. These advances continue to produce cleaner cities and neighborhoods.