From Melbourne's settlement in the 1830s into the boom years of the 1880s, the disposal of sewerage was very basic. In the early days the majority of waste from homes and industries flowed into street channels and on to local rivers and creeks which became open sewers. By the 1880s, many homes in the inner city had privies backing into a rear lane, the Pail closet system where "Night soil" was collected in pans by a "nightman" reaching through a small door in the back of the outdoor toilet. It was carted away to the outer fringes of Melbourne, where it was often used as fertiliser by market gardeners. Because the waste stayed in the pan for up to a week, and some waste still flowed straight into the street, Melbourne was nicknamed "Smellbourne".