Chinaman Spring is a small spring located along the Firehole River. Chinaman has erupted 6-9 m (20-30 feet) high, but all known eruptions were man-induced. The first incident of a known eruption occurred in the 1880s when a Chinese laundryman pitched his tent over the spring and used the hot water as a clothes boiler. The clothes were suspended in the boiling water by a wicker basket. When laundry soap was added the spring erupted for the first time and a column of water ejected the laundry and collapsed the tent.