London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
London County Council 1893
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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The birth rate in 1893 in each of the London sanitary districts was as follows—
| Births. | Birth rate per 1,000. | Births. | Birth rate per 1,000. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paddington | 3,010 | 25.1 | Bethnal-green | 4,756 | 36.8 |
| Kensington | 3,671 | 22.0 | Whitechapel | 3,096 | 41.3 |
| Hammersmith | 2,966 | 28.9 | St. George-in-the-East | 1,966 | 43.3 |
| Fulham | 3,711 | 35.5 | Limehouse | 1,953 | 34.3 |
| Chelsea | 2,854 | 29.2 | Mile-end Old-town | 4,146 | 38.5 |
| St. George, Hanover-square | 1,496 | 19.7 | Poplar | 5,918 | 35.1 |
| Westminster | 1,358 | 24.8 | St. Saviour, Southwark | 780 | 29.1 |
| St. James | 528 | 22.1 | St. George, Southwark | 2,169 | 36.3 |
| Marylebone | 4,379 | 31.4 | Newington | 4,345 | 37.0 |
| Hampstead | 1,507 | 20.6 | St. Olave | 412 | 32.0 |
| Pancras | 7,044 | 30.2 | Bermondsey | 3,202 | 38.1 |
| Islington | 9,750 | 29.8 | Rotherhithe | 1,379 | 34.6 |
| Hackney | 6,911 | 28.8 | Lambeth | 9,222 | 33.0 |
| St. Giles | 1,094 | 28.4 | Battersea | 5,225 | 33.1 |
| St. Martin-in-the-Fields | 223 | 15.9 | Wandsworth | 4,569 | 26.6 |
| Strand | 594 | 25.0 | Camberwell | 7,472 | 30.6 |
| Holborn | 864 | 26.5 | Greenwich | 5,377 | 31.5 |
| Clerkenwell | 2,106 | 32.2 | Lewisham | 2,471 | 25.2 |
| St. Luke | 1,770 | 42.7 | Woolwich | 1,302 | 31.2 |
| London, City of | 627 | 17.5 | Plumstead | 2,744 | 29.1 |
| Shoreditch | 4,450 | 36.2 |
The number of illegitimate births in London in 1893 constituted 3*7 per cent., and in England
and Wales 4.2 per cent. of the total births. In each of the decennia 1871-80 and 1881-90
illegitimate births constituted 3.87 per cent. of the total births in London.
For the purpose of more exact comparison between one and another district, the births should,
in view of the different age and sex distribution of populations, be considered in relation to the
number of women at the child-bearing age. For practical purposes this may be reckoned as including
the ages 15-45 years, the number of children born of women above this age being comparatively few.
It is desirable also to separate the legitimate and illegitimate births, and to consider the relation of
these to the number of women living and not living in wedlock respectively. The data available
enable such comparisons to be made for registration districts only, and for this purpose the following
table has been prepared—
Table showing the number of legitimate births per 1,000 women living in wedlock from 15-45 years of age, and the number of illegitimate births per 1,000 women of this age not living in wedlock.
| Registration District. | Estimated number of females living in wedlock aged 15-45, middle of 1893. | Total births 1893 (legitimate). | Number of legitimate births per 1,000 females living in wedlock aged 15-45, 1893. | Estimated number of females not living in wedlock aged 15-45, middle of 1893. | Total births, 1893 (illegitimate). | Number of illegitimate births per 1,000 females not living in wedlock aged 15-45, 1893. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paddington | 13,068 | 2,888 | 221 | 26,869 | 126 | 4.7 |
| Kensington | 16,890 | 3,479 | 206 | 42,247 | 188 | 4.5 |
| Fulham | 26,990 | 6,370 | 236 | 28,175 | 311 | 11.0 |
| Chelsea | 11,825 | 2,722 | 230 | 14,681 | 132 | 9.0 |
| St. George, Hanover-square | 13,949 | 2,723 | 195 | 27,254 | 124 | 4.5 |
| Westminster | 3,887 | 807 | 208 | 6,189 | 46 | 7.4 |
| Marylebone | 15,557 | 3,624 | 233 | 28,097 | 746 | 26.6 |
| Hampstead | 7,224 | 1,465 | 203 | 19,474 | 42 | 2.2 |
| St. Pancras | 29,307 | 6,727 | 229 | 31,127 | 314 | 10.1 |
| Islington | 40,209 | 9,487 | 236 | 46,242 | 267 | 5.8 |
| Hackney | 27,731 | 6,700 | 241 | 37,526 | 210 | 5.6 |
| St. Giles | 4,450 | 1,021 | 229 | 6,481 | 80 | 12.3 |
| Strand | 2,669 | 471 | 176 | 4,788 | 21 | 4.4 |
| Holborn | 17,715 | 4,715 | 266 | 16,519 | 53 | 3.2 |
| London City | 3,080 | 612 | 199 | 6,406 | 18 | 2.8 |
| Shoreditch | 16,140 | 4,314 | 267 | 13,138 | 146 | 11.1 |
| Bethnal-green | 16,390 | 4,680 | 285 | 13,586 | 75 | 5.5 |
| Whitechapel | 9,141 | 3,039 | 332 | 8,303 | 70 | 8.4 |
| St. George-in-the-East | 6,022 | 1,906 | 316 | 4,335 | 59 | 13.6 |
| Stepney | 7,073 | 1,931 | 273 | 5,692 | 24 | 4.2 |
| Mile-end Old-town | 13,722 | 4,074 | 297 | 11,942 | 82 | 6.9 |
| Poplar | 21,111 | 5,769 | 273 | 15,965 | 149 | 9.3 |
| St. Saviour, Southwark | 27,102 | 7,079 | 261 | 20,828 | 210 | 10.1 |
| St. Olave, Southwark | 17,149 | 4,907 | 286 | 13,432 | 81 | 6.0 |
| Lambeth | 34,369 | 8,746 | 254 | 38,455 | 477 | 12.4 |
| Wandsworth | 40,033 | 9,484 | 237 | 47,625 | 322 | 6.8 |
| Camberwell | 29,147 | 7,249 | 249 | 32,165 | 227 | 7.1 |
| Greenwich | 20,833 | 5,216 | 250 | 20,171 | 165 | 8.2 |
| Lewisham | 10,497 | 2,409 | 229 | 19,661 | 75 | 3.8 |
| Woolwich | 14,290 | 3,535 | 247 | 11,002 | 73 | 6.6 |
* Lying-in hospitals are situated in these districts.