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 1897
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for London County Council]
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Administrative County of London
REPORT OF THE MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH.
1897.
STATISTICS.
Population.
The population of the Administrative County of London, estimated to the middle of 1897, was
4,484,717.
The estimated population of each of the 43 sanitary districts comprised in the administrative county is shown in the following table-
| Sanitary district. | Estimated population, 1897. | Sanitary district. | Estimated population, 1897. | Sanitary district. | Estimated Population 1897. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paddington | 126,161 | St. Giles | 37,840 | St. George, Southwark | 60,388 |
| Kensington | 171,427 | St. Martin-in-the-Fields | 12,711 | Newington | 122,191 |
| Hammersmith | 105,959 | Strand | 23,552 | St. Olave, Southwark | 11,480 |
| Fulham | 120,040 | Holborn | 30,493 | Bermondsey | 85,629 |
| Chelsea | 96,692 | Clerkenwell | 66,162 | Rotherhithe | 40,643 |
| St. George, Hanover-square | 80,330 | St. Luke | 41,279 | Lambeth | 300,048 |
| City of London | 30,228 | Battersea | 168,677 | ||
| Westminster | 53,027 | Shoreditch | 121,883 | Wandsworth | 195,612 |
| St. James, Westminster | 22,576 | Bethnal-green | 129,098 | Camberwell | 257,575 |
| Marylebone | 140,808 | Whitechapel | 79,724 | Greenwich | 178,367 |
| Hampstead | 77,275 | St. George-in-the-East | 47,917 | Lee | 39,215 |
| St. Pancras | 242,255 | Limehouse | 58,508 | Lewisham | 107,700 |
| Islington | 341,134 | Mile-end Old-town | 111,883 | Woolwich | 41,409 |
| Stoke Newington | 34,136 | Poplar | 169,811 | Plumstead | 61,057 |
| Hackney | 216,698 | St. Saviour, Southwark | 24,919 |
The population of London was enumerated on the 29th March, 1896, in accordance with the
provisions of the Equalisation of Rates Act, 1894. A statement of the increase or decrease of population
of each sanitary district between the two census years 1891 and 1896 will be found in my annual
report for the year 1895.
Marriages.
The number of marriages in the registration County of London in 1897 (52 weeks) was 41,223,
giving an annual rate of persons married of 18.5 per 1,000 living, this being the highest marriage
rate since 1878.
The marriage rate since 1870 has been as follows-
| 1871 | 19.5 | 1878 | 18.5 | 1885 | 17.4 | 1892 | 17.4 |
| 1872 | 19.9 | 1879 | 18.0 | 1886 | 17.2 | 1893 | 17.2 |
| 1873 | 19.8 | 1880 | 18.1 | 1887 | 16.9 | 1894 | 17.0 |
| 1874 | 19.4 | 1881 | 18.1 | 1888 | 16.9 | 1895 | 17.2 |
| 1875 | 19.6 | 1882 | 18.4 | 1889 | 17.1 | 1896 | 18.0 |
| 1876 | 19.2 | 1883 | 18.1 | 1890 | 17.6 | 1897 | 18.5 |
| 1877 | 18.7 | 1884 | 17.9 | 1891 | 17.7 |
The accompanying diagram (I.) shows the marriage rate in each year since 1850 in relation
to the mean marriage rate of the period 1851-97.
In the year 1897 among the males 4.57 per cent. married were under 21 years of age, and
among the females 16.16 per cent. The proportions in preceding periods are shown in the following
table; the proportions in England and Wales are also given for the purpose of comparison-
| London. | England and Wales. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Males. | Females. | Males. | Females. | |
| 1851-60 | 2.77 | 11.95 | 5.70 | 17.99 |
| 1861-70 | 3.56 | 14.56 | 6.82 | 20.37 |
| 1871-80 | 4.71 | 16.90 | 7.96 | 22.03 |
| 1881-90 | 5.53 | 18.91 | 6.81 | 20.75 |
| 1891 | 4.86 | 17.45 | 5.90 | 19.01 |
| 1892 | 5.15 | 17.67 | 5.87 | 18.76 |
| 1893 | 4.75 | 16.80 | 5.59 | 18.08 |
| 1894 | 4.68 | 16.79 | 5.46 | 18.06 |
| 1895 | 4.37 | 15.85 | 5.20 | 17.42 |
| 1896 | 4.89 | 16.07 | 5.27 | 17.39 |