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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18
Smallpox and Vaccination.
The deaths from smallpox in the Administrative County of London numbered 16 in 1897, and
8 deaths were attributed to cowpox and effects of vaccination.
Ihe death rates from smallpox in successive periods have been as follows-
| Period. | Smallpox death rate per 1,000 living. | Period. | Smallpox death rate per 1,000 living. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1851-60 | 0.28 | 1892 | 0.0071 |
| 1861-70 | 0.28 | 1893 | 0.0401 |
| 1871-80 | 0.46 | 1894 | 0.0201 |
| 1881-90 | 0.14 | 1895 | 0.0121 |
| 1891 | _1 | 1896 | 0.0021 |
| 1897 | 0.0041 |
The death rate in each year in relation to the mean death rate of the period 1841-97 is shown
in diagram IV.
During the complete years in which the notification of infectious diseases has been obligatory,
the number of cases of smallpox notified to the medical officers of health in the various sanitary
districts comprised in the administrative county has been as follows-
Year. Cases notified. Case rate per 1,000
1890 60 0.014
1891 114 0.027
1892 425 0.100
1893 2,815 0.653
1894 1,193 0.274
1895 980 0.223
1896 225 0.050
1897 104 0.023
If the London smallpox death rate be compared with the death rate of the following large
English towns, it will be seen that in the period 1887-96 the London death rate was exceeded by the
death-rates of all except Liverpool, Leeds, Nottingham and Salford, while in 1897 in none of these
towns were sufficient deaths registered to give an appreciable death rate.
| Towns. | 1887-96. | 1897. | Towns. | 1887-96. | 1897. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bristol | 0.04 | 0.00 | |||
| Manchester | 0.02 | - | Nottingham | 0.01 | - |
| Liverpool | 0.01 | - | Bradford | 0.07 | - |
| Birmingham | 0.05 | - | Hull | 0.02 | 0.00 |
| Leeds | 0.01 | - | Salford | 0.01 | - |
| Sheffield | 0.23 | - | West Ham | 0.05 | - |
If the London smallpox death rate be compared with the death rates of the following foreign
cities, it will be seen that in the period 1887-96 the London rate was exceeded by all these cities
except Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Stockholm and Berlin, and in 1897 by that of St. Petersburg and
New York only.
| Towns. | 1887-96. | 1897. | Towns. | 1887-96. | 1897. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Petersburg | .13 | .12 | |||
| Paris | .06 | .00 | Berlin | .00 | .00 |
| Brussels | .10 | .00 | Vienna | .06 | .00 |
| Amsterdam | .00 | .00 | Rome | .14 | .00 |
| Copenhagen | .00 | .00 | New York | .03 | .01 |
| Stockholm | .00 | .00 |
The following table shows the number of cases of and deaths from smallpox belonging to each
district in 1897, the case rate of each district in the period 1891-6 and in 1897, and the death rate of
each district in the period 1887-96 and in 1897.
1 See footnote (1), page 7. 2See footnote (2), page 7.