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
Whitechapel 1866
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Whitechapel]
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Fever. On comparing these returns, it appears that Small-pox, Diarrhoea
and Fever have increased respectively from 6 to 41, from 119 to 261, and
from 89 to 100. The cases of Cholera returned are 8, while in the corresponding
quarter of 1865 there was not a single case of this disease.
From the returns of the Registrar General, it appears that the rainfall
during the quarter has been 5.36 inches. In the corresponding
quarter of the previous year the rain-fall was 9.2 inches.
The following return shows the amount of sanitary work done by the Inspectors during the quarter:—
| Preliminary Notices served | 473 |
| Compulsory Orders issued for 210 Premises | 66 |
| Summonses heard at the Police Courts | 5 |
| Houses in which the Booms and Passages have) been whitewashed | 324 |
| Yards of Houses Paved, or the Pavement repaired. | 296 |
| Dust-bins provided | 282 |
| Privies cleansed or repaired | 219 |
| "Water-butts or Cisterns supplied or repaired | 219 |
| Drains in Houses improved | 231 |
| Cesspools abolished,. | 8 |
| Accumulation of Dung and other offensive matter removed | 47 |
| Area Gratings, Cellar Flaps, &c., repaired | 56 |
| Trades Nuisances abated | 6 |
| Cellars used as dwellings discontinued for such use | 19 |
| Houses closed, the same being unfit for human habitation 10 | |
Several cases of indecent occupation have been discovered on making a
house to house visitation; but as the Board has not issued a code of rules
and regulations to be observed by the Lodging House Keepers, the Officers
are almost powerless to abate this evil. The danger to the public health
from overcrowding is very great, and vigorous measures to abate it must be
adopted. A record of all the houses in which overcrowding has been
discovered is kept by the Inspectors. A code of rules, however, has
reeently been issued by the Board, which, if sanctioned by the Secretary of
State, will, it is to behoped, enable the Inspectors to take legal proceedings to
abate the immoral practice, now so common, of adults of different sexes
occupying the same sleeping apartment. Numerous cases of gross immorality
have been published from time to time in my quarterly reports, such
as adult brothers and sisters, fathers and adult daughters, mothers and
adult sons, uncles and neices, sleeping together in the same room, but as
we had no legal power to deal with such cases, I ceased to record them.
On a recent occasion one man and five women were found to occupy the
same room.