London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972

View report page

City of London 1909

Annual report of Medical Officer of Health for 1909

This page requires JavaScript

This consists of two sub-districts, together containing a population of at the middle of 1909, calculated on the last Census Returns:—

*St. Botolph5,544
*St. Sepulchre and Allhallows12,649
Total18,193

The Night population, therefore, of the City of London Registration District
at the middle of 1909 is taken at 18,193, and it is upon this figure that
all vital statistics in this Report have been calculated.
The Day population at the middle of 1909 was estimated at 391,220 ‡
persons.
A Day Census taken in May, 1891, proved that 1,186,000 persons and
92,000 vehicles entered and left the City on the day the count was made.
In 1903 it was ascertained that in the week ending 19th July no less than
347,463 vehicles passed to and from the four City bridges, viz.:—London,
Southwark, Blackfriars and Tower, equivalent to upwards of 18,000,000
vehicles per annum.
BIRTHS.
During the year 1909, 244 births were registered in the City. The annual
birth rate was at the rate of 13.4 per 1,000 persons of all ages, compared with
a quinquennial mean rate of 14.3 per 1,000. The birth rates last year in the
Sub-Districts were—
St. Botolph 20.5 per 1,000.
St. Sepulchre and Allhallows 10.3 „
In the Metropolis the birth rate in 1909 was 24.2 per 1,000.
This decline in the birth rate has been in operation in this country since
1876, and is common to nearly all European countries.
VACCINATION.
Of the 248 children born in 1909, 145 had been successfully vaccinated by
the end of the year, 24 had died before the age for vaccination, and 2 were
insusceptible. Vaccination was postponed by medical certificate in 14 cases,
22 had removed into other districts, and 19 vaccinations were pending at the
end of the year. There were 22 cases of conscientious objection.
The Public vaccinators performed 1,522 re-vaccinations during the year.
* At the date of the last Census, this District included the "civil parish" of Glasshouse Yard. The parish
was transferred to the Holborn Union by the Local Government Board Order, No. 43156, which came into
operation on 29th September, 1901, and to the Registration District of Holborn (Finsbury Sub-District) on
1st January, 1902, making the Registration District of London City co-extensive with the Municipal City of
London. All the Registration Districts in London are co-extensive with the Poor-Law Parishes or Unions
except the District of Fulham.
† On the 1st April, 1901, the Middle Temple was transferred from the Strand Sub-District to St. Sepulchre
Sub-District.
† This figure is based upon the assumption that the number of persons residing, occupied or employed
within the City during the active hourt of the day has increased at the same rate since the last Day Census in
1891 that it did between that and the previous Day Census in 1881.