London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
View report page
Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Chelsea 1923
Annual report for 1923 of the Medical Officer of Health
This page requires JavaScript
Birth and Death-Rates of Special Classes. Chelsea Borough.
| Year. | Birthrate. | Deathrate. | Zymotic Deathrate. | Tubercular Deathrate. | Deaths under one year to 1000 Births. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1905-8 | 22.0 | 16.2 | 1.8 | 2.0 | 122 |
| 1909-12 | 19.6 | 15.2 | 1.2 | 1.8 | 99 |
| 1913-16 | 18.0 | 14.8 | 1.0 | 1.5 | 87 |
| 1917-20 | 15.7 | 14.6 | 0.7 | 1.5 | 75 |
| 1921-23 | 16.0 | 13.1 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 68 |
| Industrial Dwellings. | |||||
| 1905-8 | 29.5 | 14.8 | 2.2 | 2.2 | 95 |
| 1909-12 | 27.7 | 13.0 | 1.4 | 1.4 | 9.2 |
| 1913-16 | 27.4 | 13.3 | 1.3 | 2.1 | 75 |
| 1917-20 | 18.5 | 12.1 | 0.7 | 1.8 | 60 |
| 1921-23 | 16.3 | 11.1 | 0.7 | 1.1 | 79 |
| Poor-Class Streets.* | |||||
| 1905-8 | 38.0 | 24.4 | 4.2 | 3.4 | 183 |
| 1909-12 | 36.8 | 24.1 | 3.0 | 3.8 | 137 |
| 1918-16 | 32.9 | 20.3 | 3.2 | 2.1 | 124 |
| 1917-20 | 22.0 | 14.4 | 1.6 | 1.4 | 88 |
| 1921-23 | 24.2 | 13.8 | 1.1 | 1.4 | 79 |
| 1893-6 | – | 34.6 | 7.5 | 4.3 | – |
| 1897-1900 | – | 33.7 | 7.0 | 4.6 | – |
| 1901-4 | – | 26.3 | 3.7 | 4.1 | – |
| *1893-1908 statistics based on populations of 11 streets | |||||
| 1909-1911 | „ | „ | 10 streets | ||
| 1912-1923 | „ | „ | 7 streets | ||
The industrial dwellings includes the Borough Council dwellings
with a population of 1,467, and other industrial dwellings with a population
of 5,300. The poor-class streets are Dartrey-road, Francis-street,
Gilray-square, Ives-street, Riley-street, Slaidburn-street, World's Endpassage
and courts adjacent, with a population of 3,480.
The tables show the great reduction of both birth and death-rates
of recent years, both in the Industrial dwellings and in the poor-class
streets. The birth-rate in the industrial dwellings has fallen from 29.5
in 1905-8 to 16.3 in 1921-3. The death-rate has similarly declined from
14.8 to 11·1. In the poor-class streets the birth-rate has fallen from
38·0 to 24·2, and the death-rate from 24·4 to 13·8, the infant mortality
rate falling from 183 to 79. Within a period of 30 years the poor-class
streets death-rate has declined 60 per cent. (34·6 to 13·8); the deathrate
from infectious diseases has declined 85 per cent. (7·5 to 1·1); and
the death-rate from tubercular diseases has declined 68 per cent. (4·3
to 1·4). These figures are astonishing when we consider that these
streets have not been rebuilt; the houses are very much the same as
they were 80 years ago, and are occupied by a similar class of people.
The great improvement is attributable, I think, to the better education
of the people, the better standard of living, greater temperance, and
the work of the Health Visitors and Sanitary Inspectors.