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
Fulham 1919
Annual report of the Medical Officer of Health for the year 1919
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TABLE V. Number of Persons living in Tenements of less than 5 rooms in 1891, 1901 and 1911.
| Number of Persons per Room. | 1911. | 1901. | 1891. | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total, Persons. | Percentage of Total Population. | Total Persons. | Percentage of Total Population. | Total Persons. | Percentage of Total Population. | |
| Four or more persons to a room | 1,706 | 1.1 | 943 | 0.7 | 1,579 | 1.7 |
| Three and under four persons to a room | 6,210 | 4.0 | 3,747 | 2.8 | 4,261 | 4.6 |
| Over two and under three persons to a room | 12,979 | 8.5 | 10,202 | 7.4 | 7,265 | 8.0 |
| Two persons to a room | 13,906 | 9.1 | 12,230 | 8.9 | 8,818 | 9.9 |
| One and under two persons to a room | 52,762 | 34.4 | 45,037 | 32.8 | 24,718 | 26.9 |
| Less than one person to a room | 12,463 | 8.1 | 9,305 | 6.7 | 4,497 | 4.9 |
| 100,026 | 65.2 | 81,464 | 59.3 | 51,138 | 55 .7 | |
It will be seen from the above that the number
of persons living under overcrowded conditions, i.e.,
more than two to a room, increased from 10.9 per cent,
of the population in 1901 to 13.6 per cent. in 1911.
In all but eight London boroughs there was a similar
increase in the proportions of the population living
more than two in a room, and as suggested by the Registrar-General,
it may be partly accounted for by the
limitation of the inquiry in 1891 and 1901 to tenements
of less than five rooms, and the absence of any definition
of the word "room" having led to some amount of
understatement in these years of the families occupying
tenements of four rooms or less, and also to a tendency
to stretch the term "room" to cover a scullery, a
lobby, closet, or any other more or less distinct space