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
West Ham 1899
Annual report of the Medical Officer of Health for the year 1899
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246
This may be seen in the table below, taken from the Registrar
General's return for the 13 weeks ended 30th September, 1899:—
Table I.
| Metropolitan Districts and Large Towns. | Annual Death-rate per 1,000 living from Principal Zymotic Diseases. |
|---|---|
| Shoreditch | 8.09 |
| Poplar | 7.04 |
| St. Saviour | 7.79 |
| St. George the Martyr, Southwark | 9.21 |
| Portsmouth | 7.80 |
| Birmingham | 7.12 |
| Nottingham | 7.04 |
| Liverpool | 8.55 |
| Manchester | 7.82 |
| Salford | 8.79 |
| Burnley | 9.99 |
| Preston | 8.19 |
| Sheffield | 8.83 |
A similar result is apparent when each disease is considered
separately, and various towns compared during an extended period.
Taking the ten years 18881897 from the Registrar-General's last
annual return, it will be noted that in three of the classified diseases
the death-rate of West Ham was lower than that of London—in no
case was it greatly in excess of London—while the mortality of many
of the large towns exceeded that of both West Ham and London,
except in the case of diphtheria.