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
St James's 1900
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for St James's, Westminster]
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6 GENERAL REPORT.
career of this great Municipality become a pure and
shining light—a light showing how to advance the social
condition of the peoples of the world.
The area and population of the district of St. James's are summarised in the following table :—
| Area in Acres | 162 | Population. | Mean Density of Population per Acre. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Census, 1831 | 37,053 | 229 | |
| 1841 | 37,398 | 231 | |
| 1851 | 36,406 | 225 | |
| 1861 | 35,326 | 218 | |
| 1871 | 33,619 | 214 | |
| 1881...... | 29,865 | 184 | |
| 1891 | 24,995 | 154 | |
| 1896 | 23,050 | 142 | |
| ,, 1901, March 31st | |||
In Registration London the average density of the population
for 1896 is given by the Registrar-General as 59.2
persons per acre. In 1901 the average density of the
population was given as per acre.
In the District of St. James's, conditions obtain
which render it impracticable to determine annually the
flow of the numbers of the population, unless by actual
enumeration. The figures tabulated above show, by the
numbers found in the various census enumerations from
1831 to 1896, that the population of St. James's has for
a long period steadily decreased. This decrease is due to
the great value of land in the area of St. James's, and
to the progressive conversion of tenement and other
dwelling houses into shops, warehouses, and workshops
ancillary to the trade of St. James's. There follow
extrusion of the working class population, and emigration
for residential purposes of the shopkeepers. The change
now proceeding in St. James's is similar to that which
has been practically completed in the City of London.