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
Islington 1864
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Islington, Parish of St Mary]
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their bad pre-eminence, although showing, as the result of some improvements they have undergone, a diminution in death-rate to tho extent of one-fourth. The court which has been most thoroughly improved is Rose and Crown Court, but in other courts there is a great deal yet to be done.
| Group 1. | Group 2. | Group 3. | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Districts. | Death rate per 1000. | Districts. | Death rate per 1000. | Districts. | Death rate per 1000. | |||
| 1864 | 1863 | 1864 | 1863 | 1864 | 1863 | |||
| *Mildmay | 32.6 | 28.0 | *Freehold | 33.3 | 31.4 | Irish Courts | 31.6 | 42.2 |
| * Hornsey Road | 32.6 | 18 6 | *Lr. Holloway | 30.3 | 31.7 | 'Balls Pond | 29 9 | 30.9 |
| *Shepherdess | 29.7 | 26.2 | Kingsland | 27.0 | 24.1 | Bello Isle | 28.6 | 31.0 |
| *Market | 22.4 | 19.2 | Rotherfield | 25.9 | 21.4 | WhiteConduit | 27.7 | 25.7 |
| Barnsbury | 22.2 | 18.6 | Church | 24.5 | 23.4 | *Bemerton | 27.1 | 27.4 |
| *Hornsey Rise | 18.9 | 13.4 | Archway | 23.6 | 24.0 | Queen's Road | 24.8 | 37.9 |
| Canonbury | 16.9 | 16.6 | St. Thomas | 22.8 | 24.9 | Lower Road | 24.1 | 30.0 |
| HighburyHill | 14.7 | 14.3 | *Highgate Hill | 22.3 | 35.6 | City Road | 23.4 | 20.4 |
| *Tufnell | 13.8 | 15.3 | Theberton | 21.1 | 17.8 | Battle Bridge | 22.6 | 27.2 |
| *Rydon | 13.7 | 15.0 | St. Peter's | 21.0 | 20.1 | Canal | 19.7 | 20.3 |
| Duncan | 9.7 | 6.1 | Trinity | 20.0 | 17.6 | |||
| Palmer | 19.9 | 18.8 | ||||||
| HigliburyVale | 19.4 | 15.5 | ||||||
| Park Street | 17.9 | 19.3 | ||||||
| Mean of Group | 20.6 | 18.4 | Mean of Group | 23.5 | 23.9 | Mean of Group | 25.9 | 29.3† |
CAUSE OF DEATH.
Table I. exhibits the cause of death of 3843 persons, of whom 1843 were males
and 2000 females, so that, if the proportion of males and females in our population
is the same as in 1861, our male death-rate exceeds our female death-rate.
In consequence of the small amount of those cases of contagious diseases to
which children are liable, our zymotic mortality has fallon from 1356 in 1863 to 977.
Small-pox especially has troubled us less: only 26 deaths from it were recorded
during the year. About 27 of the deaths enumerated as due to fever appear to have
been instances of typhus. But altogether this epidemic has dealt lightly with us. Tho
most i mportant element in our mortality has been that heterogeneous class of maladies
grouped together by the Registrar-General as "Local diseases." These, although to
some extent influenced by local unwliolesomeness, are probably influenced still more
by other circumstances, especially by weather. Our deaths from violent causes also
were numerous, amounting to 90, of which 13 were deaths from homicide, and 15
from suicide. The deaths of children under 5 years were 170 less than in 1863.
The distribution of the deaths from the most important diseases and classes of
disease may be seen on reference to Table I.
* In consequence of the accidental omission of the Canal district in the corresponding table of last
year's report, the mean of the third group is there slated 27.3 in place of tho correct number now given.