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
Kensington 1881
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Kensington]
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7
Registration District and Sub-Districts.
Having premised so much by way of general introduction, it may
be desirable, before proceeding further, to say a few words with
respect to the Registration "District" and the "Sub-districts"
in which we are locally interested.
"Kensington" is the title of a Superintendent Registrar's
District (No. 1 on the Registrar General's list), which until within
the last few years comprised, in addition to the parish of
Kensington, the adjacent parishes of Paddington, Fulham, and
Hammersmith ; now it comprises the parishes of Kensington and Paddington only.
The subjoined table shows the relative areas of the two parishes, and other particulars relating to the census years 1871 and 1881.
| Area in Statute Acres. | Inhabited houses. | Increase in 10 years. | Population. | Increase in 10 years | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1871 | 1881 | 1871 | 1881 | ||||
| Kensington | 2,190 | 15,735 | 20,1031 | 4,368 | 120,299 | 163,151 | 42,852 |
| Paddington | 1,251 | 11,847 | 13,187 | 1,340 | 96,813 | 107,098 | 10,405 |
Registration Sub - Districts.—For registration purposes
Kensington parish is unequally divided into two "sub-districts,"
viz., Kensington Town," (hereinafter for brevity designated
"Town,") and "Brompton." The area of the Town sub-district,
according to the Registrar-General, is 1,497 acres, and of Brompton,
693 acres,—total, whole parish, 2,190 acres. In your Vestry's
Annual Report, the total acreage is given as 2,245. The population
of the Town sub-district at the middle of 1881, was about
120,440, and of Brompton, 43,100,—total, whole parish, 163,540.
The Town sub-district includes some important open spaces,
e.g., Kensal Green Cemetery, Holland Park, and fields at Notting
Bam Farm, which are being covered slowly with houses. The
Brompton sub-district, in which the builder has been active of late
years, many of the new houses being of a palatial character, includes
within its boundaries the West London or Brompton Cemetery.
The sub-districts present considerable differences which should
always be borne in mind in any comparison of their vital statistics.
Speaking generally the rich and well-to-do form a large proportion
* The number 20,103 is taken from the Census return. The rate-books show
20,705 occupied and rated premises, many of which presumably do not afford living
or sleeping accommodation and therefore would not be enumerated at the Census*.