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
Whitechapel 1876
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Whitechapel]
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5
Meteorologt of Greenwich.
The returns of the Registrar-General show that the rain-fall in the
Metropolis, during the Quarter, has been 5.76 inches. One inch deep of
rain-fall on an acre weighs (allowing 10-lbs. to a gallon, which is the weight
of a gallon of distilled water) nearly 101 tons. During the corresponding
Quarter of last year the rain-fall was 3.83 inches. The mean temperature
of the air was 39.6°. In the corresponding Quarter of last year the mean
temperature was 40.1°. The coldest days during the Quarter were Saturday,
the 8th January, Sunday, the 9th January, "Wednesday, the 12th January,
and Monday, the 14th February, when the thermometer indicated respectively
17.4°, 22.5°, 19.6°, and 21.8°. The coldest day during the corresponding
Quarter of last year was on Friday, the 5th March, when the
thermometer indicated 23.3°, or 8.7° below the freezing point.
The following table, taken from the returns of the Registrar-General,
shows the comparative results of the Quarter:—
LONDON.
| Jan. 8 | Jan. 15 | Jan. 22 | Jan. 29 | Feb. 5 | Feb. 12 | Feb, 19 | Feb 26 | Mar. 4 | Mar. 11 | Mar. 18 | Mar. 25 | Apr 1 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deaths from Fever | 30 | 16 | 20 | 23 | 22 | 18 | 17 | 15 | 19 | 18 | 30 | 15 | 25 |
| Deaths from Scarlet Fever | 83 | 60 | 60 | 79 | 48 | 48 | 40 | 47 | 45 | 35 | 35 | 37 | 19 |
| Mean Temperature of the air | 348° | 30.7° | 39.5° | 40.2° | 4l.6° | 31.5° | 44.5° | 44.6° | 47.3 | 42.4° | 39.0° | 35.7° | 45.3° |
| Rain-fall in inches | 0.25 | 0.16 | 0.54 | 0.00 | 0.20 | 1.03 | 0.61 | 0.54 | 0.58 | 0.46 | 0.83 | 0.18 | 0.38 |
| Deaths in London | 1526 | 1590 | 1782 | 1637 | 1771 | 1610 | 2005 | 1691 | 1544 | 1455 | 1546 | 1616 | 1696 |
| Deaths in White chapel District. | 32 | 45 | 64 | 49 | 47 | 54 | 67 | 58 | 45 | 43 | 46 | 50 | 53 |
| Deathsin do.from Fever | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
In the Registrar General's Annual Summary of Births, Deaths and
Causes of Death in London and other large Cities, 1875, it is stated that
" the mean temperature for the year at Greenwich was 49.2° ; the rain-fall
was 28.2 inches; the temperature slightly above, the rain-fall 2.9 inches
above the average of 60 years. The wind blew at the rate of 11.5 miles an
hour, which is nearly one mile over the average of 26 years. And there was
a cold period extending over February and the beginning of March; another
extending over three weeks in the beginning of December, which produced
a sensible effect on the mortality."