{"id":3709,"date":"2018-06-30T07:57:15","date_gmt":"2018-06-30T07:57:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/schoolshistory.org.uk\/topics\/?page_id=3709"},"modified":"2026-04-27T08:59:29","modified_gmt":"2026-04-27T08:59:29","slug":"public-health-in-the-industrial-revolution","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/schoolshistory.org.uk\/topics\/medicine-through-time\/public-health-in-the-industrial-revolution\/","title":{"rendered":"Public Health in the Industrial Revolution"},"content":{"rendered":"

Public Health in the Industrial Revolution<\/h3>\n

Public Health had been a long standing issue in towns and cities. Plagues and other diseases regularly killed huge numbers. The industrial Revolution saw the issue of Public Health become a matter at the heart of government policy. A rising population coupled with poor housing and long working hours, led to conditions in urban areas becoming atrocious. Slums quickly grew as cities bore the weight of the rapid increase in people. Diseases wreaked havoc.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Cholera<\/a><\/p>\n

The period quickly became one in which there was a struggle between reformers and traditionalists. Those who wanted to invest in cleaning up cities with those who baulked at the incredible cost of doing so. Slowly, under great political pressure, changes were made. Government legislated and thanks to scientific breakthroughs diseases were tackled more efficiently. The story of public health in the Industrial Revolution<\/a> truly is one of the fight against the most unimaginable squalor and desperate conditions.<\/p>\n

The links in this unit provide source material on the period and issues.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Do you want to find other Primary Sources for use in your lessons, or for research purposes?<\/strong> Visit our Primary Sources<\/a> page to see which areas we currently have a range of sources for.<\/p>\n

Public Health in the Industrial Revolution. A Chronology.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Date<\/strong><\/td>\nEvent<\/strong><\/td>\nBrief Description<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1786<\/strong><\/td>\nIntroduction of new machines<\/a><\/td>\nThe Introduction of machinery into the textiles industry had an immediate\u00a0impact on the livelihood of workers. No longer were they skilled and highly\u00a0sought after experts in a field, now a machine could perform the task in\u00a0their stead.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1812<\/strong><\/td>\nWorkhouses<\/a><\/td>\nThe poor of the Parish of Bradford were catered for by a Workhouse<\/a>
\nprior to the Poor Law Amendment act.
\n<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1830-1836<\/strong><\/td>\nTyphoid outbreaks<\/a><\/td>\nBetween 1830 and 1836 there were 4 major outbreaks of this disease.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1831<\/strong><\/td>\nCholera strikes!<\/a><\/td>\nCholera resulted in over 50,000 deaths in
\nlittle over a year. How was ‘King Cholera’ stopped?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1834<\/strong><\/td>\nPoor Law Commission<\/a><\/td>\nThe Poor law is examined and changed
\nas a result of Industrialisation and pressures on the existing system.
\nThe source material looks at the way in which Huddersfield councillors
\nreacted to the revised Poor Law.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1835<\/strong><\/td>\nMunicipal Corporations Act<\/a><\/td>\nTown Councils were to be elected. The council was able to collect rates
\n(taxes) to pay for street lighting, sewage disposal and fresh water. However
\nan Act of Parliament would be necessary for each council to perform these
\ntasks.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1837<\/strong><\/td>\nBradford Woolcombers Report<\/a><\/td>\nA report written about the conditions faced by the Woolcombers
\nof Bradford<\/a>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1842<\/strong><\/td>\nReport on the conditions of workers in
\nLeeds<\/a><\/td>\n		Dr. Robert Baker’s report into conditions in the slums
\nof Leeds<\/a>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1842<\/strong><\/td>\nReport on the sanitary Condition
\nof the Labouring Classes.<\/a><\/td>\n		Edwin Chadwick’s<\/a> landmark
\nstudy into the health of ordinary people.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1844<\/strong><\/td>\nHealth of Towns Association<\/a><\/td>\nThis was a body that aimed at improving Public Health. It issued leaflets
\nand lobbied parliament to improve sanitation.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1844<\/strong><\/td>\nHealth in Bradford <\/a><\/td>\nStatistical evidence and contemporary accounts of health
\nin Bradford in the mid 1840’s<\/a>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1844<\/strong><\/td>\nHealth in Manchester<\/a><\/td>\nA description of conditions in Manchester.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1848<\/strong><\/td>\nCholera<\/a> returns<\/td>\n70,000 perish as Cholera<\/a> strikes again.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1848<\/strong><\/td>\nPublic Health Act<\/a><\/td>\nThis act was largely the result of Chadwick’s<\/a>
\nwork and the pressure applied by the health of towns association. It allowed
\nsmaller towns to implement changes to sanitation but was limited in its
\noverall scope.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1849<\/strong><\/td>\nThe Moral Condition of Bradford<\/td>\nSir Titus Salt, mayor of Bradford, commissions
\na report into the moral condition of Bradford and its inhabitants.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1850<\/strong><\/td>\nWorking Conditions in Bradford<\/a><\/td>\nAn observation of the conditions endured in Bradford at the height of
\nthe Industrial Revolution.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1851<\/strong><\/td>\nCensus figures<\/a><\/td>\nPopulation and housing figures for the 3 census
\nreturns<\/a> up to and including 1851 show that population boomed whilst
\nhousing provision lagged behind.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1853<\/strong><\/td>\nReturn of Cholera<\/a> – again!<\/td>\nCholera<\/a> accounts for another 30,000 lives<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1854<\/strong><\/td>\nJohn Snow’s<\/a> work on Cholera
\npublished<\/td>\n		John Snow<\/a> studied the incidences of Cholera
\nin Soho, London. he illustrated the fact that there was a very high correlation
\nbetween a water pump and the victims of the disease. Removing the pump
\ndramatically reduced the incidences of Cholera\u00a0in the area. This added weight to the argument that Government had to
\nbe involved in maintaining health.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1860<\/strong><\/td>\nNightingale School of Nursing<\/a><\/td>\nReports of Florence Nightingale<\/a>‘s work
\nin Scolari, the Crimea, had been published in England by the Times. In
\n1860 a hospital was opened using her methods, which included cleanliness
\nand compassion.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1862<\/strong><\/td>\nBradford Sewage Works<\/a><\/td>\nBradford opens its first sewage works<\/a>. As you
\nwill see in the source material, it was much needed! problems continued
\nhowever, as the sources illustrate.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1865<\/strong><\/td>\nGerm Theory<\/a><\/td>\nLouis Pasteur<\/a> proves that Germs exist.
\nThough opposed by many at the time, this results in the identification
\nof the cause of many diseases and increases the body of evidence that
\nshows that water has to be kept clean.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1866<\/strong><\/td>\nCholera<\/a> strikes again<\/td>\nA further 18,000 die of Cholera<\/a>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1867<\/strong><\/td>\nSecond Reform Act<\/td>\nWorking Class men were given the vote. This increased pressure on parliament
\nto improve conditions for ordinary people.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1869<\/strong><\/td>\nRoyal Sanitary Commission<\/a><\/td>\nResulted in the Local Government Board Act which placed responsibility
\nfor Public Health on a local authority. This was followed by the 1872
\nPublic Health Act which required the appointment of a medical officer
\nin each area, to be responsible for sanitation.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1872<\/strong><\/td>\n2nd Public Health Act<\/td>\nSee above<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1875<\/strong><\/td>\n3rd Public Health Act<\/td>\nMade local authorities responsible for lighting, water supply, sewage
\ndisposal, parks, toilets and housing.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1875<\/strong><\/td>\nArtisans and Labourers Dwellings Act<\/td>\nGave local authorities the power to demolish areas of housing with inadequate
\ndrainage or sewage disposal facilities. There was no compulsion to do
\nthis though. (Birmingham did, large sections of the city were rebuilt
\nas a result).<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1882<\/strong><\/td>\nTuberculosis Germ identified<\/td>\nRobert Koch<\/a>, a German
\nscientist identifies the cause of TB, a major killer of the time.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1883<\/strong><\/td>\nCholera germ identified.<\/td>\nRobert Koch<\/a> identifies
\nthe cholera germ.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1890<\/strong><\/td>\nHealth in Bradford<\/a><\/td>\nMargaret McMillan’s<\/a> assessment of
\nBradford when she visited the town for the first time. Contrasted with
\nan account of Bradford in the mid-nineteenth century.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1907<\/strong><\/td>\nReport into the health of Children
\nin Bradford<\/a><\/td>\n		A major survey of the impact of school
\nmeals in Bradford<\/a>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Medicine Through time<\/a>\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Resources for Medicine Through Time<\/a>\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Prehistoric Medicine<\/a>\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Ancient Egyptian Medicine<\/a>\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Ancient Greek Medicine<\/a>\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Medicine in the Roman Empire<\/a>\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Medieval Medicine<\/a>\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Renaissance Medicine<\/a>\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Public Health in the Industrial Revolution<\/a>\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Fight against infectious disease<\/a>\u00a0\u2013\u00a0Modern Medicine<\/a><\/p>\n

Related Material<\/h2>\n

Timeline of Public Health over time<\/a><\/p>\n

Medicine and Treatments c1350-2018<\/a><\/p>\n

Themes in Medical History<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Public Health in the Industrial Revolution Public Health had been a long standing issue in towns and cities. Plagues and other diseases regularly killed huge numbers. The industrial Revolution saw the issue of Public Health become a matter at the heart of government policy. A rising population coupled with poor housing and long working hours,… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2074,"parent":32,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"off","neve_meta_content_width":100,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-3709","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t