Eradicating Filth: Public Health in Victorian Times

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Topic Areas

• Wolverhampton
• Bilston
• Wednesfield / Heath Town
• Willenhall

Life in Britain's towns and cities was not pleasant during the 19th century, and was a far cry from the living conditions that we have today. The streets were filthy, with drains and sewers often blocked and overflowing with sewage. Sanitation was poor and inefficient. Toilet facilities were crude and
Night Soil Men were employed to remove human waste during the night - not a pleasant job! The stench must have been awful and on a warm day completely overwhelming. In these conditions, water was often contaminated and unfit to drink and so it comes as no surprise that death and disease were commonplace.

Night Soil Men - taken from State of Large Towns in
South Staffordshire page 18 (S614)

The problem caused by heaps of uncollected rubbish and sewer filth which polluted many of Britain's towns and cities was a matter of national concern, particularly in relation to public health, and Wolverhampton was no exception.

Following a number of outbreaks of disease across the country, in particular the cholera epidemics of 1832 and 1848, the Government began a series of enquiries into the state of public health in the United Kingdom. This marked the beginning of a series of reforms and improvements which were to take place throughout the remainder of the 19th century. By the beginning of the 20th century cholera had vanished, clean water was available on tap, the streets were well lit and cleared of rubbish and sewage was removed via underground pipes. The death rate of infants below 1 year had fallen from 31 per 1000 to 17 per 1000 by 1900.

The following pages show what conditions were like for those living in Wolverhampton and how the authorities brought about changes to improve those conditions for the town's inhabitants.

In the 19th century the Wolverhampton Poor Law Union consisted of Wolverhampton, Bilston, Wednesfield and Willenhall. There were sanitation problems in all four townships and they are all mentioned to some extent in a variety of reports documenting the state of the town during this period.

© Copyright. Wolverhampton City Council, 2002