Dr. Horace Swete's report to the local government board on a prevalence of epidemic disease in the urban sanitary district of Crompton (Lancashire), and on the general sanitary condition of the district.

Date:
1879
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Dr. Horace Swete's report to the local government board on a prevalence of epidemic disease in the urban sanitary district of Crompton (Lancashire), and on the general sanitary condition of the district. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service. The original may be consulted at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service.

    1/6
    Dr. Horace Swete’s Report to the Local Government Board on the Prevalence of Epidemic Disease in the Urban Sanitary District of Crompton (Lancashire), and on the general sanitary condition of the District. Edward C. Seaton, M.D., Medical Department, October 3, 1879. Under instructions from the Local Government Board to visit and report on this district, I visited, in company with the Inspector and Sub-Inspector of Nuisances, almost every house in the township. I was also shown a few places by the Medical Officer of Health. During my inspection I had the opportunity of meeting many of the members of the Local Board, who, as well as the Inspector, were anxious that the worst of the Sanitary arrangements should be freely pointed out to me. The urban sanitary district of Crompton, which is conterminous with the sub-regis- tration district of Crompton, contains 2,864 acres, and is chiefly open moorland and hills. The lowest point, in the main street of Crompton, is 593 feet above sea level; whilst the hills to the north and north-west rise to an altitude of 1,300 feet at Crompton Moor. The eastern boundary of the district adjoins Yorkshire. The geological formation belongs to the coal measures, with beds of sandstone of a fine quality. The average rainfall ranges from 36 to 41 inches in the year. The town, or rather village growing into a town, consists mostly of a single street, with a few inter- secting streets and large airy courts at Lower Shaw and New Town. At Cowlishaw, High Crompton, and East Crompton there are many houses recently built, and more in course of erection or planned to be built. Scattered over the hills are small hamlets, as at Clough, Nook, Birkenshaw, Burnt Edge, and Eirlane. The township is divided into three ecclesiastical parishes—Shaw, Higher Cronquton, and East Crompton ; at the two latter places new churches and schools have been built; in 1876 the incumbent of East Crompton fell a victim to typhoid fever. The population at the census of 1871 was 7,302, but considering that 325 houses have been erected since that date, and are inhabited, it is calculated that the population cannot be less than 8,700 at the present date. The rateable value of the township in 1871 was 21,601/.; this is now raised to 30,708/. 10s. The town rates amount to 2s. 3d. in the 1/., the poor rates Is. Qd. The debt on town rates is at present only 952/.; 712/. of this has been borrowed for drainage purposes with the sanction of the Local Government Board, but 1,400/. is about to be borrowed for further improvements under the same sanction. The general appearance of the town is clean ; the streets are open and well ventilated ; the houses being almost invariably only two-storied, with an elevation of not more than 20 feet, whilst the streets are 40 to 46 feet in width. The houses are built of stone or brick, roofed with slabs of stone or slate, and have a warm comfortable appearance. Unfortunately, the older houses have little or no ventilation, the lower windows being very seldom made to open, and many rows of houses are built back to back, without any through ventilation. In High Crompton there is a collection of houses built in a U-shape, forming a cul-de-sac through which it is impossible to get ventilation. On the hill side the ground often rises up to the window sills against the houses, there being no courtyards behind the houses ; courtyards are generally very small; the houses, except in outlying places, are without gardens or any area space. The courtyards, small as they are, are often lumbered up with erections for piggeries, and large tubs, mostly rotten and filthy, for the collection of rain water. The streets are well paved and the pathway flagged for a considerable distance out of the town; even at the extreme limits of the parish, as at Grains and Burnt Edge, I met with paving before the houses. The streets and most of the outlying hamlets are lighted with gas from the Oldham Cor- poration Gasworks. The principal industry of the township is that of cotton spinning, there being about 20 mills in good work. The collieries and sandstone quarries give employment to a large number of hands ; there is not much agricultural labour, the land being mostly in grass and sheep walks. Notwithstanding the depression of trade, there has been constant work with but little pauperism. The wages of the mill hands vary from 18s. to 30s. a M 91G. 100.—10/79. Wt. 5232. E. & S. A General de- scription of the district. Population and town statistics. Streets and houses. Occupation and condition of the people.