Prevelant Diseases of the 18th and 19th century in Kent, England:
Cholera, Typhoid and "Marsh Fever."
When looking at my Pye family tree, it was quite noticeable how many of my ancestors of the 18th and early 19th century did not make 'old bones', many of those who survived infancy and childhood, appeared to die in their 30's and 40's. Whilst these ages may in fact not be too varied from the national average of the time, it must be remembered that, this average was affected by a high incidence of infant mortality. However, this family were relatively affluent, families of Yeoman farmers, so whilst dependant on crop yields, they were not born to poverty.
Death certification and registration did not become law until 1837, so what could be the reason for the relative young ages at death?
My Pye family ancestors were based in the north and central area of Kent, close to Rochester, Sittingborne and the Isle of Sheppey. My Randolph family ancestors were from the Romney Marsh area.
THE CHOLERA EPIDEMIC 1832-1835.
Chatham Daily News 1830'sThe first incidence of Cholera, of this epidemic, in Kent was in the Spring of 1832. The first 2 cases noted was
1. A female vagrant in Rochester, originally from London.
2. A seaman in Chatham, working on a boat that worked between Chatham and London.
These cases were soon followed by the death of 80 people on the prison ship The Cumberland docked in Chatham, casualties included the prison surgeon. The disease continued to spread rapidly. 12 deaths in Sheerness, 12 in Faversham and 47 in Minster on the Isle of Sheppey.
In 1832 the Maidstone gazette debated as to the advisability of employing hop pickers from London. The incidence of Cholera within such persons was 12 in East Barling and 19 in Barming.
Following these outbreaks there was a lull in reported cases until 1834 when there was another outbreak in North Kent. However the authorities appeared to keep the matter quiet, due to the visitors who flocked to resorts such as Whitstable and Herne Bay in the summer. At this time there was also another outbreak reported amongst the hop pickers of East Farleigh.
It is interesting to read the various approaches to the containment and reportage of this epidemic in the light of the similar situation associated with the current Covid pandemic.
THE TYPHOID EPIDEMIC.
There are reports of 3 Typhoid epidemics in the early 19th century in Britain.
1. 1801
2. 1816-1819
3. 1837-1838
However these epidemics mainly occurred in the Midlands and Northern England.
This disease is perhaps the most interesting of the diseases related to my own ancestors and perhaps for those of you with ancestors from this area of Kent.
This disease was prevelent in Kent, with the Thameside marshes, being particularly affected, alongside Romney, parts of Thanet and East Kent. Each gaining a notorious reputation for 'unhealthiness.' These marshland habitats were suited to the British mosquito species 'Anopheles atroparvus', which was able to carry the disease from person to person. Ague, or marsh fever was associated with fits of shivering and chills followed by fever and sweating. Whilst it is thought that the parasite 'Anopheles atroparvus' was less lethal than some world malaria parasites it left an undeniable toll on those communities including fatalities.
Edward Hasted the 18th century Kent historian wrote:- On the north side of the great road from London to Dover, almost as far as Canterbury, there is a long space of county lying near the banks of the Thames and Medway, along the Swale and joining to the river Stour below Canterbury, in which the air is gross, foggy and subject to intermittents, owing to large tracts of low swampy marsh ground among which there are such quantities of stagnating waters as render the county around them exceedingly unwholesome, especially in Autumn.
Observing further Edward Hasted wrote:- The severe agues which the inhabitants are very rarely without, whose complexions from those distempers become of a dingy yellow colour and if they survive, are genererally afflicted with them 'till summer and often for several years, so that is not unusual to see a poor man, his wife and whole family of 5 or 6 children hovering over their fire in their hovel, shaking with the ague all at the same time.
The extent to which malaria affected it's marshland victims was striking. Few other areas of the English countryside were subject to such extreme levels of sickness, suffering and death. Mortality rates within marshland areas and non marshland areas in the South East of England were measured, using parish records. On every count the marshland areas recorded the highest incidence of child and adult mortality rates, two to three times higher than that of their non marshland neighbours.
Whilst it was in the 17th century that it was noted that the bark from the chinchona tree (quina-quina) in South America was an effective treatment for an infectious disease, it was not until the early 19th century that it was more widely used in the UK. Clinical trials were conducted in 3,600 patients over the period between 1866-1868 with a 98% measure of 'cessation of febrile paroxysms'. Quinine continued to be the therapeutic drug of choice until the 1920's, when more effective synthesized medicines were formulated.
In regards to North Kent, it was the areas around the Isle of Sheppey and the Hoo peninsula, which suffered significantly from malaria. The nephew of my 3 x Great Grandfather, Henry Pye of Hoo 1824-1909, was a significant man in aiding the reduction of malaria in the Kent marshlands. In order to grow a more diverse set of crops on his land, he set about draining using drainage systems his farmland. Seeing the benefits of this practice, fellow farmers and landowners followed suit. It was acknowledged that his forsight and action not only aided prosperity but also the health of the area. He was widely acclaimed by local people as 'The King of the Hundreds.'
A poignant memorial to the suffering caused by malaria can be found at St James' church on the Hoo Peninsula. In the graveyard lie thirteen small gravestones each belonging to an infant who died of suspected ague between 1771 and 1854. The church and it's environs were the inspiration for events with Charles Dicken' novel Great Expectations. As the location for young Pip's meeting with the convict Magwitch, Dickens describes the graves as 'little stone lozenges each about a foot and a half long, which were arranged in a neat row, besides their parent' graves. Hence they are now known as Pip's Graves.
Pip's Graves, in the churchyard of St James' Church, Cooling. Both the church and the North Kent Marshes feature in Charles Dickens' "Great Expectations". Credit: F. Hawkessources: Quinine, an old anti-malarial drug in a modern world: role in the treatment of malaria (nih.gov)
www.kentarcheology.ac: Cholera and Typhoid Fever in Kent by Christopher Collins
1979 095.pdf (kentarchaeology.org.uk) Malaria: It's influence on a North Kent Community Philip MacDougall
Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine Supplement no.17 vol,82 1989
I did not realize England has a domestic mosquito, let alone one that carries malaria. Very interesting post, thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThank you Barb. There are articles which suggest 'global warming' may increase the incidence in these marsh/fenland areas again.
Delete