During Victorian times, there were great population increases, and the number of people living in towns and cities rose dramatically. There were no central town authorities to take control and so the problems of pollution, housing, overcrowding and disease became worse and worse.
An Industrial Town - Manchester
Manchester was the first industrial town based on factories. As public transport had not yet been developed, workers had to live near their place of work. The town grew in size rapidly, but the conditions were very bad.
"The town is abominably filthy, the steam engine is pestiferous; the Dyehouses noisome and offensive, and the water of the river as black as ink." (A visitor from Rotherham in 1808)
The state of the rivers was due to both human waste, and chemical waste from factories being emptied into it. The same water was used by most people for washing, cleaning and drinking.
"The river is really unsightly. Gas drainings, the refuse of factories, unite with countless other abominations to contaminate the stream, and render it equally fatal to animal and vegetable life." (A Pictorial History of Lancashire, 1844)
The smoke belching out from the many chimneys of Manchester caused a thick fog to block out the light of the Sun.
"The prospect is anything but cheering. Forests of chimneys, clouds of smoke and volumes of vapour, like the seething of some stupendous cauldron, occupy the entire landscape; there is no sky, but a dark grey haze " (A Pictorial History of Lancashire, 1844)
Cholera
Cholera came to Britain on several occasions during the 19th century, in 1831/2, 1848/9, 1853/4, 1865/6 and 1893. The symptoms were stomach pains, vomiting, diarrhoea, difficulty in breathing, and the victim's skin turning blue. tHe chance of recovery was about 50%. 'The Cholera' as it was known, struck quickly:
"Mrs Smith young and beautiful (who) dressed to go to church on Sunday morning when she was seized with the disorder and died at 11 at night." (from Charles Grenville's journal, 25th July 1832)