Victorian Public Health
How Britain cleaned up its towns: cholera and dirty water, the report by Chadwick, the work by John Snow on the Broad Street pump, the Great Stink, the London sewers, and the move from the voluntary 1848 law to the compulsory 1875 Public Health Act.
Use it, the way the marks are given
Free interactive practice at using the material, which is what the marks are for.
Start revising freeWhat you'll cover
Cleaning up the Victorian city
Victorian towns grew fast and dirty, and cholera swept through them again and again. At first the government believed it should not interfere, so little was done. Then key people showed that clean water and drains could save lives, and a foul-smelling river finally forced action. This module works through cholera, the reformers, and the two laws that changed public health.
Public health words to know
Learn these before you trace the reforms.
The 1848 law against the 1875 law
The two Public Health Acts mark the change from choice to duty.
Show the shift from choice to duty
In the exam, show the shift from doing nothing to taking charge. Early Victorians believed government should stay out of the lives of people, so the first law only let towns act if they chose. After the dreadful smell of the river forced Parliament to notice, and after key people showed that unclean drinking supplies carried the disease, the later law made action a duty. Name the person, the event and the law, and say whether each step was voluntary or forced.
Match the reformer
- Edwin Chadwick
- John Snow
- Joseph Bazalgette
- the Great Stink
- reported that dirty living conditions caused disease
- traced cholera to a single water pump
- built the London sewers
- the smell that forced Parliament to act
Match the result
- removing the Broad Street pump handle
- the 1842 report by Chadwick
- the new London sewers
- the 1875 Public Health Act
- cholera cases in the area fell
- argued clean water would save money and lives
- kept sewage away from drinking water
- made every council provide clean water
What did the pump study prove?
What did John Snow prove by studying the Broad Street water pump?
- That cholera was spread by dirty water
- That cholera was spread only by bad air
- That cholera was harmless
- That cholera came only from food
True about the reforms
Select the TWO true statements about Victorian public health.
- The 1875 Public Health Act forced councils to provide clean water and sewers
- Joseph Bazalgette built the London sewer system
- The 1848 Act forced every town to act at once
- John Snow believed cholera was caused by bad air
Work out the proportion
A local health board inspects 60 homes and finds that 1 in 3 of them has no drains. Divide 60 by 3 to find how many of the homes have no drains. What is the answer?
Order the events
Put these public-health events in order, earliest first.
- Chadwick reports that dirty conditions cause disease in 1842
- The first Public Health Act lets towns act in 1848
- John Snow traces cholera to the Broad Street pump in 1854
- The second Public Health Act forces councils to act in 1875
Complete the story
The health of the whole population is called _____ health. Cholera was spread by dirty _____. Early Victorians believed in _____, so the government did little at first. The _____ Public Health Act finally forced councils to act.
Spot the reformers
Tap the TWO people who improved Victorian public health.
- John Snow, who traced cholera to a water pump
- Joseph Bazalgette, who built the London sewers
- a person who believed in leaving everything to chance
- a doctor who insisted cholera spread only through bad air
Judge the case
Read each case and choose the best answer.
- Cholera keeps returning, yet no town is forced to clean its water supply. Which attitude explains the slow response?
- A doctor removes a pump handle and local cholera cases quickly drop. Whose work is this?
- A new law forces every council to provide clean water and proper drains. Which law is this?
Explain the public-health reforms
Explain how public health in Britain improved during the Victorian period.
- Explain the problem of cholera and why the government was slow to act
- Explain what John Snow, Edwin Chadwick and Joseph Bazalgette each did
- Explain the difference between the 1848 and 1875 Public Health Acts