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Chadwick, E

Full Name: Edwin Chadwick

Achievements: Major improvements in public health

Born: January 24, 1800; Longsight, Lancashire, England

Died: July 6, 1890; East Sheen, Surrey, England (Aged 90)

Field & Discipline: Public Health

Language: English

Father: James Chadwick

Mother: Unknown

Siblings: Unknown

Spouse: Rachel Kennedy

Children: Osbert; Marion

Education: Local school, Longsight; Privately at home

Major Work:

“Report...on an Enquiry into the Sanitary Condition of the Labouring Population of Great Britain” (1842)

Life & Times:

Chadwick’s father was a radical journalist who at one time taught the scientist [father taught]  Dalton* music and botany,  and who became friendly with the radical [father a pal of] Thomas Paine*.

Chadwick became a lawyer,  and supplemented his income by writing newspaper articles, many of which were about the living conditions of the London poor. In 1828 he wrote an essay linking poor health and poor living conditions. In 1830 [knew] Southwood Smith* introduced him to the social reformer and Utilitarian philosopher [met] Jeremy Bentham*.

Chadwick saw little likelihood that Parliament would reform the Poor Law or improve social conditions in the industrial cities.   In 1832 he took the chance to do something about it himself when he accepted the job of Assistant Commissioner to the Poor Law Enquiry.  The Poor Law mandated distribution of relief to orphans, the elderly and infirm, the unemployed and ill-paid, and administered workhouses and movements of laborers.  The Law was based on the statute of 1601 and contained many anomalies, not least the fact that the 15,000 local authorities responsible for administering it were not held accountable.

Chadwick’s report on Poor Laws in London and Berkshire was published in “Extracts of Information” in 1833 and had considerable impact.   In Chadwick’s draft legislation for a new Poor Law he recommended that a central board be appointed to oversee administration of the Law by local authorities. In 1834 Chadwick was appointed Royal Commissioner to enquire into child labor in factories and in the same year was appointed Secretary to the Poor Law Commission.   [influenced] Cavour*, the Italian politician and social reformer, visited England, met Chadwick, and later edited a history of the Poor Laws in Britain.

In 1836 Chadwick was appointed Royal Commissioner to enquire into the Rural Constabulary. Although local police forces were inefficient, the vested interest of landowners and municipal boroughs ensured that his recommendations for reform were not accepted.  Meanwhile he continued his work on the Poor Law and  supported the  efforts of  [supported work of] Shuttleworth* to incorporate educational reform. Chadwick recognised the importance of the 1836 Registration Act,  which required the registration of deaths and their causes. He co-opted [collaborated with] William Farr* to set up a bureau of medical statistics within the Poor Law office and used the data to support his push for reform.

In 1838, a cholera outbreak in London affected the poorest districts and Chadwick succeeded in establishing a Sanitary Commission.  Its findings shocked the public. Further investigations were authorized and led to Chadwick’s famous “Report...on an Enquiry into the Sanitary Conditions of the Labouring Population of Great Britain” (1842).   Chadwick and his supporters suggested a link between untreated drinking water and cholera (proved by the work of  [work related to] John Snow* seven years later). Chadwick stressed the importance of better housing with improved ventilation and recommended widening streets, putting more windows in houses, draining marshland and building sewage works. He also advocated the unification of local government services. 

In 1847, he was appointed to a Royal Commission to enquire into sanitary conditions in London and began to set out detailed plans for street paving, water supply and sewage systems. The aim was to provide each house in the city with a high-pressure water supply, a sink,  a lavatory, and self-acting drains discharging into a main system.

In 1848 another cholera epidemic broke out and Chadwick collected data to demonstrate the conditions in which the disease spread and flourished: overcrowded housing, dirt, damp, open sewers, polluted water supply, and the ill-health of the chronically poor. In the same year, the Public Health Act, sometimes known as the Cholera Act, was passed. It embodied Chadwick’s belief that local authorities should be involved in public health measures for their own areas,  but that they should be accountable to a strong central authority.

A new General Board of Health was established, Chadwick was appointed Commissioner and worked with supporters such as [collaborated with] Bazalgette*,  who headed a new centralized body for sewage in London.  In 1854, a proposal to renew the 1848 Act was opposed in Parliament and the government of the day was defeated.  A new ministerial organisation replaced the Board of Health and Chadwick was compelled to retire from public administration.

He made a number of unsuccessful attempts to become a Member of Parliament and continued to campaign vigorously on improvements in agricultural drainage and irrigation, local administration, postal and telegraph services, education and fire prevention. In 1877 he helped to found the Sanitary Institute. Ten years later he was elected President of the Institute of Sanitary Inspectors and in 1889 was knighted.  

After his death the Chadwick chair of Hygiene and Public Health was created at University College, London and a Chadwick chair of Municipal Engineering was established.

Extra Connections: Influenced [influenced] Engels*.

His health reforms laid the groundwork for the success of the sanitary ware companies of [work related to] Jennings* and [work related to] Doulton*

Assessment: Chadwick was responsible for pushing through sanitary reforms and organising their administration.

Oneliner:  Edwin Chadwick,  Victorian public health reformer

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