An exploration of health issues, from 1900 to 1960, in the small Northumberland town of Haltwhistle. Using information from council and medical officer reports, this book deals with range of topics including:
Infectious diseases like polio, smallpox, scarlet fever, whooping cough, measles and tuberculosis The water supply and the sewerage systemHow refuse was collected and disposed ofThe move towards indoor and flushing toilets The type of food sold and produced in the areaThe type of employment that was availableHousing developments and the state of the roadsThe development of health services in the area including the first ambulance and hospitalThere are also population statistics including the number of births and deaths and details of the main causes of death. There are lots of facts and figures but also a wealth of other data that is in its own way priceless. For example, did you know that:
In 1904 a man was employed to water the streets in dry and dusty weatherA canal linking the Tyne and Solway was proposed in 19371947 saw the first ice cream manufacturers in the areaIn 1954 seventy households in Haltwhistle town were still reliant for their water on standpipes or that 1956 saw the building or a rocket testing station at Spadeadam