Health and Housing

Question 1

Describe the living conditions in the late 18th century and early 19th century

Answer 1

The rising population lead to a shortage in housing

Then overcrowding and filth

Houses were quickly and cheaply built- often had no widows- poor ventilation, dark and cold

No running water- had to be collected from a standpipe that was often contaminated

Toilet was shared- would often overflow

No refuse collection- piles of rubbish

Drains and sewers weren’t good- stagnant water

Question 2

What were the reasons for poor health?

Answer 2

Lack of sanitation

Lack of rubbish disposal

Overcrowding

Poor housing

Poor diet

Lack of medical care/knowledge

Question 3

Give reasons for the improved living conditions by 1914

Answer 3

Public health act

1855 Nuisance Removal act

1875 Artisans and labourers’ Dwelling act

Local authorities provided pavements, better streets, street lights, parks and libraries

New inventions

Question 4

Give examples of new inventions which helped improve life

Answer 4

Electric light

Flushing toilets

Coal burning kitchen ranges

Railways

Question 5

Describe the public health acts

Answer 5

gave local authorities the right to.

provide sewers/ drains,

a rubbish collection,

clean water,

cleaner streets,

more public baths

toilets

sanitary inspectors and medical officers

Question 6

Describe the 1855 Nuisance Removal Act

Answer 6

gave local authorities the right to clean or close properties that were a danger to people’s health

Question 7

Describe the 1875 Artisans and Labourers Dwelling Act

Answer 7

helped local authorities improve housing by giving them the right to pull down slum properties

Question 8

How did railways improve living conditions for the middle class?

Answer 8

railways made it possible for the more wealthy to leave the inner cities and settle downwind in the less polluted suburbs

Food and other materials could be transported

Question 9

Reasons for improvements in public health by 1914

Answer 9

Public health acts

1855 Nuisance Removal act

1875 Artisans and labourers’ Dwelling act

local authorities built new hospitals/ improve old ones

Improved diet

Medical Advances

Question 10

How did people’s diets improve

Answer 10

Change sun farming methods- more food and healthier, more varied diet

Fresh food could be transported using railways

Question 11

What were the medical advances like?

Answer 11

vaccination against smallpox became compulsory for all babies in 1853
-reduced infant deaths

anaesthetics and antiseptics gave
patients a much better chance of surviving surgery

cleanliness and nursing- improved survival

cures had been found for the killer diseases like
cholera and drugs were being developed to help reduce the suffering

Question 12

What were the effects of improvements of health and living conditions?

Answer 12

diseases such as cholera and typhus were greatly reduced

overcrowding was still bad - local authorities could pull down slums but not enough new houses were built

too many people still lived in houses with inadequate facilities

diseases such as diphtheria, measles, whooping cough and scarlet fever were still common

Question 13

Describe the domestic system…

Answer 13

At the start of the 18th century workers and their families would work in their own homes on hand-powered machines

Cloth makers bought wool from nearby sheep farmers.

Spinners- women and girls spun it into thread.

When the cloth makers handed over the raw wool, the spinners gave them thread

The cloth makers paid them for their work and took the thread back home and made cloth

Question 14

Why were new machines produced?

Answer 14

Population grew
- demand for cloth increased

More raw cotton was imported

There was too much for spinner and weavers to process

inventors produced new machines/ improved old ones to speed up the work

Question 15

Name the new inventions

Answer 15

1733 John Kay’s Flying Shuttle.

1764 Hargreaves’ Spinning Jenny.

1769 Arkwright’s Water Frame.

1779 Crompton’s Mule

1785 Cartwright’s power loom.

Question 16

Describe The flying shuttle

Answer 16

1733 John Kay’s Flying Shuttle.

Speeded up weaving.

Question 17

Describe the spinning Jenny

Answer 17

1764 Hargreaves’ Spinning Jenny.

Speeded up spinning.

Question 18

Describe Arkwright’s Water Frame

Answer 18

1769 Arkwright’s Water Frame.

Spun faster and made stronger, thinner
thread.

Driven by a water wheel.

Question 19

Describe Crompton’s Mule

Answer 19

1779 Crompton’s Mule.

Improved spinning.

Often powered by a steam engine.

Question 20

Describe Cartwright’s power loom

Answer 20

1785 Cartwright’s power loom.

Weaving – could use all of the yarn spun
by one mule.

Driven by a steam engine.

Question 21

Why were mills set up?

Answer 21

New machines were too big and need too much power for people’s homes

brought all the workers together in one place

Question 22

Where were the mills set up?

Answer 22

On the banks of streams with a good flow as they used a water wheel to drive the machines

Question 23

How did the speed spinners and weavers work at and time they were given differ when working in a mill?

Answer 23

Spinner and weavers had to keep up with the machines whereas at home they could work at a speed that suited them best and take rests

Question 24

What were the conditions in a factory like?

Answer 24

They were very warm as cold air would make the thread brittle

Accidents were common as there were no health and safety regulations

Hours were very long

Workers could be beaten if they were not working hard enough

Question 25

What were jobs like in the mills?

Answer 25

Many women worked in cloth mills

Women could look after spinning frames, power looms bad carding machines

Skilled well-paid jobs such as mule spinning were reserved for men

Young children worked as piercers- mending broken threads- crawled under machines

Question 26

Describe why factory acts were made?

Answer 26

People tried to persuade MP’s to pass a law limiting the working day.

MPs believed they had no right to limit working hours for adults- works and employees could decide themselves

Some MPs became concerned when they discovered that children were working more that 12 hours
Some factory owners took orphans and made them work for them

MPs made acts limiting hours of work for children

Unfortunately some of the people enforcing the acts owned factories so did not properly enforce the laws

Question 27

Explain the factory act of 1833

And comment on 2 issues with them

Answer 27

Children under 9- not to work in textile mills

Reduced working hours of people aged 9-18

No one under 18 was to do night work

4 inspectors appointed

Difficult to prove how old a child was
Not enough inspectors

Question 28

Describe the factory act of 1836

Give a comment on why it was good

Answer 28

Births, marriages and deaths had to be registered.

Made it easier to check the age of workers.

Question 29

Describe the factory act of 1844

Give a comment on why it was good

Answer 29

Reduced working hours of people aged 8-18 and women

Machinery was fenced

Made factories safer

Question 30

Describe the factory act of 1847

Give comment on why it was good

Answer 30

Young people and women to work no more than 10 h.p.d.

Working hours for young people and women now reduced. People now worked in shifts.