The Problems of Housing & Overcrowding in Whitechapel (Edexcel GCSE History)

How did the Environment of Whitechapel Compare to the Standard of Living in England in the 19th Century? - Summary

The standard of living in England in c1870–c1900 was different than they are today. Between 1800 and 1900, there was a significant growth in the number of people living in towns and cities. The Industrial Revolution caused mass migration from the countryside to towns and cities to work in factories. London’s population increased from 959,000 in 1801 to 6,339,500 in 1901.

Homes in towns and cities were of very poor quality. Overpopulation meant that communal facilities like toilets and water pumps could not cope with the demand. Toilets were often overflowing with sewage and water pumps were contaminated. The 1875 Public Health Act attempted to improve living conditions. Local authorities had to provide clean water and sewage disposal. Failure to comply resulted in a fine. 

Working conditions during the 1800s were poor. Factory conditions were often dangerous and pay was low. The population of Whitechapel experienced this. Many people worked in the ‘sweated’ trades of shoe-making and matchstick-making. Sweatshops had poor conditions and some people worked 20-hour shifts. 

Due to Whitechapel’s poverty, the residents of Whitechapel’s standard of living was lower than most in Britain. 

What was it Like to Live in Whitechapel?

• Whitechapel is located in East London

What did Whitechapel look like in the nineteenth century?

• Whitechapel used to be a wealthy area of London

  • Many breweries and tanneries opened in Whitechapel during the Industrial Revolution

    •  The smell deterred the wealthy away from the area

• Whitechapel was one of London’s poorest districts in the nineteenth century

  • Out of a population of 30,000 people, roughly 1,000 people were homeless

  • Many people suffered from unemployment 

  • Some women became prostitutes to survive

• Some wealthier people lived and worked in Whitechapel

  • Most wealthier people lived on Whitechapel Road and Commercial Road

• Whitechapel contained many nationalities 

  • The area had a high level of immigration, particularly from Ireland and Eastern Europe

What were living conditions like in nineteenth-century Whitechapel?

• Whitechapel suffered from air pollution

  • Smoke and fumes from London’s many factories blew from west to east

  • Whitechapel contained many small, narrow streets and alleyways

    • For an outsider, Whitechapel would have felt like a maze. People could easily get lost

    • In some situations, a person navigating through Whitechapel would struggle to see their hand in front of their face

• Pollution also affected Whitechapel’s water supply

  • There was little clean drinking water

    • As a result, many residents of Whitechapel drank alcohol instead of water

• Whitechapel had poor sanitation

  • It was common to see sewage in the streets

Whitechapel's Rookeries

• Whitechapel was a very overcrowded area of London

  • The 1881 Census showed that Whitechapel’s 30,709 population lived in only 4,069 houses

• Overcrowded areas with poor-quality houses were called ‘Rookeries’

  • Houses were divided into apartments

    • Landlords could get more money renting individual apartments

    • In 1877, one rookery contained 123 rooms housing 757 people

  • Each apartment contained multiple families

    • An apartment could contain up to 30 people. Sometimes, families would sleep in the same bed

  • Houses did not have indoor toilets

    • Numerous apartments would share one outside toilet

    • The outside toilet often overflowed

• Rookeries could also contain lodging houses

  • Lodging houses are sometimes called ‘doss’ houses

  • Lodging houses offered people only a bed to sleep in

    • The landlord rented the bed out for eight-hour periods ensuring they gained the maximum amount of rent for the bed

  • Conditions in lodging houses were poor

    • Lodging houses attracted rats

    • Diseases spread quickly in lodging houses due to poor hygiene and lack of cleanliness

  • Whitechapel had over 200 lodging houses

    • There was a large rookery of lodging houses in Flower and Dean Street

    • Roughly a quarter of the population of Whitechapel lived in lodging houses

The Whitechapel Workhouse and the Casual Ward

• Workhouses offered shelter and food

  • The government developed the idea of workhouses in the early nineteenth century

  • Used by the poor, the sick, the disabled and orphans

• The workhouse residents had to provide labour in return for their food and shelter

  • This work kept the running costs of the workhouse down

  • Residents had to do tough manual labour This attempted to make the workhouse a last resort for the poor

    • This attempted to make the workhouse a last resort for the poor

• The owners of the workhouse separated families and punished them if they attempted to stay together

• Vagrants, also known as the ‘idle’ poor, stayed in ‘Casual Wards’

  • The Casual Ward provided the most basic accommodation at a lower standard than the rest of the workhouse

  • People could only stay in the Casual Ward for a night

  • The owners believed that keeping vagrants with other residents would encourage laziness in the workhouse

• Whitechapel’s workhouse was located on South Grove

  • It was built in 1871 and could hold up to 800 residents

The Peabody Estate

• The government attempted to improve the housing in Whitechapel

  • In 1875, the government introduced the Artisans’ Dwellings Act

  • The Act aimed to destroy substandard housing

    • The Metropolitan Board of Works, a government organisation, purchased an area on Royal Mint Street in Whitechapel

    • Royal Mint Street contained a high number of poor-quality lodging houses, which the government destroyed

    • George Peabody, a wealthy American businessman, purchased the land in 1879

• In 1881, the Peabody Estate opened

  • George Peabody designed the housing estate

  • Peabody created 286 flats

• The Peabody Estate provided much better conditions for Whitechapel

  • The Peabody Estate provided indoor toilets

    • Peabody built the toilets by the staircases

    • Two flats shared one toilet

  • Peabody set the rent for three shillings a week for a one-room flat and six shillings for a three-room flat

    • The average worker’s weekly salary in the nineteenth century was around 22 shillings

    • Some landlords charged the poorer people in Whitechapel around a third of their salary on rent