John Snow: Figures from GCSE History

John Show Facts

Summary: Born in York, John Snow lived his early life in poverty. After qualifying as a doctor he became an anaesthesiologist and later developed a fascination for the study of cholera. His work on the causes of cholera would lead to him becoming known as the 'Father of Epidemiology'
Born: 15th March 1813
Died: 16th June 1858
Biggest achievement: Snow revolutionised the approach to epidemiology or the study of how diseases spread.

Who is John Snow?

John Snow was born on 15th March 1813 in York, Yorkshire. He was the first of nine children by William and Frances Snow. William Snow worked in a coal yard and the Snow family was incredibly poor. They lived in one of the most deprived areas of York. The houses on the street that they lived on constantly flooded, resulting in poor sanitation. This gave Snow an understanding of the struggles of the poor.

When Snow was 14 years old, he began a medical apprenticeship In Newcastle. He visited the ill and learned how to care for them. In 1831, he experienced the impacts of cholera. He visited the coal mining village of Killingworth, which was suffering from a cholera outbreak. Snow attempted to treat the cholera victims, gaining experience with the disease and the available treatments. Snow continued his medical career by moving to London in 1836. He became a doctor of medicine in 1844 at the University of London and the Royal College of Physicians accepted him in 1850. 

What did John Snow do?

Snow had a keen interest in the development of anaesthetics. He studied the use of ether in America and in 1847 he became an anaesthesiologist at St George’s Hospital, London. He began to understand the negative side effects of ether and looked for alternative anaesthetics. He came across James Simpson’s work on chloroform and preferred this to ether. However, Snow realised it was difficult to give patients the correct dose of chloroform. Several otherwise healthy patients died due to chloroform overdose. This prompted Snow to create a mask that delivered chloroform more safely. Snow’s reputation as a talented anaesthesiologist gained the recognition of Queen Victoria. She hired Snow to provide her with chloroform during the birth of Leopold in 1853 and Beatrice in 1857. The Queen’s endorsement of Snow propelled his reputation in the field of medicine. 

Interestingly, Snow never married. He was a lifelong vegetarian and never drank alcohol. These two aspects of Snow’s personal life were very rare for a person living in Victorian Britain.

What did John Snow discover?

Snow became fascinated with studying cholera. In 1849, he released an essay called On the Mode of Communication of Cholera. Within the essay, he stated that cholera was spread via a microscopic creature that lived in contaminated water. His theory received criticism from other scientists. They believed that cholera was spread by miasma or bad air. 

Determined to prove his theory, Snow and his supporters established the London Epidemiological Society in 1849. The society aimed to collect evidence about cholera and give advice to the government on methods to fight the disease. In August 1854, an opportunity to gain more evidence presented itself to Snow. A serious outbreak of cholera began in Soho, London, which was around the area where Snow lived. Snow revolutionised the approach to epidemiology or the study of how diseases spread. He created the concept of a spot map to note where cholera deaths occurred. Through his methodical research and investigative process, he identified that the source of cholera was a water pump on Broad Street. He convinced the local authority to remove the handle of the pump and the cases of cholera immediately fell. 

Snow collected his evidence together and presented it to the British government, proving that dirty water transmitted cholera, not miasma.

John Snow and the Impact of his work

The local government listened to Snow out of desperation to stop the 1854 cholera outbreak in Soho. The British government did not believe Snow’s theory. The Board of Health stated that they saw “no reason to adopt this belief”. 

Snow dealt with many critics of his work amongst the medical community and the public. In an attempt to disprove Snow, Reverend Whitehead interviewed a woman whose child contracted cholera. She had not been near the Broad Street pump, which Whitehead believed proved that God caused cholera. However, the woman stated that she disposed of faeces-containing water in a cesspool 3 feet away from the Broad Street pump. This gained more support for Snow’s theory about cholera. Snow grew in confidence. He continued to petition the government to improve the sewage disposal systems in towns and cities. 

Snow’s theory was accepted due to external factors and events. The Great Stink in 1858 forced the government to hire Joseph Bazalgette to act on Snow’s advice by improving London’s sewage system in 1865. It was not until 1883, 30 years after Snow’s death, that Snow’s theory was scientifically proven. Robert Koch isolated the bacteria behind cholera, finally disproving the theory of miasma.

In modern Britain, Snow is considered the ‘Father of Epidemiology’. His methodology is used in locating and containing epidemic diseases today. Broad Street, now known as Broadwick Street, houses a memorial in recognition of Snow’s work. It is a Victorian water pump without its handle.

John Snow's Death

John Snow suffered a stroke on 10th June 1858 whilst in his office in London. He suffered for 6 days until he died on 16 June 1858. Many scientists have theorised why Snow died at the age of 45. There are health issues associated with experimentation with a range of anaesthetic gases. This could explain his premature death. His body is buried in Brompton Cemetery.