Children of the Revolution: the rise of rickets in urban societies in 19th-century England

Summary

In the late 18th- to early 19th-century England, the impact of the Industrial Revolution on health was experienced by both manufacturers and workers alike, as it both changed the roles played by workers and the environment of urban living. Many of these workers would have been children, often as young as 9 years old, who found employment in factories to supplement the family income. The impact of industrialisation on the nutritional health of adults has been found in evidence such as shrinking physical statures and increases in obesity. This paper aims to explore the impact of industrialisation on the nutritional health of children during this period.

Using collections from urban sites across England, this paper will focus on skeletal indicators of nutritional health to identify the prevalence of rickets and other nutrient deficiencies during this industrial transition. It will explore the impact of various factors on childhood health, such as socio-economic status and geographical location, to create a picture of life for the 19th-century child.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 81st Annual Meeting, Orlando, FL (2016)   •
• On the Move: Archaeological Approaches to Children and Childhood

Keywords

Spatial Coverage