h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

In 1861, Betsy had married Billy and they had four children, Susannah aged 8, Elizabeth aged 5, Mary aged 3, and John aged 1. In 1871 Billy and Betsy had moved to Hartlepool, with Elizabeth now 15, John now 11, Martha aged 2, and Mary less than 1 year old.

Their eldest daughter Susannah is missing, now aged 18 she is very likely living elsewhere, probably in service. There is an anomaly with Mary, she should now be 13 years old. Obviously this is a different child which suggests that sometime in the previous ten years the first Mary had died. There is also an odd nine year gap between John and Martha.

Did Betsy get fed up with producing the standard child every two years in the traditional Victorian working class fashion? Or was it something even more intriguing, such as Billy spending time as a guest of Her Majesty, and I don’t mean helping out John Brown.

If only it were so; the truth was far more distressing. What we found when we investigated further was a chilling reminder of how tenuous life could be in the 19th century, even in a solid working class home as Billy’s was, given his constant employment on the railways.

In October 1870 the family living at home consisted of Elizabeth 15, Mary 13, John 11, Jonas 8, Edward 6, Emma 4, and Martha 18 months. In addition their mother, Betsy, was seven months pregnant. By the end of that October, Mary, Jonas, Edward and Emma were dead.

Emma was buried on 7 October, Jonas and Edward on 10 October, and Mary on 22 October. In only three weeks half the family died. On 21 December 1870 Mary Emma was born.

I don’t know exactly what happened, but around this time there was an outbreak of smallpox, originally carried over to the UK by refugees from the Franco-Prussian war. Figures suggest that the death rates were especially high in the towns of the North East like Hartlepool.

I append a short history of smallpox in England in the nineteenth century.

1838 Smallpox epidemic in England.
1853 Smallpox epidemic in England.
1853 In England, the Compulsory Vaccination Act . From 1853 to 1860, vaccination reached 75% of the live births and more than 90% of the population.

1857 Vaccination in England enforced by fines. Smallpox epidemic begins in England that lasts until 1859. Over 14,000 die.

1863 Second major epidemic of smallpox in England lasts until 1865. 20,000 die.
1867 Vaccination Act of 1867 in England begins to elicit protest from the population and an increase in the number of anti-vaccination groups. It compelled the vaccination of a baby within the first 90 days of its life. Those who objected would be continually badgered by magistrates and fined until the child turned 14. The law was passed on the assurance of medical officials that smallpox vaccinations were safe.

1867 Nonpayment of fines for skipping smallpox vaccination result in harsh penalties.

1870 Third major smallpox epidemic in England begins and lasts until 1872. Over 44,800 die.

1871 Worldwide epidemic of smallpox begins. Claims 8 million people worldwide.

1871 Select committee of the Privy Council convened to inquire into the Vaccination Act of 1867 (England), as 97.5% of the people who died from smallpox were vaccinated against it.

How it may have affected my ancestor John, watching his older sister and three younger siblings succumb to the disease cannot be imagined. And it is a constant reminder that our (my) existence hangs on such a thread of happenstance.

Had John succumbed I would not be writing this journal. From the 1780’s to my birthday, sixty two direct ancestors had to survive everything that disease, malnutrition, industrialisation, and two world wars could throw at them. I don’t believe in luck, nor do I believe in fate. Deep Thought reckoned the answer to life, the universe, and everything was 42. I think he was right.

And the question for that answer is, of course, "what are the two numbers uppermost on the pair of dice controlling your life, when they stop rolling".

[Amy P]

It must be awful to lose so many children. When I watched the TV series "Who do you think you are", infant mortality and how it effected so many families.