Dying with Style: Infant Death and its Context in a Rural Industrial Township 1650-1830

Social History of Medicine

Volumn 10, Issue 1, 1997, Pages 3-24

  King, Steve ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL LANCASHIRE   (United Kingdom)

Author keywords

Child care; Infant mortality; Kinship networks; Rural industrialization; Seasonality; West Yorkshire

Indexed keywords

ARTICLE; CHILD CARE; CHILD WELFARE; HEALTH; HISTORY; HUMAN; INDUSTRY; INFANT; INFANT MORTALITY; NEWBORN; PRESCHOOL CHILD; RURAL POPULATION; UNITED KINGDOM;

CHILD CARE; CHILD WELFARE; CHILD, PRESCHOOL; GREAT BRITAIN; HISTORY, 17TH CENTURY; HISTORY, 18TH CENTURY; HISTORY, 19TH CENTURY; HUMANS; INDUSTRY; INFANT; INFANT MORTALITY; INFANT, NEWBORN; RURAL HEALTH; RURAL POPULATION;

EID: 0031115336     PISSN: 0951631X     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1093/shm/10.1.3     Document Type: Article

References (100)

1. E. Parsons, History of Leeds and Adjoining Towns (Leeds, 1848), p. 3. My brackets.
2. W. Cudworth, Round about Bradford (Leeds, 1876), p. 446.
3. See Yorkshire Archaeological Society (hereafter YAS) DD12/II/25/28-36, 'Pudsey papers' or DD12/I/27-38, 'Calverley miscellany'. Concern with public nuisances, water supply, encroachment on the commons, enclosure of waste-land and the state of township housing stock can also be found frequently in the depositions taken as evidence for court cases in the eighteenth century. Debate over public health in the great cities is much more voluminous than in small communities such as this. See J. Landers, Death and the Metropolis: Studies in the Demographic History of London 1670-1830 (Cambridge, 1993) or J. Landers and A. Mouzas, 'Burial Seasonality and Cause of Death in London 1675-1825', Population Studies, 42 (1988), 59-83.
4. See Yorkshire Archaeological Society (hereafter YAS) DD12/II/25/28-36, 'Pudsey papers' or DD12/I/27-38, 'Calverley miscellany'. Concern with public nuisances, water supply, encroachment on the commons, enclosure of waste-land and the state of township housing stock can also be found frequently in the depositions taken as evidence for court cases in the eighteenth century. Debate over public health in the great cities is much more voluminous than in small communities such as this. See J. Landers, Death and the Metropolis: Studies in the Demographic History of London 1670-1830 (Cambridge, 1993) or J. Landers and A. Mouzas, 'Burial Seasonality and Cause of Death in London 1675-1825', Population Studies, 42 (1988), 59-83.
5. Cudworth, Bradford, p. 473.
6. J. Lawson, Letters to the Young on Progress in Pudsey during the Last Sixty Years (Leeds, 1876), p. 76.
7. For a similar balancing of competing and compensating influences on mortality regimes, see R. Houston, 'Writers to the Signet: Estimates of Adult Mortality in Scotland from the Sixteenth to the Nineteenth Century', Social History of Medicine, 8 (1995), 37-53.
8. A. Mercer, Disease, Mortality and Population in Transition (Leicester, 1990) stresses that even in 1781, Leeds had a death rate greater than anywhere except Manchester and Glasgow. For wider commentary on the so-called 'endermicization' of disease, see the summary of the debate offered by S. Szreter, 'Mortality in England in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth-centuries: A Reply to Sumit Guha', Social History of Medicine, 7 (1994), 269-82.
9. A. Mercer, Disease, Mortality and Population in Transition (Leicester, 1990) stresses that even in 1781, Leeds had a death rate greater than anywhere except Manchester and Glasgow. For wider commentary on the so-called 'endermicization' of disease, see the summary of the debate offered by S. Szreter, 'Mortality in England in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth-centuries: A Reply to Sumit Guha', Social History of Medicine, 7 (1994), 269-82.
10. For a wider discussion of the relationship between population density and disease, see Landers, Death and L. Schwarz, London in the Age of Industrialisation: Entrepreneurs, Labour Force and Living Conditions 1700-1850 (Cambndge, 1992). On the characteristics of proto-industrial areas more widely, see R. Houston and K. Snell, 'Proto-industrialisation? Cottage Industry, Social Change and Industrial Revolution', Historical Journal, 27 (1984), 473-92.
11. For a wider discussion of the relationship between population density and disease, see Landers, Death and L. Schwarz, London in the Age of Industrialisation: Entrepreneurs, Labour Force and Living Conditions 1700-1850 (Cambndge, 1992). On the characteristics of proto-industrial areas more widely, see R. Houston and K. Snell, 'Proto-industrialisation? Cottage Industry, Social Change and Industrial Revolution', Historical Journal, 27 (1984), 473-92.
12. For a wider discussion of the relationship between population density and disease, see Landers, Death and L. Schwarz, London in the Age of Industrialisation: Entrepreneurs, Labour Force and Living Conditions 1700-1850 (Cambndge, 1992). On the characteristics of proto-industrial areas more widely, see R. Houston and K. Snell, 'Proto-industrialisation? Cottage Industry, Social Change and Industrial Revolution', Historical Journal, 27 (1984), 473-92.
13. Lawson, Letters and J. R. Lehning, The Peasants of Marhles: Economic Development and Family Organisation in Nineteenth Century France (North Carolina, 1980), for instance have both drawn attention to deformities associated with proto-industry. For a wider survey of health conditions in rural industrial areas, see S. A. King, Poverty and Welfare in England 1700-1850 (Manchester, forthcoming 1997).
14. Lawson, Letters and J. R. Lehning, The Peasants of Marhles: Economic Development and Family Organisation in Nineteenth Century France (North Carolina, 1980), for instance have both drawn attention to deformities associated with proto-industry. For a wider survey of health conditions in rural industrial areas, see S. A. King, Poverty and Welfare in England 1700-1850 (Manchester, forthcoming 1997).
15. Lawson, Letters and J. R. Lehning, The Peasants of Marhles: Economic Development and Family Organisation in Nineteenth Century France (North Carolina, 1980), for instance have both drawn attention to deformities associated with proto-industry. For a wider survey of health conditions in rural industrial areas, see S. A. King, Poverty and Welfare in England 1700-1850 (Manchester, forthcoming 1997).
16. For suggestive discussion of these and other issues, see D. Valenze, The First Industrial Woman (Oxford, 1994).
17. R. Braun, Industrialisation and Everyday Life (Cambridge, 1981 trans. ) pp. 50 and 127. A failure to discuss the relationship between rural industrial penetration levels and the supposed consequences of rural industrialization remains an enduring legacy of this debate.
18. C. Shammas, 'The Domestic Environment in Early Modern England and America', Journal of Social History, 14 (1980), 2-24, for instance claims that the net cost of switching to the market for domestic provision might be very small indeed once one accounts for the domestic production infrastructure which then did not have to be maintained or accumulated. For a related discussion of the utilization of ready made cloth and clothing, see J. Styles 'Clothing the North: The Supply of Non-elite Clothing in the Eighteenth Century North of England', Textile History, 25 (1994), 139-66.
19. C. Shammas, 'The Domestic Environment in Early Modern England and America', Journal of Social History, 14 (1980), 2-24, for instance claims that the net cost of switching to the market for domestic provision might be very small indeed once one accounts for the domestic production infrastructure which then did not have to be maintained or accumulated. For a related discussion of the utilization of ready made cloth and clothing, see J. Styles 'Clothing the North: The Supply of Non-elite Clothing in the Eighteenth Century North of England', Textile History, 25 (1994), 139-66.
20. N. Tadmor, 'The Concept of the Household-Family in Eighteenth-century England', Past and Present, 151 (1996), 111-40 uses linguistic evidence to point to infinitely flexible eighteenth-century household arrangements. Similar evidence in an explicitly rural-industrial area might be found in W. D. M. Billington (ed.) The Diary of Captain Roger Dewhurst (Bolton, 1986). Kinship patterns are discussed in many of the essays in M. Daunton (ed.) Charity, Self-interest and Welfare in Britain since 1500 (London, 1996).
21. N. Tadmor, 'The Concept of the Household-Family in Eighteenth-century England', Past and Present, 151 (1996), 111-40 uses linguistic evidence to point to infinitely flexible eighteenth-century household arrangements. Similar evidence in an explicitly rural-industrial area might be found in W. D. M. Billington (ed.) The Diary of Captain Roger Dewhurst (Bolton, 1986). Kinship patterns are discussed in many of the essays in M. Daunton (ed.) Charity, Self-interest and Welfare in Britain since 1500 (London, 1996).
22. N. Tadmor, 'The Concept of the Household-Family in Eighteenth-century England', Past and Present, 151 (1996), 111-40 uses linguistic evidence to point to infinitely flexible eighteenth-century household arrangements. Similar evidence in an explicitly rural-industrial area might be found in W. D. M. Billington (ed.) The Diary of Captain Roger Dewhurst (Bolton, 1986). Kinship patterns are discussed in many of the essays in M. Daunton (ed.) Charity, Self-interest and Welfare in Britain since 1500 (London, 1996).
23. Indeed, in the most recent work on European proto-industrialization, the whole issue of the demographic consequences of rural industry goes virtually untouched. See R. Leboutte (ed.) Proto-industrialisation: Recent Research and New Perspectives (Geneva, 1996), and D. Ebeling and W. Mager (eds.) Proto-industrialisation in Europe from the Sixteenth to Nineteenth Centuries (Trier, forthcoming 1997).
24. Indeed, in the most recent work on European proto-industrialization, the whole issue of the demographic consequences of rural industry goes virtually untouched. See R. Leboutte (ed.) Proto- industrialisation: Recent Research and New Perspectives (Geneva, 1996), and D. Ebeling and W. Mager (eds.) Proto-industrialisation in Europe from the Sixteenth to Nineteenth Centuries (Trier, forthcoming 1997).
25. Braun, Industrialisation. Much of the continental literature on the demographic framework of rural industrialization is summarized in M. German and S. Ogilvie (eds.) European Proto-industrialisation (Cambridge, 1996). See also Pier Paolo Viazzo, Upland Communities:Environment, Population and Social Structure in the Alps since the Sixteenth-century (Cambridge, 1989) and A. Perrenoud, 'The Attenuation of Mortality Crises and the Decline of Mortality' in R. S. Schofield, D. S. Reher and A. Bideau (eds.) The Decline of Mortality in Europe (Oxford, 1991), pp. 18-37. See also J. Knodel, Demographic Behaviour in the Past: A Study of 14 German Village Populations in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth- centuries (Cambridge, 1988).
26. Braun, Industrialisation. Much of the continental literature on the demographic framework of rural industrialization is summarized in M. German and S. Ogilvie (eds.) European Proto-industrialisation (Cambridge, 1996). See also Pier Paolo Viazzo, Upland Communities:Environment, Population and Social Structure in the Alps since the Sixteenth-century (Cambridge, 1989) and A. Perrenoud, 'The Attenuation of Mortality Crises and the Decline of Mortality' in R. S. Schofield, D. S. Reher and A. Bideau (eds.) The Decline of Mortality in Europe (Oxford, 1991), pp. 18-37. See also J. Knodel, Demographic Behaviour in the Past: A Study of 14 German Village Populations in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth- centuries (Cambridge, 1988).
27. Braun, Industrialisation. Much of the continental literature on the demographic framework of rural industrialization is summarized in M. German and S. Ogilvie (eds.) European Proto-industrialisation (Cambridge, 1996). See also Pier Paolo Viazzo, Upland Communities:Environment, Population and Social Structure in the Alps since the Sixteenth-century (Cambridge, 1989) and A. Perrenoud, 'The Attenuation of Mortality Crises and the Decline of Mortality' in R. S. Schofield, D. S. Reher and A. Bideau (eds.) The Decline of Mortality in Europe (Oxford, 1991), pp. 18-37. See also J. Knodel, Demographic Behaviour in the Past: A Study of 14 German Village Populations in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth- centuries (Cambridge, 1988).
28. Braun, Industrialisation. Much of the continental literature on the demographic framework of rural industrialization is summarized in M. German and S. Ogilvie (eds.) European Proto-industrialisation (Cambridge, 1996). See also Pier Paolo Viazzo, Upland Communities:Environment, Population and Social Structure in the Alps since the Sixteenth-century (Cambridge, 1989) and A. Perrenoud, 'The Attenuation of Mortality Crises and the Decline of Mortality' in R. S. Schofield, D. S. Reher and A. Bideau (eds.) The Decline of Mortality in Europe (Oxford, 1991), pp. 18-37. See also J. Knodel, Demographic Behaviour in the Past: A Study of 14 German Village Populations in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth- centuries (Cambridge, 1988).
29. Braun, Industrialisation. Much of the continental literature on the demographic framework of rural industrialization is summarized in M. German and S. Ogilvie (eds.) European Proto-industrialisation (Cambridge, 1996). See also Pier Paolo Viazzo, Upland Communities:Environment, Population and Social Structure in the Alps since the Sixteenth-century (Cambridge, 1989) and A. Perrenoud, 'The Attenuation of Mortality Crises and the Decline of Mortality' in R. S. Schofield, D. S. Reher and A. Bideau (eds.) The Decline of Mortality in Europe (Oxford, 1991), pp. 18-37. See also J. Knodel, Demographic Behaviour in the Past: A Study of 14 German Village Populations in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth-centuries (Cambridge, 1988).
30. D. Levine, Family Formation in an Age of Nascent Capitalism (New York, 1977). Also D. Levine, 'Proto-industry and Demography Upheaval' in D. Levine, L. P. Moch, L. Tilly, J. Modell and E. Pleck (eds.) Essays on the Family and Historical Change (New York, 1986), pp. 184-206. Such mortality characteristics were discerned for proto-industrial areas as long ago as 1948 by Beckwith when investigating townships in Leeds parish. See F. Beckwith, 'The Population of Leeds during the Industrial Revolution', Publications of the Thoresby Society, 41 (1948). I am grateful to the referees of this paper for the extended discussion which they offered on the contextual background to the Calverley-cum-Farsley experience.
31. D. Levine, Family Formation in an Age of Nascent Capitalism (New York, 1977). Also D. Levine, 'Proto-industry and Demography Upheaval' in D. Levine, L. P. Moch, L. Tilly, J. Modell and E. Pleck (eds.) Essays on the Family and Historical Change (New York, 1986), pp. 184-206. Such mortality characteristics were discerned for proto-industrial areas as long ago as 1948 by Beckwith when investigating townships in Leeds parish. See F. Beckwith, 'The Population of Leeds during the Industrial Revolution', Publications of the Thoresby Society, 41 (1948). I am grateful to the referees of this paper for the extended discussion which they offered on the contextual background to the Calverley-cum-Farsley experience.
32. D. Levine, Family Formation in an Age of Nascent Capitalism (New York, 1977). Also D. Levine, 'Proto-industry and Demography Upheaval' in D. Levine, L. P. Moch, L. Tilly, J. Modell and E. Pleck (eds.) Essays on the Family and Historical Change (New York, 1986), pp. 184-206. Such mortality characteristics were discerned for proto-industrial areas as long ago as 1948 by Beckwith when investigating townships in Leeds parish. See F. Beckwith, 'The Population of Leeds during the Industrial Revolution', Publications of the Thoresby Society, 41 (1948). I am grateful to the referees of this paper for the extended discussion which they offered on the contextual background to the Calverley-cum-Farsley experience.
33. R. M. Carpenter, 'Peasants and Stockingers: Socio-economic Change in Guthlaxton Hundred, Leicestershire, 1700-1851' (Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, University of Leicester, 1994). At a more general level, M. W. Flinn, The European Demographic System (Baltimore, 1981) found no clear relationship between levels of infant mortality and typology of socio-economic structure.
34. R. M. Carpenter, 'Peasants and Stockingers: Socio-economic Change in Guthlaxton Hundred, Leicestershire, 1700-1851' (Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, University of Leicester, 1994). At a more general level, M. W. Flinn, The European Demographic System (Baltimore, 1981) found no clear relationship between levels of infant mortality and typology of socio-economic structure.
35. A. Brändström and J. Sundin, 'Infant Mortality in a Changing Society: The Effects of Child Care in a Swedish Parish 1820-1894' in A. Brändström and J. Sundin (eds.) Tradition and Transition: Studies in Microdemography and Social Change (Umeå, 1989), pp. 67-104.
36. Three of the twenty-six reconstitutions are proto-industrial in the strict sense of the term. The parish of Birstall is one of these and forms one of the borders of Calyerley parish. However, for discussion of data problems in Birstall, see S. A. King, 'Lives, Life Cycles and Historical Demography: New Perspectives', History and Computing, (forthcoming 1997). I am grateful to the Cambridge Group for inviting me to their 'Brown bag' seminar series where these issues were discussed.
37. See P. Razzell, Essays in English Population History (Chichester, 1993), for a discussion of how these spatial patterns in family reconstitution might introduce bias into 'national' figures.
38. See for instance, A. Brändström, 'The Impact of Female Labour Conditions on Infant Mortality: A Case Study of the Parishes of Nedetorneå and Jokkmokk 1800-96', Social History of Medicine, 1 (1988), 329-58.
39. See R. Woods, N. Williams and C. Galley, 'Infant Mortality in England 1550-1950: Problems in the Identification of Long Term Trends and Geographical and Social Variations' in A. Corsini and P. P. Viazzo (eds.) The Decline in Infant Mortality in Europe 1800-1950: Four Case Studies (Florence, 1993), pp. 35-50 for a recent survey of the dynamics of infant mortality.
40. The approach advocated here is in direct opposition to that suggested by other recent studies of infant mortality dynamics. See for instance P. Huck, 'Infant Mortality and Living Standards of English Workers during the Industrial Revolution', Journal of Economic History, 55 (1995), 528-50.
41. Birstall, Methley, Calverley-cum-Farsley, Sowerby (in Halifax parish), Guiseley and Bramley.
42. A point of clarification should be offered at this juncture. Both the reconstitution and the calculation of mortality figures which follows were carried out according to standard procedures and the results are directly comparable to those assembled by the Cambridge Group. S. A. King, 'Multiple-source Record Linkage in a Rural Industrial Community', History and Computing, 6 (1994), 133-42 suggests an alternative method of linkage and data manipulation, but it was not employed in this case.
43. Parsons, History of Leeds.
44. D. Gregory, Regional Transformation and the Industrial Revolution: A Geography of the Yorkshire Woollen Industry (London, 1982), traces crude figures for population per loom in 1811. Calverley emerges third from bottom with just over six people per handloom. A more detailed discussion of the Calverley-cum-Farsley context can be found in P. Hudson, 'Proto-industrialisation: The Case of the West Riding Wool Textile Industry in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries', History Workshop Journal, 12 (1981), 34-61.
45. D. Gregory, Regional Transformation and the Industrial Revolution: A Geography of the Yorkshire Woollen Industry (London, 1982), traces crude figures for population per loom in 1811. Calverley emerges third from bottom with just over six people per handloom. A more detailed discussion of the Calverley-cum-Farsley context can be found in P. Hudson, 'Proto-industrialisation: The Case of the West Riding Wool Textile Industry in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries', History Workshop Journal, 12 (1981), 34-61.
46. For more detail see S. A. King, 'The Nature and Causes of Demographic Change in an Industrialising Township' (Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, University of Liverpool, 1993).
47. See M. Turner (ed.) The 1801 Crop Returns for England (London, 1978). For discussion of the significance of this bias, see V. Fildes, 'The English Disease: Infantile Rickets and Scurvy in Pre-industrial England' in J. Cule and T. Turner (eds.) Childcare Through the Centuries (Cardiff, 1986), pp. 68-79.
48. See M. Turner (ed.) The 1801 Crop Returns for England (London, 1978). For discussion of the significance of this bias, see V. Fildes, 'The English Disease: Infantile Rickets and Scurvy in Pre-industrial England' in J. Cule and T. Turner (eds.) Childcare Through the Centuries (Cardiff, 1986), pp. 68-79.
49. These subtleties cannot be developed here. For a detailed discussion, see S. A. King, 'Some Aspects of Proto-industrialisation in two West Yorkshire Townships 1660-1830' in Ebeling and Mager (eds.) Proto-industrialisation. For a wider discussion, see Valenze, The First.
50. These subtleties cannot be developed here. For a detailed discussion, see S. A. King, 'Some Aspects of Proto-industrialisation in two West Yorkshire Townships 1660-1830' in Ebeling and Mager (eds.) Proto-industrialisation. For a wider discussion, see Valenze, The First.
51. For a discussion of this point, see Houston, 'Writers'.
52. See P. Hudson and S. A. King, 'A Sense of Place: Industrialising Townships in Eighteenth Century Yorkshire' in Leboutte (ed.) Proto-industrialisation, pp. 183-210.
53. See King, 'The Nature and Causes'. Whereas a complete female life cycle before 1750 might have included just one or two very short birth intervals once the fertility effects of infant mortality has been controlled for, by the 1790s a complete life-cycle might encompass four or more very short intervals. Flinn, The European, drew attention to the importance of the presence of other women in the household and the emotional bonds between them as factors influencing whether feeding on demand was possible and when weaning took place. J. Knodel and H. Kintner, 'The Impact of Breast Feeding Patterns on the Biometric Analysis of Infant Mortality', Demography, 14 (1977), 391-407 suggest that breast-feeding practice could change markedly depending on time of year or economic situation. Such practices were not then 'set in stone'. For an illuminating discussion of Finnish data, see U. B. Lithell, 'Breastfeeding Habits and the Relationship to Infant Mortality and Fertility', Journal of Family History, 6 (1981), 182-94. See also R. Woods and C. Wilson, 'Fertility in England: A Long Term Perspective', Population Studies, 45 (1991), 399-415.
54. See King, 'The Nature and Causes'. Whereas a complete female life cycle before 1750 might have included just one or two very short birth intervals once the fertility effects of infant mortality has been controlled for, by the 1790s a complete life-cycle might encompass four or more very short intervals. Flinn, The European, drew attention to the importance of the presence of other women in the household and the emotional bonds between them as factors influencing whether feeding on demand was possible and when weaning took place. J. Knodel and H. Kintner, 'The Impact of Breast Feeding Patterns on the Biometric Analysis of Infant Mortality', Demography, 14 (1977), 391-407 suggest that breast-feeding practice could change markedly depending on time of year or economic situation. Such practices were not then 'set in stone'. For an illuminating discussion of Finnish data, see U. B. Lithell, 'Breastfeeding Habits and the Relationship to Infant Mortality and Fertility', Journal of Family History, 6 (1981), 182-94. See also R. Woods and C. Wilson, 'Fertility in England: A Long Term Perspective', Population Studies, 45 (1991), 399-415.
55. See King, 'The Nature and Causes'. Whereas a complete female life cycle before 1750 might have included just one or two very short birth intervals once the fertility effects of infant mortality has been controlled for, by the 1790s a complete life-cycle might encompass four or more very short intervals. Flinn, The European, drew attention to the importance of the presence of other women in the household and the emotional bonds between them as factors influencing whether feeding on demand was possible and when weaning took place. J. Knodel and H. Kintner, 'The Impact of Breast Feeding Patterns on the Biometric Analysis of Infant Mortality', Demography, 14 (1977), 391-407 suggest that breast-feeding practice could change markedly depending on time of year or economic situation. Such practices were not then 'set in stone'. For an illuminating discussion of Finnish data, see U. B. Lithell, 'Breastfeeding Habits and the Relationship to Infant Mortality and Fertility', Journal of Family History, 6 (1981), 182-94. See also R. Woods and C. Wilson, 'Fertility in England: A Long Term Perspective', Population Studies, 45 (1991), 399-415.
56. See King, 'The Nature and Causes'. Whereas a complete female life cycle before 1750 might have included just one or two very short birth intervals once the fertility effects of infant mortality has been controlled for, by the 1790s a complete life-cycle might encompass four or more very short intervals. Flinn, The European, drew attention to the importance of the presence of other women in the household and the emotional bonds between them as factors influencing whether feeding on demand was possible and when weaning took place. J. Knodel and H. Kintner, 'The Impact of Breast Feeding Patterns on the Biometric Analysis of Infant Mortality', Demography, 14 (1977), 391-407 suggest that breast-feeding practice could change markedly depending on time of year or economic situation. Such practices were not then 'set in stone'. For an illuminating discussion of Finnish data, see U. B. Lithell, 'Breastfeeding Habits and the Relationship to Infant Mortality and Fertility', Journal of Family History, 6 (1981), 182-94. See also R. Woods and C. Wilson, 'Fertility in England: A Long Term Perspective', Population Studies, 45 (1991), 399-415.
57. See King, 'The Nature and Causes'. Whereas a complete female life cycle before 1750 might have included just one or two very short birth intervals once the fertility effects of infant mortality has been controlled for, by the 1790s a complete life-cycle might encompass four or more very short intervals. Flinn, The European, drew attention to the importance of the presence of other women in the household and the emotional bonds between them as factors influencing whether feeding on demand was possible and when weaning took place. J. Knodel and H. Kintner, 'The Impact of Breast Feeding Patterns on the Biometric Analysis of Infant Mortality', Demography, 14 (1977), 391-407 suggest that breast-feeding practice could change markedly depending on time of year or economic situation. Such practices were not then 'set in stone'. For an illuminating discussion of Finnish data, see U. B. Lithell, 'Breastfeeding Habits and the Relationship to Infant Mortality and Fertility', Journal of Family History, 6 (1981), 182-94. See also R. Woods and C. Wilson, 'Fertility in England: A Long Term Perspective', Population Studies, 45 (1991), 399-415.
58. The literary evidence on feeding in West Yorkshire has been assembled by V. Fildes, Breasts, Bottles and Babies: A History of Infant Feeding (Edinburgh, 1986). See also A. Wilson, The Making of Man-Midwifery: Childbirth in England 1660-1770 (London, 1995).
59. The literary evidence on feeding in West Yorkshire has been assembled by V. Fildes, Breasts, Bottles and Babies: A History of Infant Feeding (Edinburgh, 1986). See also A. Wilson, The Making of Man-Midwifery: Childbirth in England 1660-1770 (London, 1995).
60. For a discussion of mortality instability, see Schofield, Reher and Bideau (eds.) The Decline. See also M. Dobson, 'The Last Hiccup of an Old Demographic Regime: Population Stagnation and Decline in Late Seventeenth and Early Eighteenth Century South-east England', Continuity and Change, 4 (1989), 395-428.
61. For a discussion of mortality instability, see Schofield, Reher and Bideau (eds.) The Decline. See also M. Dobson, 'The Last Hiccup of an Old Demographic Regime: Population Stagnation and Decline in Late Seventeenth and Early Eighteenth Century South-east England', Continuity and Change, 4 (1989), 395-428.
62. In the process of multiple source record linkage, a life-cycle was only given an occupational ascription where at least three occupational statements could be found.
63. Carpenter, 'Peasants and Stockingers'. For an important discussion of the way in which house subdivision could have been influential in cutting down the mortality of certain social and occupational groups, see M. H. Johnson, Housing Culture: Traditional Architecture in an English Landscape (London, 1995).
64. Carpenter, 'Peasants and Stockingers'. For an important discussion of the way in which house subdivision could have been influential in cutting down the mortality of certain social and occupational groups, see M. H. Johnson, Housing Culture: Traditional Architecture in an English Landscape (London, 1995).
65. For the 'intermediate' breast-feeding parishes in the Knodel and Kintner sample, infant mortality of between 290-338 was the norm. Even the 'breast-feeding parishes' had infant mortality levels in the range 183-217. Knodel and Kintner, 'The Impact'. However, the experience of Knodels' villages in East Friesland, which shared a nonsusceptible period of similar length to Calverley-cum-Farsley, and is explained by Knodel in the same way, suggests that there was no inevitable relationship between infant mortality and feeding. Here the infant mortality rate was just 122 for the eighteenth century. See Knodel, Demographic Behaviour. Also Brändström, 'The Impact'.
66. For the 'intermediate' breast-feeding parishes in the Knodel and Kintner sample, infant mortality of between 290-338 was the norm. Even the 'breast-feeding parishes' had infant mortality levels in the range 183-217. Knodel and Kintner, 'The Impact'. However, the experience of Knodels' villages in East Friesland, which shared a nonsusceptible period of similar length to Calverley-cum-Farsley, and is explained by Knodel in the same way, suggests that there was no inevitable relationship between infant mortality and feeding. Here the infant mortality rate was just 122 for the eighteenth century. See Knodel, Demographic Behaviour. Also Brändström, 'The Impact'.
67. For the 'intermediate' breast-feeding parishes in the Knodel and Kintner sample, infant mortality of between 290-338 was the norm. Even the 'breast-feeding parishes' had infant mortality levels in the range 183-217. Knodel and Kintner, 'The Impact'. However, the experience of Knodels' villages in East Friesland, which shared a nonsusceptible period of similar length to Calverley-cum-Farsley, and is explained by Knodel in the same way, suggests that there was no inevitable relationship between infant mortality and feeding. Here the infant mortality rate was just 122 for the eighteenth century. See Knodel, Demographic Behaviour. Also Brändström, 'The Impact'.
68. S. Ruggles, 'Migration, Marriage and Mortality: Correcting Sources of Bias in English Family Reconstitutions', Population Studies, 46 (1992), 507-18.
69. For detailed perspectives on child-naming, see D. Scott-Smith, 'Child-naming Practices as Cultural and Familial Indicators' Local Population Studies, 32 (1984), 17-27.
70. A full exposition of the logic behind this adjustment can be found in King, 'The Nature and Causes', chapter seven. Also P. Razzell, 'The Growth of Population in Eighteenth Century England: A Critical Re-appraisal', Journal of Economic History, 53 (1993), 743-71.
71. A full exposition of the logic behind this adjustment can be found in King, 'The Nature and Causes', chapter seven. Also P. Razzell, 'The Growth of Population in Eighteenth Century England: A Critical Re-appraisal', Journal of Economic History, 53 (1993), 743-71.
72. E. A. Wrigley, 'Mortality in Pre-industrial England: The Example of Colyton, Devon, Over Three Centuries', Daedalus, 97 (1968), 67-88.
73. I am grateful to the referees of this paper for their discussion of this point.
74. The collection of the poor law records for the township was facilitated by a grant from Dr Richard Smith at the Wellcome Unit, University of Oxford. For background discussion of these sorts of issues, see Daunton (ed.) Charity.
75. For a discussion of the role of women in the family economy which holds many lessons for the English context, see O. Hufton, 'Women and the Family Economy in Eighteenth Century France', French Historical Studies, 9 (1975), 74-96.
76. Beckwith, 'The Population'. For a detailed exploration of the role of urban demography, see C. Galley, 'A Model of Early Modern Urban Demography', Economic History Review, 48 (1995), 448-69.
77. Beckwith, 'The Population'. For a detailed exploration of the role of urban demography, see C. Galley, 'A Model of Early Modern Urban Demography', Economic History Review, 48 (1995), 448-69.
78. See Hudson and King, 'A Sense of Place' for a more extensive discussion.
79. C. Creighton, A History of Epidemics in Britain, Volume II (London, 1965 repr. ) and M. Yasumoto, Industrialisation, Urbanisation and Demographic Change in England (Nagoya, 1994).
80. C. Creighton, A History of Epidemics in Britain, Volume II (London, 1965 repr. ) and M. Yasumoto, Industrialisation, Urbanisation and Demographic Change in England (Nagoya, 1994).
81. See YAS DD12/I/10/7, 'Survey of the Manor of Calverley by Thos Browne, Surveyor' and Razzell, 'The Growth'.
82. See YAS DD12/I/10/7, 'Survey of the Manor of Calverley by Thos Browne, Surveyor' and Razzell, 'The Growth'.
83. S. A. King, 'Reconstructing Lives: The Poor, the Poor Law and Welfare in Rural Industrial West Yorkshire 1650-1820' (forthcoming).
84. For different perspectives on the role of the poor law see P. Solar, 'Poor Relief and English Economic Development before the Industrial Revolution', Economic History Review, XLVIII (1995), 1-22. G. R. Boyer, 'Malthus was Right After All: Poor Relief and Birth Rates in Southeastern England', Journal of Political Economy, 97 (1989), 93-114 provides a different but related perspective on the demographic implications of poor relief.
85. For different perspectives on the role of the poor law see P. Solar, 'Poor Relief and English Economic Development before the Industrial Revolution', Economic History Review, XLVIII (1995), 1-22. G. R. Boyer, 'Malthus was Right After All: Poor Relief and Birth Rates in Southeastern England', Journal of Political Economy, 97 (1989), 93-114 provides a different but related perspective on the demographic implications of poor relief.
86. Turner (ed.) 1801 shows that most of the arable land in the township was under wheat or oats, but there were also substantial holdings of potatoes, well in excess of other villages.
87. See Lawson, Letters to the Young for a detailed discussion of local dietaries.
88. E. Hargrave and W. B. Crump (eds.) The Diary of Joseph Rogerson, Scribbling Miller of Bramley 1809-1814 (Leeds, 1948).
89. Lawson, Letters to the Young.
90. Public Record Office RG4/3343/1-E: 'Moravian Registers 1783-1830'. This level of detail is by no means uncommon in either this register or those of other nonconformist groups in the area.
91. Nor did women with this sort of experience show a disproportionate tendency to have multiple births (twins, triplets), which would have increased mortality risks.
92. Brandström, 'The Impact'.
93. Yasumoto, Industrialisation.
94. YAS DD12/T/S/A/18, 'Survey of Moor Land in the Manor of Calverley'. For more on 'dummy marriages', see E. A. Wrigley (ed.) Identifying People in the Past (London, 1972).
95. YAS DD12/T/S/A/18, 'Survey of Moor Land in the Manor of Calverley'. For more on 'dummy marriages', see E. A. Wrigley (ed.) Identifying People in the Past (London, 1972).
96. Carpenter, 'Peasants and Stockingers'.
97. YAS DD12/I/10/7, 'Survey of the Manor of Calverley by Thos Browne, Surveyor'.
98. Nor is this conclusion 'novel'. Flinn, The European, highlighted the crucial role of excess in-migrant mortality in underpinning perceived mortality regimes in many areas.
99. West Yorkshire Archive Service (WYAS), Huddersfield T/S/A/33, 'Manor of Calverley Cottage Survey 1807'. This sort of experience also manifests itself in some Lancashire communities, including Colne where it is possible to trace the gradual spread of intensive mortality out from the new canal in the later eighteenth century. In addition, there is a unique housing survey of the village of Hesketh which distinguishes groups of houses occupied by poor people and which were not parish owned. For both of these examples, see S. A. King, 'Mapping Out Poverty: Residence Patterns of the Poor in Nineteenth-century Lancashire' (forthcoming).
100. West Yorkshire Archive Service (WYAS), Huddersfield T/S/A/33, 'Manor of Calverley Cottage Survey 1807'. This sort of experience also manifests itself in some Lancashire communities, including Colne where it is possible to trace the gradual spread of intensive mortality out from the new canal in the later eighteenth century. In addition, there is a unique housing survey of the village of Hesketh which distinguishes groups of houses occupied by poor people and which were not parish owned. For both of these examples, see S. A. King, 'Mapping Out Poverty: Residence Patterns of the Poor in Nineteenth-century Lancashire' (forthcoming).