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Coping with industrial growth |
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In 1854, the town's council placed the responsibility for improvements on the owners of property and blamed the dire situation on the 'defective construction' of the town and overcrowding. The council appointed commissioners to improve the town's paving, lighting and drainage. The Improvement Act of 1841 gave them the power to levy two shillings in the pound on owners of houses, buildings and property. This gave them the money to establish facilities to cater for the booming population. Most of the large firms, including Bolckow Vaughan, distributed food, clothes and fuel to workers and their families in hard times.
Shipping the products of industrial growth
© Courtesy of Middlesbrough Central Library |
Conditions in Middlesbrough were inflamed by the geographical location of the town. Built to provide the quickest route for coal to the North Sea, Middlesbrough was tucked inside the bend of the River Tees. When it needed to expand, the town was hemmed in by the River Tees to the north and ironworks to the east and the west, making expansion difficult. The old town's status and importance dwindled in the area north of the railway, whilst progress pushed the new town centre to the other side of the track. This paved the way for future developments to push southwards.
The town's position was also an unfortunate trap for smoke and fumes, winds blew the pollution back into Middlesbrough. Lung and chest illnesses were an ever-present threat for the people who worked and lived in the hub of industry.
Middlesbrough owes its existence to industry and immigration, without either it would have remained a farming hamlet. However, the rapidity of this immigration caused the town's social problems. In short, Middlesbrough was a victim of its own success.
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