[Report 1925] / Medical Officer of Health, North Riding of Yorkshire County Council.

  • North Riding of Yorkshire (England). County Council.
Date:
1925
Catalogue details

Licence: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Credit: [Report 1925] / Medical Officer of Health, North Riding of Yorkshire County Council. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    NORTH RIDING OF YORKSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL. Hmuial IReport of the Countv ni>ebical ©fficer of H^ealtb. For the Year ending 31st December, 1925. NATURAL AND SOCIAL CONDITIONS OF THE AREA. General Statistics. Area (acres) .. .. .. .. 1,358,005 Population (Census 1921) .. .. .. 325,360 Population (Estimated 1925) : For births .. .. .. .. 319,000' For deaths .. . . .. .. 317,500 No. of inhabited houses (1921) .. .. 67,927 ,, Families or separate occupiers (1921) .. 69,968 Rateable value .. .. .. .. ,(^2,501,032 Assessable value .. .. .. . . ^£1,888,826 Sum represented by a penny rate .. .. ,^7,870 Population. The estimate of the population by the Registrar General shows an increase as compared with that of the previous year for birth rate figures (318,100), the higher figure being explained by the fact that units of the Army and Air Force are established at Catterick Camp—the population for death rate purposes shows an increase of 800 on the figure of the previous year (316,700). Physical Features and General Character of the Area. In extent the area of the North Riding County is one of the largest administrative units in England, exceeded only by the Counties of the West Riding and Devon. The shape of the administrative area may be likened to that of an irregular quadrilateral, the extreme measurement from North to South, Redcar to York, is approximately 45 miles : the large axis is some 80 miles from a point near to Filey Brigg to the extreme boundary in the West. The Northern boundary is the River Tees which separates it from the County of Durham, on the West it adjoins Westmorland, this boundary crosses a series of spurs of the Pennine Range, and meets to the South West the West Riding, from which it is partly separated by the Rivers Ouse and Ure : the River Derwent in a South Easterly direction is the natural boundary separating the Area from that of the East Riding. The littoral, in extent 60 miles, from the Tees Estuary to Filey Brigg, is the Eastern boundary of the area. Generally speaking the Area is divisible into 3 parts—to the West the district is mountainous, moorland on the East, and in the Centre is a part of the vast plain of York. The Western Area is part of the Pennine Chain, the highest part is Micklefell (2,591 feet), there are fifteen other summits in that part which attain an elevation of upwards of 2,000 feet. The Cleveland and Hambleton Hills constitute the Eastern portion, a region of moorland, the highest part not exceeding 1,500 feet. The hills in the West are chiefly limestone. The central part of the Area consists principally of deposits of clay, sandstone, gravel and shale, whilst in the Cleveland districts is found oolite rich in iron ore. Rivers. The Tees which is tidal to a point near to Yarm is a river of considerable importance : the Municipal Borough of Thornaby and the Eston Urban Area are closely associated with the trade of the Port of Middlesbrough. Apart from the Tees and the Ouse, the waterways of the County are not navigable for commercial craft except the smaller size, and, from the Public Health point of view, it is important that their pollution should be prevented. Social Conditions. The County Area is as a whole sparsely populated—Agriculture is the main pursuit in the Western and Central portions ; considerable portions of the upland areas are barren moorland. The North Eastern portion (Cleveland Area) is associated with the iron and steel industry, and activities connected with the ship-building yards of the River Tees ; there are linoleum works at Northallerton and the manufacture of linen is carried on at Brompton near to Northallerton.