Pre-Confederation Newfoundland was a challenging place to grow up, especially for children in low-income families. Infectious diseases – including cholera, typhus, smallpox, tuberculosis, diphtheria, gastroenteritis, and whooping cough – circulated unchecked. Poverty, meagre sanitation, inadequate transportation, ignorance, and isolation compounded the effects of poor health. Health care was difficult to access, particularly in outport communities. Faced with these and other challenges, Newfoundland’s early days painted a sombre picture of Public Health.
It was only in 1900 that Newfoundland began recording the number of child deaths, revealing a shockingly high mortality rate – significantly higher than the rest of Canada. In this lecture, Dr. Cooper will discuss the reasons behind those numbers, placing them in historical and political context, vis-a-vis details found in community and family histories, anecdotal and primary sources, and scanty formal records. He will provide important context for reflection on the public health care challenges of the 20th century.
View Lecture: Child Health and Welfare in Newfoundland before 1949