Two days ago I posted about the campaign of Helen Clark McCurdy to be a city commissioner. Like other public minded women of her time, she was very concerned about public sanitation and health. An article in today's Pantagraph 100 years ago elaborated on the challenges to the city.
There were 9000 homes and businesses in the city. All of them burned coal for their power and heat. The ashes from these homes were an annoyance to the men or servants who had to shovel them out on a daily or weekly basis, but the coordination of the removal of ashes from the public streets and alleys was more than an annoyance. The city had to collect the other household waste as well.
The Pantagraph pointed out that over eighty teamsters were kept busy with delivery of the coal, but the city had just eleven teams to take away the ash. These were not motorized trucks either, they were wagons drawn by horses or mules. What a challenge!
Helen Clark McCurdy had presented on this topic to ladies at the Women's Club and used one of her maps as a campaign ad.
The reason so many women were concerned about sanitation was the threat of tuberculosis. It was closely connected to the threat of dirt and the need for fresh air.
Leaving your windows open to the fresh air was dangerous if the streets around you were filled with garbage and ash.
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