The Healthiest City

Milwaukee and the Politics of Health Reform

Judith W. Leavitt

• Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press
• Year: 1996
• ISBN:
  9780299151638
• Topic: Biological Sciences
• Subtopic: Science General
• Index: Biological Sciences

Between 1850 and 1900, Milwaukee's rapid population growth also gave rise to high death rates, infectious diseases, crowded housing, filthy streets, inadequate water supplies, and incredible stench. The Healthiest City shows how a coalition of reform groups brought about community education and municipal action to achieve for Milwaukee the title of "the healthiest city" by the 1930s. This highly praised book reminds us that cutting funds and regulations for preserving public health results in inconvenience, illness, and even death.
"A major work.... Leavitt focuses on three illustrative issues—smallpox, garbage, and milk, representing the larger areas of infectious disease, sanitation, and food control."—Norman Gevitz, Journal of the American Medical Association
"Leavitt's research provides additional evidence... that improvements in sanitation, living conditions, and diet contributed more to the overall decline in mortality rates than advances in medical practice.... A solid contribution to the history of urban reform politics and public health."—Jo Ann Carrigan, Journal of American History

Table of contents

• Contents
• List of Illustrations
• List of Tables
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Abbreviations
• Introduction
• 1. Milwaukee: The City and Its Health Problems
• 2. The City Health Department
• 3. The Politics of Health Reform: Smallpox
• 4. The Politics of Health Reform: Garbage
• 5. The Politics of Health Reform: Milk
• 6. The Volunteers
• 7. The Healthiest City
• 8. The Process of Change
• Chronological Outline of Public Health History in Milwaukee
• Essay on the Sources
• Index