1874 GILCHRIST, ELIZABETH (Statutory Regsister of Deaths 623/ 35)

Metadata

Field Detail
Original Document Date 9/Sep/1874
Responsible Agency National Records of Scotland
References 1874 D 623/ 35
Source Created 23/May/2026 22:34:30
Source Last Updated 24/May/2026 16:40:00

Text

1874, DEATHS in the Parish of Biggar in the County of Lanark


No. 35

Name and Surname: Elizabeth Irvine Gilchrist

Condition: Single


When and Where Died: 1874 September Ninth 2H 30M A.M.; Biggar

Sex: F

Age: 6 yearss

Name, Surname and Profession of Father: David Gilchrist; Labourer

Name and Maiden Surname of Mother: Janet Gilchrist M. S. Steel


Cause of Death: Diptheria

Duration: 7 days

As certified by: John Archibald M.B.


Signature and Qualification of Informant: David Gilchrist, Father (present)

When and Where Registered: 1874 Sepember 9th at Biggar

Registrar: D. Lochhart

Notes

Contextual observations by Claude


A diphtheria outbreak in Biggar, September 1874

Finding: This is the most striking contextual observation about this document. Looking at the surrounding entries on the same page:


Entry 34 (preceding): George Tweedie, aged 6 years, son of George Tweedie (Joiner Journeyman), died 18 August 1874 of Diphtheria (9 days)

Entry 35 (Elizabeth): aged 6 years, died 9 September 1874 of Diphtheria

Entry 36 (following): Jessie Graham, aged 3 years, daughter of James Graham (Labourer), died 13 September 1874 of Diphtheria (6 days)


Three children all aged between 3 and 6, all dying of diphtheria within the same month (August–September 1874) in the same parish. This is a clear sign of a diphtheria epidemic affecting Biggar in late summer 1874. All three deaths were certified by the same doctor, John Archibald, M.B. — clearly the local medical practitioner dealing with the outbreak.


Such localised epidemics were common in Victorian Scotland — diphtheria spread easily in communities where children mixed at school or church, and the lack of antitoxin treatment meant outbreaks could devastate families in a matter of weeks. Biggar in 1874 would have been a small market town of perhaps 1,500–2,000 people; the loss of multiple young children within weeks would have affected the whole community.


What is diptheria?


Diphtheria is a bacterial infection of the throat and upper respiratory tract, characterised by the formation of a thick grey membrane that can obstruct breathing. Before the introduction of the diphtheria antitoxin in the 1890s and the vaccine in the 1920s, it was one of the most feared childhood diseases — particularly affecting children aged 1–10. The mortality rate among infected children in the 1870s was often 20–50%. Elizabeth’s death from diphtheria, lasting only 7 days, reflects the rapid and devastating course of the disease in this era.

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