Cause of death

[SueinKent]

I have just received death cert for OH's Aunt who died at 15 months old in 1915, the cause of death was Whooping cough and Broncho pneumonia. I am waiting for her sisters death cert which hopefully will come tomorrow and I suspect she may have died from the same cause. Its seems awful that children died of diseases that are preventable today.

Update

Just received birth cert for OH's other aunt. She died aged 18 months of Measles, their is another word but I can read it, looks like Eule....

Measles and whooping cough are preventable today it is so sad. I have sent for another death cert this time a brother, he too died aged 1. It must be awful to lose 3 children.

[Mary from Italy]

Yes, people tend to forget that when they refuse the whooping cough vaccine for their children. Older children aren't likely to die of it (I had it myself when I was about 12), but small ones can.

[Durham Lady]

Yes it's sad to think how many children died from now preventable diseases. My paternal grandparents lost children to both those and Diptheria and grans brother's first child died from Smallpox a few days after her mother. The baby was only 13 days old so the mother must have passed it to her unborn or new born child. My maternal granny's first baby died from diarrhoea.

[Mary from Italy]

Millions of children in the world still die from diarrhoea.

[SueinKent]

Its unthinkable that diarrhoea could cause death.

[Christine in Herts]

Its unthinkable that diarrhoea could cause death.

That's why clean drinking water is so precious... and why access (or lack of...) has the potential to start wars.

Christine

[Mary from Italy]

Diarrhoea kills over 1 million children every year through dehydration and malnutrition.

Facts for Life - Diarrhoea

[SueinKent]

I have put an update on my original post.

[Mary from Italy]

Sue, if you want to scan the part of the death cert which shows the cause of death and post it on here, we can try and decipher it for you.

[SueinKent]

Thanks Mary. I am not too sure how to do that. Hubby is out at the moment but when he comes back I will ask him to help me. I am going out this afternoon so it may not be until later tonight.

I am curious to know what it means though.

[Mary from Italy]

You need to upload the scan to photobucket or a similar site.

This thread explains what to do:

http://www.familytreeforum.com/reference-information-how-guides/28003-how-use-photobucket.html

[Little Nell]

I have an 1849 death cert for 5 year old Elizabeth Browning

Cause of death: smallpox 14 days, never vaccinated (certified)

[SueinKent]

sueinkent - Page 1 - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

Hopefully this has worked

Oh dear I've done something wrong here lol

[SueinKent]

I have an 1849 death cert for 5 year old Elizabeth Browning

Cause of death: smallpox 14 days, never vaccinated (certified)

I didn't realise you could get vaccinated in 1849. What a shame, poor little mite.

[Little Nell]

Hallo Sue

You;ve put a link to the photobucket page rather than imported the image here. Don't worry.

It says "enteritis", which is inflamation of the small intestine.

[Little Nell]

Our posts crossed. Yes, smallpox vaccination was around from the late 1770s when Edward Jenner's method proved most effective. Of course, poorer people couldn't afford the vaccine. My Elizabeth Browning's parents would have been in this category and sadly their son William died a month later of tuberculosis, which was another major killer.

[Emmy]

Hi Sue looks like Enteritis - inflamation of the bowel.
Hope this helps
Emmy

[SueinKent]

Thanks Little Nell and Emmy.

Little Nell how did parents cope losing children two in a month thats terrible.

[Durham Lady]

I've a couple of children who died from smalpox and their certificates also state Never Vaccinated.

Sue, I clicked on the link and copied the correct part, you need to use the bottom code to put the picture straight on a thread.

[Little Nell]

Well, I guess they coped because there wasn't an alternative to coping! Infant mortality was more common then, and children's funerals a regular occurrence.

I don't know how my own grandmother coped with losing her eldest son, aged 15, from appendicitis in 1943, but she did. She kept all her condolence letters and much later, in her 80s, she paid to have a headstone put on his grave. She was a fervent believer that she would meet him in the afterlife so her faith helped her.

Last year I went to the funeral of a 16-year-old lad I'd known since before he was 2. He died of leukaemia. His mum seems very cheerful when I see her but it must be devastating.