Thomas Fresh (3 September 1803 – 3 April 1861) was a pioneer in British

environmental health Environmental health is the branch of public health concerned with all aspects of the natural and built environment affecting human health. In order to effectively control factors that may affect health, the requirements that must be met in ...

. In 1844, he became

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

's first public health officer.

Life and career

Thomas Fresh was born on 3 September 1803 at the family farm 'Newbarns', in the village of

Newbarns Newbarns is an area and electoral ward of Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England. It is bordered by Hawcoat, Parkside, Risedale and Roose, the local population stood at 5,515 in 2001, decreasing to 5,487 at the 2011 Census. Newbarns covers a ...

, in the

Lake District The Lake District, also known as the Lakes or Lakeland, is a mountainous region in North West England. A popular holiday destination, it is famous for its lakes, forests, and mountains (or '' fells''), and its associations with William Wordswor ...

parish of

Dalton-in-Furness Dalton-in-Furness is a town and former civil parish in the Borough of Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, England. In 2011 it had a population of 7,827. It is located north east of Barrow-in-Furness. History Dalton is mentioned in the Domesday Book, w ...

. The family also had interests in property and iron-ore mining and trading. Fresh was appointed Liverpool's Inspector of Nuisances by the Borough's Health of the Town Committee on 4 September 1844, over two years before the celebrated appointments on 1 January 1847 of William Henry Duncan, as Britain's first Medical Officer of Health,

James Newlands James Newlands (28 July 1813 – 15 July 1871) was a Scottish civil engineer who worked in Liverpool as the first Borough Engineer appointed in the United Kingdom, and is credited with designing and implementing the first integrated sewerage ...

as the first Borough Engineer, and Fresh’s own re-appointment under the Liverpool ‘Sanatory’ Act of 1846. Even before his 1844 appointment Fresh was the officer responsible for environmental health interventions, working initially from the police department. He was also at various times concurrently Superintendent of Alms Houses, and Superintendent of Scavengers (i.e. manager of refuse collection and public cleansing). The latter was eventually subsumed into Newlands' department. Thomas Fresh was the first inspector of nuisances appointed by a United Kingdom Health Committee. When he was re-appointed in January 1847 he became probably the first of the inspectors of nuisances (sanitary inspectors) appointed under a 'Sanatory Act' with statutorily defined powers and duties. They were the forefathers of today's environmental health practitioners. With no trained staff to call upon, and with no established systems or infrastructures, Fresh created a model sanitary department, and became nationally famous. He worked closely with William Duncan, the Medical Officer of Health, who had no field staff of his own. Fresh died in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated pop ...

on 3 April 1861 and is buried in Liverpool’s St James’s Cemetery. He was succeeded by his wife Martha. They had no children.

Legacy

In 1853 Thomas and Martha Fresh were living in a much extended and improved former agricultural cottage on his 'model farm' in the

Formby Formby is a town and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England, which had a population of 22,419 at the 2011 Census. Historically in Lancashire, three manors are recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 under " ...

district between Liverpool and Southport when, on behalf of local residents and the joint Lord of the Manor, he asked the directors of the

Liverpool, Crosby and Southport Railway The Liverpool, Crosby and Southport Railway (LC&SR) received parliamentary authorization on 2 July 1847 and opened between Southport and Liverpool, on 24 July 1848. The Liverpool terminal was a temporary station on the viaduct passing near to Wate ...

to construct a station at that point on the line. He donated his own land for the purpose. As a significant landowner in the area, he gave his name to the district of Freshfield and Freshfield railway station - built in 1854. Fresh's house is today 95 Freshfield Road, Freshfield. A blue plaque has been affixed to the house by the Formby Civic Society, and an application is to be made to have the house 'listed' to celebrate its significance as the home of the founder of Freshfield and one of the Liverpool public health pioneers. A nearby

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

is called 'The Freshfield'. Fresh's official duties included solving the problem of the disposal of Liverpool's "night-soil". He arranged for a part of it to be transported from Liverpool to Freshfield for use as fertiliser on hitherto unproductive nearby fields, helping to develop a local trade in potato and asparagus cultivation. Freshfield is now an affluent residential district in the Borough of Sefton. Thomas Fresh Blue Plaque

Liverpool John Moores University , mottoeng = Fortune favours the bold , established = 1823 – Liverpool Mechanics' School of Arts1992 – Liverpool John Moores University , type = Public , endowment = , coor ...

organises an annual 'Thomas Fresh' public health lecture in his name.10th Annual ‘Thomas Fresh’ Lecture
(accessed: 9 July 2013)

Life and career

Legacy

References

Further reading