Great Stink facts for kids

This picture from 1858 shows Death on the River Thames, representing the lives lost because the river was so dirty.

The Great Stink was a very bad smell that filled central London during July and August of 1858. It happened because of extremely hot weather. The smell came from a huge amount of untreated human waste in the River Thames and on its banks.

People at the time thought that bad air could spread diseases. Before the Great Stink, there had been three serious outbreaks of cholera. These outbreaks were linked to the problems with the river. Finally, a plan from engineer Joseph Bazalgette to clean up the sewage was accepted.

The Great Stink: London's Smelly Summer

The Great Stink was a time when the city of London smelled terrible. It happened in the summer of 1858. The smell was so strong that it made people sick and upset. It was a major problem for everyone living in London.

Why Did London Smell So Bad?

For many years, London's sewer system was old and not big enough. It was built to empty all of the city's waste directly into the River Thames. This meant that all the human waste from homes and businesses ended up in the river.

During the summer of 1858, there was a very long and hot heatwave. This made the water level in the Thames drop. The river became a giant, open sewer. The heat made the untreated waste rot faster, creating a truly awful smell that spread across the city.

A City Full of Bad Smells and Sickness

The terrible smell was not just unpleasant. People believed that this "bad air" was what caused contagious diseases to spread. Before the Great Stink, London had suffered from three major outbreaks of cholera. Cholera is a very serious illness that causes severe sickness and can be deadly.

The smell was so bad that it affected daily life. Even the Houses of Parliament, where the government met, were right next to the river. The smell was so strong inside that politicians could barely work. They even tried hanging sheets soaked in disinfectant to block the smell.

Joseph Bazalgette and the Big Fix

The awful smell and the fear of more disease finally forced the government to act. They needed a real solution to clean up the Thames. A brilliant civil engineer named Joseph Bazalgette had a plan.

Bazalgette's plan was to build a huge, new underground sewer system for London. This system would collect all the city's waste. Instead of flowing into the Thames in central London, the waste would be carried far away to the east. There, it would be treated before being released into the river.

Building this massive sewer system was a huge project. It involved digging hundreds of miles of tunnels and building pumping stations. It took many years to complete. However, Bazalgette's work completely changed London. It made the city much cleaner and healthier. His sewers are still used today!

Images for kids

• 

  Construction of the sewers in 1859, near Old Ford, Bow in East London

• 

  Bazalgette shown as the "Sewer Snake" in Punch magazine, 1883

See also

In Spanish: Gran Hedor para niños