Nellie Kershaw
Encyclopedia
Nellie Kershaw was an English textile worker from Rochdale
, Greater Manchester
. Her death due to pulmonary asbestosis
was the first such case to be described in medical literature, and the first published account of disease attributed to occupational
asbestos
exposure. Before his publication of the case in the British Medical Journal
, Dr William Edmund Cooke had already testified at Kershaw's inquest that "mineral particles in the lungs originated from asbestos and were, beyond reasonable doubt, the primary cause of the fibrosis of the lungs and therefore of death". Her employers, Turner Brothers Asbestos
, accepted no liability for her injuries, paid no compensation to her bereaved family and refused to contribute towards funeral expenses as it "would create a precedent and admit responsibility". She was buried in an unmarked pauper's grave. The subsequent inquiries into her death led to the publication of the first Asbestos Industry Regulations in 1931.
and 5 months later began working at Garsides asbestos mill. She transferred to Turner Brothers Asbestos on 31 December 1917, where she was employed as a rover
, spinning raw asbestos fibre into yarn. She was married to Frank Kershaw, a slater's
labourer, and had at least one child, a daughter born in about 1920.
sickness benefits. As the illness was linked to her occupation, the insurers advised her that she should instead seek sickness benefits from her employers, under the Workmen's Compensation Act, and wrote to Turner Brothers on her behalf on several occasions. Turner Brothers refused to pay any benefits, as asbestos-related illness was not a recognised occupational disease at that time, and instructed their insurance company to "repudiate the claim" as it would be "exceedingly dangerous" to accept "any liability whatever in such a case." Percy George Kenyon, Turner's works' manager at Rochdale, wrote to Dr Joss demanding that he "inform us what you have said to Miss Kershaw about suffering from Asbestos poisoning" and then wrote to the medical insurance board stating that "We repudiate the term "Asbestos Poisoning". Asbestos is not poisonous and no definition or knowledge of such a disease exists. Such a description is not to be found amongst the list of industrial diseases in the schedule published with the Workmen's Compensation Act."
She is known to have written to Turner Brothers herself on at least one occasion, asking: "What are you going to do about my case? I have been home 9 weeks now and have not received a penny – I think it's time that there was something from you as the National Health refuses to pay me anything. I am needing nourishment and the money, I should have had 9 weeks wages now through no fault of my own."
There is no record that she received payments of any form from any official source between July 1922 and her death. She died at 06:30 on 14 March 1924, aged 33.
, to be conducted by Dr F.W. Mackichan. Mackichan gave the cause of death as "pulmonary tuberculosis
and heart failure" but a further adjournment was granted for microscopic examination of the lungs. When the inquest was resumed on 1 April 1924 Turner Brothers instructed a barrister
, Mr. McCleary, and their solicitor G.L. Collins, of Jackson & Co., to attend in order to represent their interests and to "evade any financial liability for Mrs. Kershaw's death."
Dr William Edmund Cooke, a pathologist
and bacteriologist
at Wigan Infirmary
and Leigh Infirmary
, testified that his examination of the lungs indicated old scarring indicative of a previous, healed, tubercolosis infection, and extensive fibrosis, in which were visible "particles of mineral matter ... of various shapes, but the large majority have sharp angles. The size varies from 393.6 to 3 µm
in length." Having compared these particles with samples of asbestos dust provided by Dr S.A. Henry, Medical Inspector of Factories, Cooke concluded that they "originated from asbestos and were, beyond a reasonable doubt, the primary cause of the fibrosis of the lungs and therefore of death".
In his written testimony to the inquest, Walter Joss stated that his diagnosis of "asbestos poisoning" was based upon his "previous experience of such a lung condition for many of his patients who were asbestos workers", and that he personally saw 10 to 12 similar cases each year, all in persons working with asbestos. Nellie's death certificate was issued 2 April 1924, citing "Fibrosis of the lungs due to the inhalation of mineral particles" as the cause of death.
In a fuller version of Kershaw's case published in the BMJ in 1927, Dr Cooke gave the disease the name by which it is still known: "pulmonary asbestosis".
commissioned an inquiry into the effects of asbestos dust by Dr E. R. A. Merewether, Medical Inspector of Factories, and , a factory inspector and pioneer of dust monitoring and control. Their subsequent report, Occurrence of Pulmonary Fibrosis & Other Pulmonary Affections in Asbestos Workers, was presented to parliament on 24 March 1930. It concluded that the development of asbestosis was irrefutably linked to the prolonged inhalation of asbestos dust, and included the first health study of asbestos workers, which found that 66% of those employed for 20 years or more suffered from asbestosis. The report led to the publication of the first Asbestos Industry Regulations in 1931, which came into effect on 1 March 1932.
where Kershaw had been employed.
Rochdale
Rochdale is a large market town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the foothills of the Pennines on the River Roch, north-northwest of Oldham, and north-northeast of the city of Manchester. Rochdale is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan...
, Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
. Her death due to pulmonary asbestosis
Asbestosis
Asbestosis is a chronic inflammatory and fibrotic medical condition affecting the parenchymal tissue of the lungs caused by the inhalation and retention of asbestos fibers...
was the first such case to be described in medical literature, and the first published account of disease attributed to occupational
Occupational safety and health
Occupational safety and health is a cross-disciplinary area concerned with protecting the safety, health and welfare of people engaged in work or employment. The goal of all occupational safety and health programs is to foster a safe work environment...
asbestos
Asbestos
Asbestos is a set of six naturally occurring silicate minerals used commercially for their desirable physical properties. They all have in common their eponymous, asbestiform habit: long, thin fibrous crystals...
exposure. Before his publication of the case in the British Medical Journal
British Medical Journal
BMJ is a partially open-access peer-reviewed medical journal. Originally called the British Medical Journal, the title was officially shortened to BMJ in 1988. The journal is published by the BMJ Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of the British Medical Association...
, Dr William Edmund Cooke had already testified at Kershaw's inquest that "mineral particles in the lungs originated from asbestos and were, beyond reasonable doubt, the primary cause of the fibrosis of the lungs and therefore of death". Her employers, Turner Brothers Asbestos
Turner & Newall
Turner & Newall was a leading manufacturing business based in Manchester, United Kingdom. At its peak, it was a constituent of the FT30 index of leading companies on the London Stock Exchange.-1871-1920:...
, accepted no liability for her injuries, paid no compensation to her bereaved family and refused to contribute towards funeral expenses as it "would create a precedent and admit responsibility". She was buried in an unmarked pauper's grave. The subsequent inquiries into her death led to the publication of the first Asbestos Industry Regulations in 1931.
Early life
Nellie Kershaw was born to Elizabeth and Arthur Kershaw in Rochdale in 1891. In 1903 she left school, aged 12, to take up employment in a cotton millCotton mill
A cotton mill is a factory that houses spinning and weaving machinery. Typically built between 1775 and 1930, mills spun cotton which was an important product during the Industrial Revolution....
and 5 months later began working at Garsides asbestos mill. She transferred to Turner Brothers Asbestos on 31 December 1917, where she was employed as a rover
Roving
A roving is a long and narrow bundle of fibre. It is usually used to spin woollen yarn. A roving can be created by carding the fibre, and it is then drawn into long strips. Because it is carded, the fibres are not parallel, though drawing it into strips may line the fibres up a bit...
, spinning raw asbestos fibre into yarn. She was married to Frank Kershaw, a slater's
Slater
Slater is an occupational surname of English origin. A slater is a tradesman.-Surname:* Allana Slater , Australian artistic gymnast* Bert Slater , Scottish football player* Bill Slater , English footballer...
labourer, and had at least one child, a daughter born in about 1920.
Illness and death
She first began to exhibit symptoms at the age of 29 but continued to work in the asbestos mill until 22 July 1922, when she was certified unfit to work. As her medical certificate, produced by her local physician Dr Walter Scott Joss, recorded her diagnosis as "asbestos poisoning" she was ineligible for National Health InsuranceNational health insurance
National health insurance is health insurance that insures a national population for the costs of health care and usually is instituted as a program of healthcare reform. It is enforced by law. It may be administered by the public sector, the private sector, or a combination of both...
sickness benefits. As the illness was linked to her occupation, the insurers advised her that she should instead seek sickness benefits from her employers, under the Workmen's Compensation Act, and wrote to Turner Brothers on her behalf on several occasions. Turner Brothers refused to pay any benefits, as asbestos-related illness was not a recognised occupational disease at that time, and instructed their insurance company to "repudiate the claim" as it would be "exceedingly dangerous" to accept "any liability whatever in such a case." Percy George Kenyon, Turner's works' manager at Rochdale, wrote to Dr Joss demanding that he "inform us what you have said to Miss Kershaw about suffering from Asbestos poisoning" and then wrote to the medical insurance board stating that "We repudiate the term "Asbestos Poisoning". Asbestos is not poisonous and no definition or knowledge of such a disease exists. Such a description is not to be found amongst the list of industrial diseases in the schedule published with the Workmen's Compensation Act."
She is known to have written to Turner Brothers herself on at least one occasion, asking: "What are you going to do about my case? I have been home 9 weeks now and have not received a penny – I think it's time that there was something from you as the National Health refuses to pay me anything. I am needing nourishment and the money, I should have had 9 weeks wages now through no fault of my own."
There is no record that she received payments of any form from any official source between July 1922 and her death. She died at 06:30 on 14 March 1924, aged 33.
Inquest
E. N. Molesworth, the coroner for Rochdale, was obliged to investigate all cases of "unnatural" death, and Dr Joss's diagnosis of "asbestos poisoning" led Molesworth to launch a formal inquest on 14 March 1924, which was adjourned awaiting an autopsyAutopsy
An autopsy—also known as a post-mortem examination, necropsy , autopsia cadaverum, or obduction—is a highly specialized surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse to determine the cause and manner of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that may be present...
, to be conducted by Dr F.W. Mackichan. Mackichan gave the cause of death as "pulmonary tuberculosis
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
and heart failure" but a further adjournment was granted for microscopic examination of the lungs. When the inquest was resumed on 1 April 1924 Turner Brothers instructed a barrister
Barristers in England and Wales
Barristers in England and Wales are one of the two main categories of lawyer in England and Wales, the other being solicitors. -Origin of the profession:The work of senior legal professionals in England and Wales...
, Mr. McCleary, and their solicitor G.L. Collins, of Jackson & Co., to attend in order to represent their interests and to "evade any financial liability for Mrs. Kershaw's death."
Dr William Edmund Cooke, a pathologist
Pathology
Pathology is the precise study and diagnosis of disease. The word pathology is from Ancient Greek , pathos, "feeling, suffering"; and , -logia, "the study of". Pathologization, to pathologize, refers to the process of defining a condition or behavior as pathological, e.g. pathological gambling....
and bacteriologist
Microbiology
Microbiology is the study of microorganisms, which are defined as any microscopic organism that comprises either a single cell , cell clusters or no cell at all . This includes eukaryotes, such as fungi and protists, and prokaryotes...
at Wigan Infirmary
Wigan
Wigan is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Douglas, south-west of Bolton, north of Warrington and west-northwest of Manchester. Wigan is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its administrative centre. The town of Wigan had a total...
and Leigh Infirmary
Leigh, Greater Manchester
Leigh is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, in Greater Manchester, England. It is southeast of Wigan, and west of Manchester. Leigh is situated on low lying land to the north west of Chat Moss....
, testified that his examination of the lungs indicated old scarring indicative of a previous, healed, tubercolosis infection, and extensive fibrosis, in which were visible "particles of mineral matter ... of various shapes, but the large majority have sharp angles. The size varies from 393.6 to 3 µm
Micrometre
A micrometer , is by definition 1×10-6 of a meter .In plain English, it means one-millionth of a meter . Its unit symbol in the International System of Units is μm...
in length." Having compared these particles with samples of asbestos dust provided by Dr S.A. Henry, Medical Inspector of Factories, Cooke concluded that they "originated from asbestos and were, beyond a reasonable doubt, the primary cause of the fibrosis of the lungs and therefore of death".
In his written testimony to the inquest, Walter Joss stated that his diagnosis of "asbestos poisoning" was based upon his "previous experience of such a lung condition for many of his patients who were asbestos workers", and that he personally saw 10 to 12 similar cases each year, all in persons working with asbestos. Nellie's death certificate was issued 2 April 1924, citing "Fibrosis of the lungs due to the inhalation of mineral particles" as the cause of death.
In a fuller version of Kershaw's case published in the BMJ in 1927, Dr Cooke gave the disease the name by which it is still known: "pulmonary asbestosis".
Parliamentary inquiry
As a result of Cooke's paper, parliamentParliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
commissioned an inquiry into the effects of asbestos dust by Dr E. R. A. Merewether, Medical Inspector of Factories, and , a factory inspector and pioneer of dust monitoring and control. Their subsequent report, Occurrence of Pulmonary Fibrosis & Other Pulmonary Affections in Asbestos Workers, was presented to parliament on 24 March 1930. It concluded that the development of asbestosis was irrefutably linked to the prolonged inhalation of asbestos dust, and included the first health study of asbestos workers, which found that 66% of those employed for 20 years or more suffered from asbestosis. The report led to the publication of the first Asbestos Industry Regulations in 1931, which came into effect on 1 March 1932.
Memorial
In April 2006, a relative of Kershaw unveiled a memorial stone to asbestos victims worldwide in Rochdale. The memorial service was organised by the Save Spodden Valley campaign, an action group concerned about asbestos contamination on the former Turner's factory siteSpodden Valley asbestos controversy
The Spodden Valley asbestos controversy arose in May 2004 when approximately of land in Spodden Valley in Rochdale, England, formerly used by Turner Brothers Asbestos Company , and the site of the world's largest asbestos textile factory, was sold to MMC Estates, a property developer...
where Kershaw had been employed.