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Gregory Clark's A Farewell to Alms is among the books that discusses this.

<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Farewell_to_Alms>

Cities simply could not grow without net in-migration until the development of sewerage, municipal waste removal, fresh-water systems, and public health in general.

Another favourite illustration, "The Conquest of Pestilence in New York City", showing the overall decline in mortality from 1800 to present:

<https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uTWEATUzgxk/TXQoTibILtI/AAAAAAAAA...>

From: <https://economicspsychologypolicy.blogspot.com/2011/03/conqu...>

Note that for all the vaunted advances of 20th century medicine, the needle hardly moved at all from 1920 through 1990, and mortality increased from 1950 -- 1970. There has been substantial improvement from 1990 through 2000.



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