Government and Vaccination
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The British vaccination acts,1853. Courtesy of Louth Museum.

vaccination /

Vaccination and the
Rise of Government Intervention


Eventually, the British government noticed a decline in smallpox cases and the increasing popularity of vaccination. The government decided to take responsibility to decrease smallpox cases substantially. They passed the Vaccination Act of 1853, which required all children to get vaccinated in their first three months of life or pay a fine. 

Courtesy of Our World in Data and dailymail.co.

Anti-vaccination pamphlet, 1900-1913. Courtesy of the Windsor Star.

Advertisement for the Anti-Vaccination Society of America, 1902. Courtesy of the Wikimedia Commons.
Anti-vaccination rally at City Hall, 1920. Courtesy of the city of Toronto.

Because of this, many people were unhappy. They believed the government had infringed on their rights to their bodies. They formed anti-vaccination organizations and held protests against this law. Eventually, in 1898, the English government provided an option to receive a certificate of exemption.

​​​​​​​Before the law, people chose to vaccinate on their own, which greatly affected smallpox death rates in England. This shows that people would rather decide to vaccinate than do so because of a law. When the British law was enacted, it did not produce any immediate effect, but it led to the elimination of smallpox.

“The Anti-Compulsory Vaccination Hymn”. Courtesy of History of Vaccines.
The Anti-Compulsory Vaccination Hymn (sample audio). Courtesy of Misty Flowers.


In 1800, Benjamin Waterhouse, a physics professor at Harvard, introduced Jenner's treatment to the United States and convinced President Jefferson to be vaccinated. Because of this, Jefferson began supporting vaccination in America.

"Medicine has never before produced any single improvement of such utility."

- Thomas Jefferson in a letter to George Jenner

Thomas Jefferson, 1800. Courtesy of White House History.

Letter from Thomas Jefferson to George C. Jenner. Courtesy of monticello.org.