Edwardian London: The Deadly Threat of Discarded Banana Peels

London’s Forgotten Banana Nuisance” recounts the surprisingly dangerous epidemic of banana skin-related injuries and deaths that plagued Edwardian London. While today a banana slip is comedic, in the early 20th century, it was a genuine threat, with the Leominster News in 1906 dubbing it “the new kind of yellow fever.” The fruit’s journey to ubiquity began with Thomas Johnson’s 1633 display in Holborn and was revolutionized by Joseph Paxton’s cultivation of the robust Cavendish banana in the 1830s. Initially a rich-person’s novelty, bananas became mainstream and cheap by the 1890s, with imports surging significantly after 1905, making them an accessible, nutritious, and convenient on-the-go food.

This widespread consumption, however, led to a severe public health crisis. Edwardian London lacked adequate bins, resulting in countless discarded banana peels littering streets and pavements. These “insidious yellow pavement traps” caused numerous “banana falls,” a recognized colloquialism for slips leading to broken bones, bruised heads, and even miscarriages, as seen with Mrs. Rodwell in 1905. The problem was so pervasive that the Metropolitan Police issued warnings, and in 1906, London County Council enacted a bye-law punishing peel-tossers with fines up to 40 shillings, following cases like Henry George Murray’s. Insurance claims under the 1906 Workmen’s Compensation Act also frequently cited banana-related accidents.

Tragically, many falls proved fatal. Mrs. Ruth Martha Nash died in 1904 from complications after fracturing her leg on a banana skin in Walworth Road. Other victims included 73-year-old Jane Wilkin in Westminster (1906) and Patrick Heavican (1907), whose death from pneumonia was accelerated by a banana-induced tumble. The article cites at least ten fatalities between 1904 and 1911, underscoring the severity of the forgotten menace. The crisis eventually subsided due to factors like banana scarcity during World Wars, improved public sanitation and bin provision, a shift to the potentially less slippy Cavendish variety, and the advent of grippier, rubber-soled shoes, though a 1991 crane operator’s death serves as a stark reminder of the lingering danger.

(Source: https://londonist.com/london/history/london-s-forgotten-banana-nuisance)