One of the most notable cases affected the royal family. Queen Victoria's husband, the popular Prince Albert, died of typhoid in 1861. Her son, the future Edward VII, almost died of typhoid ten years later. In 1871 the Prince of Wales lost his groom and friend and almost his own life in a deadly outbreak of typhoid. An investigation proved that there was contamination in the plumbing lines, and the problem was corrected.

Moved by his illness, his recovery, and the related sanitary conditions, he reportedly said that were he not a prince, he’d like to be a plumber. From that point on, sanitation became a public concern, but it was hard to change old habits and fears. For example, a 19th century administrator at Oxford College, a Dr. Routh, saw no reason to install showers or baths in the dormitories because undergraduates were only in residence for eight weeks at a stretch.