Local boards or
local boards of health were local authorities in urban areas of
England and Wales from 1848 to 1894. They were formed in response to
cholera epidemics and were given powers to control sewers, clean the streets, regulate environmental health risks including
slaughterhouses and ensure the proper supply of water to their districts. Local boards were eventually merged with the corporations of
municipal boroughs in 1873, or became
urban districts in 1894.