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GENEALOGISTS
Separating
fact from fiction
Pre 1841 Censuses
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More limited than
subsequent censuses, the 1841 census was taken on the night of 7th
June. Unfortunately, it does not state relationships between
individuals nor marital status. Under the 5 main headings of Place,
Names, Age/Sex, Profession and Where Born, the information each
contains is as follows:-
Place
Information varies widely from a full address to just the name of a cottage.
Names
Forename and surname is listed for all individuals. Sometimes, a middle name or initial is included.
Age/Sex
The age of a person under 15 is supposed to be exact. For those over the age of 15, the age was rounded down to the nearest 5 years. This rule was widely abused and is the reason why researchers should be sceptical about ages.
Profession
This column states the individuals occupation although often a shortened version or even initials are used, i.e. Ag Lab for Agricultural Labourer or FWK for Frame Work Knitter.
Where Born
An individual was only required to state whether he/she was born in the same County that he was residing in at the time of the census, thereby giving no clue as to the actual place of his/her birth. However, if they were born in Scotland, Ireland or Foreign Parts, this was indicated in a separate column.
____________________
1851-1901 Census
The censuses covering the years 1851-1901 contain a wealth of information useful to the family history researcher.
Place
Usually a full address is given including a house number.
Names
Forename and surname is listed for all individuals. Middle names appear more often than on the 1841 census.
Relationship to Head
The relationship between each individual and the Head of the household is given, i.e. Son, Daughter, Father-in-Law, Servant, Lodger, etc.
Marital Status
This states whether a person is Married, Unmarried, a Widow or Widower.
Age/Sex
These are supposed to be exact for all individuals. However, people had all sorts of reasons for hiding their true age so these should be checked against other documents.
Profession
This column stated the individuals occupation and how many people were employed in the case of a business person. Children were often listed as scholars although this doesn't mean that they actually attended school.
Where Born
This states the village or town as well as the County of birth and is a great aid to locating baptismal records especially prior to 1837 when Civil Registration began.
Disability
If an individual was blind, deaf or dumb, an idiot, imbecile or lunatic, it was stated on the census.
Census
Returns
A
population census for England, Wales, the Isle of Man and the Channel
Islands has taken place every 10 years from 1802 to 2011, excluding
1941. However, only those that date from 1841 are of any real value to
family historians. Full census information is only available to the
public after 100 years.
____________________
Pre 1841 Censuses
The
first census of modern times was taken on the night of 10th March 1801.
Subsequent censuses were taken on the nights of 27th May 1811, 28th May
1821 and 30th May 1831. Whilst some areas did compile lists of
householders , these early censuses were little more than numerical
lists and therefore of limited use to family historians.
1841
Census____________________
Place
Information varies widely from a full address to just the name of a cottage.
Names
Forename and surname is listed for all individuals. Sometimes, a middle name or initial is included.
Age/Sex
The age of a person under 15 is supposed to be exact. For those over the age of 15, the age was rounded down to the nearest 5 years. This rule was widely abused and is the reason why researchers should be sceptical about ages.
Profession
This column states the individuals occupation although often a shortened version or even initials are used, i.e. Ag Lab for Agricultural Labourer or FWK for Frame Work Knitter.
Where Born
An individual was only required to state whether he/she was born in the same County that he was residing in at the time of the census, thereby giving no clue as to the actual place of his/her birth. However, if they were born in Scotland, Ireland or Foreign Parts, this was indicated in a separate column.
1851-1901 Census
The censuses covering the years 1851-1901 contain a wealth of information useful to the family history researcher.
Place
Usually a full address is given including a house number.
Names
Forename and surname is listed for all individuals. Middle names appear more often than on the 1841 census.
Relationship to Head
The relationship between each individual and the Head of the household is given, i.e. Son, Daughter, Father-in-Law, Servant, Lodger, etc.
Marital Status
This states whether a person is Married, Unmarried, a Widow or Widower.
Age/Sex
These are supposed to be exact for all individuals. However, people had all sorts of reasons for hiding their true age so these should be checked against other documents.
Profession
This column stated the individuals occupation and how many people were employed in the case of a business person. Children were often listed as scholars although this doesn't mean that they actually attended school.
Where Born
This states the village or town as well as the County of birth and is a great aid to locating baptismal records especially prior to 1837 when Civil Registration began.
Disability
If an individual was blind, deaf or dumb, an idiot, imbecile or lunatic, it was stated on the census.
____________________
1911 Census
1911 Census
The
1911 census for England and Wales was taken on the night of 2nd April.
Prior to 1911, the household schedules were destroyed once the details
had been transferred into the enumerator's summary books. However, for
the 1911 census both sets of records have been preserved which means
you can see the census documents filled out in your ancestor's own hand
(complete with mistakes and additional comments), in addition to the
edited version in the enumerators' summary.
Place
Usually a full address is given including a house number.
Names
Forename and surname is listed for all individuals. Middle names appear more often than on the 1841 census.
Relationship to Head
The relationship between each individual and the Head of the household is given, i.e. Son, Daughter, Father-in-Law, Servant, Lodger, etc.
Marital Status
This states whether a person is Married, Unmarried, a Widow or Widower.
Age/Sex
These are supposed to be exact for all individuals. However, people had all sorts of reasons for hiding their true age so these should be checked against other documents.
Profession
This column stated the individuals occupation and how many people were employed in the case of a business person. Children were often listed as scholars although this doesn't mean that they actually attended school.
Where Born
This states the village or town as well as the County of birth and is a great aid to locating baptismal records especially prior to 1837 when Civil Registration began.
Disability
If an individual was blind, deaf or dumb, an idiot, imbecile or lunatic, it was stated on the census. However, this information will not be released until 3rd January 2012.
Place
Usually a full address is given including a house number.
Names
Forename and surname is listed for all individuals. Middle names appear more often than on the 1841 census.
Relationship to Head
The relationship between each individual and the Head of the household is given, i.e. Son, Daughter, Father-in-Law, Servant, Lodger, etc.
Marital Status
This states whether a person is Married, Unmarried, a Widow or Widower.
Age/Sex
These are supposed to be exact for all individuals. However, people had all sorts of reasons for hiding their true age so these should be checked against other documents.
Profession
This column stated the individuals occupation and how many people were employed in the case of a business person. Children were often listed as scholars although this doesn't mean that they actually attended school.
Where Born
This states the village or town as well as the County of birth and is a great aid to locating baptismal records especially prior to 1837 when Civil Registration began.
Disability
If an individual was blind, deaf or dumb, an idiot, imbecile or lunatic, it was stated on the census. However, this information will not be released until 3rd January 2012.
UK Genealogists
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Jo
UK Genealogists
Bexhill-on-Sea
East Sussex
UK
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(within UK)
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Telephone
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