Census Records

The 1841 Census is the earliest viewable census. It contains only the most basic information. The census was taken on the 6th June 1841. It will give you their place of residence, their full name, their gender, their age and their occupation. Ages for persons over 15 years old were supposed to be rounded of to the nearest five years but there are a few occasional exceptions. It will also tell you if the person was born in the same county as their entry on the census. There is also a column which asks if they were born in Scotland, Ireland or Foreign parts. Although not particularly detailed an entry on the 1841 census does make a nice addition to an individuals timeline in your tree. The most complete set of 1841 census records I have found online is at the Ancestry.co.uk website which is exceptionally user friendly. It has also been well transcribed to save you stuggling to decipher original images which in the case of the 1841 census is a blessing as for some reason the original entries were recorded in pencil which has led to fading of the written entries over the years.

 The 1851 Census was taken on the night of 30th March 1851 and this is where census records really begin to develope into a vital source of information for family historians as the information recorded was a lot more detailed. The information recorded of each individual that spent the night in that household was as follows. The address of the household, the name of the individual, the relationship of the individual to the head of the household, marital status and age at last birthday. Also included is their rank / occupation and probably the most useful information being the individuals place of birth although the level of detail on this varies hugely depending on the precision of the clerk that recorded the entry. Finally it has a column which asks if the individual was blind,deaf, or idiot. ( Their words, not mine! )

The 1881 Census was taken on 3rd Apr 1881. Again it follows the footsteps of the previous census but with the re-inclusion of wether or not a house was inhabited and the number or rooms occupied if less than five. It is also worth mentioning that the Ancestry.co.uk website offers access to this particular collection of census records completely FREE of charge!

The 1891 Census was taken on the night of 5th April 1891. The required information recorded is identical to the required information format of the previous census.

This census was taken on the night of 7th April 1861. Their is only one obvious difference between the information recorded on this census and the previous 1851 census and that is the addition of wether or not a house was inhabited. Apart from this all other required information is the same.

The 1871 Census was taken on the night of 2nd April 1871. The information collected in this sensus follows the format of the previous two but with a couple of small changes. They were no longer required to register wether or not a house was inhabited and the health column at the end was added to. It would now tell you if an individual was deaf, dumb or blind, idiot, imbecile or lunatic. ( Again, their words, not mine! )

The 1911 Census is finally here! The best so far, written in the householders own hand it gives wonderfully useful information such as how many deceased and living children the individual has had. To my knowledge this census is only available online at 1911Census.co.uk at a pay per view credit system. It can work out a bit costly but as yet it is the only on-line option to offer this record collection that I am aware of.

The 1901 Census was taken on 31st March 1901. The only addition to the information required on the earlier 1891 Census was that in the rank or profession column it would tell you if someone was an employee, employer or neither.