Education and Teaching Resources

 
census index page

 

Census returns for England & Wales
census index page

 

| what the census is | how they were completed |

what the records contained
| 1841 | 1851 | 1861 | 1871 |
| 1881 | 1891 | 1901 |

 

 

What the census is:

Census returns provide a complete list of inhabitants of every village and town in the land for 1841, 1851, 1861 and 1871. 

The first census was taken in 1801 but this return and subsequent ones of 1811, 1821 and 1831 show numbers of people and houses but no names. Of course these early documents are invaluable in 
providing the first reliable indication of local population. 

The 1831 census contains a breakdown of the numbers of men in the main fields of occupation: farming, trade, handicrafts, factories, mines, domestic service. But this classification is very dependent 
on the interpretation of the local census officer, and results have to be treated with care. 

These returns of 1801-31 are printed and are available in most libraries. 

The returns of 1841-71 are handwritten on printed forms arranged by counties, parishes and townships. In each township all houses generally appear in street order sometimes with an address. Then all inhabitants are listed by name. Ages, jobs and birthplaces are detailed. 

The 1851-71 returns enable you to tell exactly when and where people were born. 

Returns after 1841 are preserved in the Public Record Office. Some libraries and county record offices possess microfilms of county returns. 

Microfilms or photocopies may be purchased by anyone. 

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How they were completed:

 

The householder was to complete their individual household schedules recording who was in their household during the period Sunday night to Monday morning. On the morning after census night, the census enumerators collected the household schedules. If these were not completed properly, the census enumerator was supposed to ask for extra details at the doorstep, although there is considerable evidence that this was not done uniformly. If the householder was unable to fill in the schedule, perhaps because he or she was illiterate, the census enumerator was to fill it in for them. In 1871, the majority of some Welsh-speaking parishes in Anglesey were filled in by the enumerators.

These individual household schedules were then transcribed into the census enumerators' books, together with statistical information, and it is from these books that copies of the census returns can be obtained.

A considerable number of people were not in normal households on census night and special arrangements had to be made for their enumeration. These people included the inmates of institutions, the crews of vessels afloat, the army, itinerants and travellers, and night workers.

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Understanding the census records:

 

Census 1841 Sunday 6 June

Column 1	Place, i.e. address
Column 2	Houses; separate columns for uninhabited or being built and inhabited
Column 3	Names
Column 4	Age; separate columns for males and females
Column 5	Profession, trade, employment or of independant means
Column 6	Where born; whether born in same county (Y or N), whether born in Scotland (S), Ireland (I), or foreign parts (F)
The 1841 census is the first useful genealogical census for England & Wales. You will see that no relationships are given - except occasionally in column 5 where you may see Farmer's Wife or similar. All ages 15 and above should have been rounded down to the nearest 5 year multiple, i.e. ages shown as 15 may be 15-19, ages shown as 20 may be 20-24, etc. Another point to remember for ages is that people often said that they "were in their 60th year" meaning that they had passed their 59th birthday. If a person gave information meaning they were in their 60th year, they will be shown as being 60, whereas strictly keeping to the rules, they should be recorded as 55.