England Census: Difference between revisions

The census is a count and description of the population. In effort to determine the extent of its population for the purposes of taxation and representation, the English government took its first large-scale, statistical census enumeration in 1801 as a result of the ''Population Act ''of 1800.  The first census that is widely available, and is considered of great value to family historians, is the census of 1841 and it was taken every ten years thereafter. However, earlier census records and population listings of many locations in the British Isles do exist - some prior to 1800.  Pre-1841 censuses generally contain only numbers of individuals in a household, but some do contain individual names of a least the head-of-household.  Detailed information on pre-1841 census records can be found in a 84-page book:  Chapman, Colin R., 1998 (5th ed.), ''Pre-1841 Censuses and Population Listings in the British Isles,'' Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc. (available in the Family History Library -- see FHL Reference: 942 X27cc 1998).   

Although the 1841 census is of great value, it had the limitations of not giving relationships, of rounding down the ages of adults (not children), and of not providing specific birthplaces for individuals.  The 1851 census provided all the information and later census gradually added additional information.  

The censuse can also provide a good approximation to date and place of deaths and marriages. Census records are used in combination with [https://wiki.familysearch.org/en/England_Church_Records church records] and [https://wiki.familysearch.org/en/England_Civil_Registration civil registration] records in locating ancestors. <br>

There are several different websites that provide access to indexed images of the censuses. The 1841 and subsequent censuses are all indexed and can be searched online by name, age, birthplace, or locality. The indexes can be problematic in that names can be spelled in various ways and indexers sometimes failed to interpret the spellings correctly. If you cannot find a person it means you need to vary your search parameters.&nbsp; The information in an index may be incorrect or incomplete. If you believe your ancestor was in a particular census area, search the census even if your ancestor is not in the index.<br>

The 1841 and subsequent censuses are all indexed online and can be searched by name, age, birthplace, or locality. Most of the commercial companies also have images available for download. The indexes can be problematic in that names can be spelled in various ways and indexers&nbsp;sometimes failed to interpret the spellings correctly. If you cannot find a person it means you need to vary your search parameters. The information in an index may be incorrect or incomplete. If you believe your ancestor was in a particular census area, search the census even if your ancestor is not in the index.<br>

*[http://www.ancestry.co.uk/ www.ancestry.co.uk] or [http://www.ancestry.com www.ancestry.com] (All censuses for England and Wales between 1841 and 1901. No search by address is possible. Requires either a subscription to www.ancestry.co.uk&nbsp;or an international www.ancestry.com subscription. The library edition of the international subscription to www.ancestry.com is available for free use at the Family History Library, regional family history centers in the western part of the U.S., and at the London England Hyde Park Family History Centre.)&nbsp; [[England, Using Ancestry.com and Ancestry.co.uk for English Research|Follow this link for more information on searching English censuses on Ancestry]].<br>

The 1831 census was collated by the census office and the resulting Parish Register Abstracts form an important part of the published census material, because from it alone, the clergymen's manusript returns have survived. The records are held in the Pulic Record Office at Kew under Clergymen's returns of 1831 (HO71/1-HO71/124.)&nbsp;&nbsp;Detailed information on pre-1841 census records can be found in a 84-page book: Chapman, Colin R., 1998 (5th ed.), Pre-1841 Censuses and Population Listings in the British Isles, Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc. (available in the Family History Library -- see FHL Reference: 942 X27cc 1998)<br>