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TRANSCRIPT
The National Archives
Education Service
Census
Detective
What can you find out?
Group around knife grinders cart Liverpool,
1886 (COPY 1/377)
Census Detective What can you find out?
2
Background 3
Teacher’s notes 4
Source List 4
Tasks 5
Source 1 6
Source 2 7
Source 3 8
Source 4 9
This resource was produced using documents from the collections of The National Archives. It can be freely modified and reproduced for use in the classroom only.
Contents
Census Detective What can you find out?
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The census is a count of all the people in the United Kingdom on one particular day and is taken every ten years. However, collecting information about a country’s population is not a new idea. The Egyptians, for example, used census information to help them build the pyramids and to give out land following the annual flooding of the Nile. The Domesday Book of 1086 was an early attempt to collect information about who held land in England, but it also provided details about the size of the population. The first government census in Britain was taken in 1801. It may have been prompted by a book called An Essay on the Principle of Population, written by Thomas Malthus in 1798. Malthus wrote that the population was growing so quickly that the country would soon not be able to feed itself. It would be important therefore for the government to find out how many people it did have to feed. There has been a census every ten years since, apart from in 1941 due to our involvement in the Second World War. Between 1801 and 1831 the census contained only general information about numbers of people. The 1841 census was the first to list the names of every individual in a household. It is clear that the census can be a really valuable source for helping us to find out about the past. After 1851 it recorded the age of each person, their relationship within the family (such as wife, son or daughter) occupation (job) and place of birth. As everybody in the country was asked the same questions we can also use it to compare different areas at the same time or over a period of time. The country was divided into a number of districts, each with its own enumerator (the person who collected the information). Each household was given a form to fill in. On the day after the census night, the enumerator collected these forms. If the form had not been filled in properly, or if the householder could not write, the enumerator filled it in. The information on the forms was then copied into an enumerator’s book, which was then sent to the Census Office in London. At the Census Office, the information in the books was checked for accuracy. Afterwards, clerks went through the books gathering information on age, jobs and birthplace. This information was recorded in tables for a final Census Report. Yet, ever since census information has been collected, not everybody has been keen to give their details. Census enumerators sometimes found it difficult to collect their forms! Even as late as the 1950s, it was believed that some people were giving false information. To encourage people to provide accurate details, the government has promised that the information will be kept confidential. Since 1966, census records have been closed for 100 years. This means that the only census returns that can be seen at the moment are those up to 1911. Most of the information from the 1911 census has been released, but the most sensitive information will be unavailable until 2012.
Background
Census Detective What can you find out?
4
The purpose of this lesson is for pupils to look at some pages from the census and learn how much they can
discover about people who lived in the past. These returns can also provide unexpected insights, aside from
details about jobs and family. In addition, it is worth discussing the nature of the language used in the return;
does it betray particular attitudes or values?
The pupils could investigate one household from a single page of the census. How many people lived there,
who were they, was the family rich or poor? What sort of home would they have lived in? Using the ‘where
born’ column, pupils can also trace the movement of a family by looking at where the parents came from and
where they were living when their children were born.
Of course, the census can be an excellent source for students to find out about the history of their family or
local area. Classes could look at a particular street or house. They could also look at two areas in the same
census year and work out if they are rich or poor. They could do this by comparing the jobs, the size of
household and the presence of servants. The ‘age column’ shows how old children were when they started
working and how long people worked before they retired. The census can give information about how long
people lived. It is rare to see anyone listed older than today’s retirement age in Victorian census data.
The national set of census returns for England, Wales and the Channel Islands for the period 1841-1891 is
available on microfilm held at The National Archives, Kew. The 1901 census is available on microfiche.
However, all of these census records are also available online with our partners, though there is a charge to
download documents. Most local and county record offices hold microfilm or microfiche copies of the census
returns for their own areas, excluding the 1911 census which is only available online.
Today, census information is used by the government and local authorities to help plan for new schools,
hospitals, housing and transport.
Sources 1 and 2 show pages of the Westminster census of 1851. Source 3 shows a page from the 1861 census for Blackrod in Lancashire. Source 4 shows a page from the 1911 census.
Teacher’s notes
Sources
Census Detective What can you find out?
5
Source One: Questions
Whose census return for 1851 is shown here?
Who is listed as the Head of the household?
What is this person’s title?
Does this give us any clues about how the Victorians viewed the position of women?
Where was this family staying at the time of this census?
How many children are listed in this family?
Who else is listed with the family?
Does anything about this document surprise you
Source Two: Questions
Can you work out from this census return how Mary Frowde supports herself and her son?
What different jobs do the men on this census return do?
What different jobs do women on this census return do?
Are there any jobs which do not exist today? Can you explain why?
Compare this page of the census to the previous one. Can you explain any differences between these areas of
Westminster?
Source Three: Questions
From looking at this census return what were the main industries in this area? Why are they linked? (Clue: think about the location of industry) Find out about the different jobs listed if you are not sure what they mean. What age group is covered by the term ‘scholar’ on this return? What do you think the term ‘scholar’ means? Have a look at the ‘where born’ column. What does this suggest about the families listed here? Source Four: Questions
Who is the head of this household? What is the name of his wife? What is the age difference between the man and his wife? How many children are in this family? Who else lives in the household? Who might have crossed out the name of Eleanora Maund and written ‘Wife away’ at the bottom of the form? Why was Edward Maund cross with his wife? (see his comments on the bottom of the form) What clues does this census return give us about some men’s attitudes to the role of women?
Tasks
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Census Detective What can you find out?
Coal wainer: Wain is the old English word for wagon. He was probably employed by a mine owner to drive transport/delivery coal wagons. Cotton winder: Cotton mill worker who wound the thread on the looms used for weaving cloth. Do: “Do” is short for “ditto” which means the same as above-used to save listing the same family names on the census return Suffragette: A campaigner for women to have the right to vote (suffrage) Equivocation: using words with intent to deceive or mislead Subterfuge: trick or deception
Glossary
Census Detective Source One: Transcript What can you find out?
If - 1. Deaf-and-Dumb
2. Blind3. Imbecile or Idiot
Males Females 4. Lunatic1
Buckingham Palace The Queen Kensington Palace
Duke Of Saxony. Prince Of Coburg and Gotha
Princess Royal Buckingham Palace
H.R.H. Albert Edward Son 9 Prince Of Wales Do
H.R.H. Alice Maud Mary Dau 7 Princess Do
H.R.H. Alfred Ernest Albert Son 6Prince Of United Kingdom. Duke Of Saxony. Prince Of Coburg and Gotha
Windsor Castle
H.R.H. Helena Augusta Victoria Dau 4 Princess Buckingham Palace
H.R.H. Louisa Caroline Alberta Do 3 Princess Do
H.R.H. Arthur William Patrick Albert Son 11mPrince Of United Kingdom. Duke Of Saxony. Prince Of Coburg and Gotha
Do
2 Buckingham Palace Amelia Matilda Murray U 55 Maid Of Honor
Lucy Maria Kerr U 28 Do
Mary Percy U 32 Servant to do
Lydia Gratner U 28 Wardrobe Maid
Selina Lindfield U 28 Princess Royals Draper
Total Of Persons 4 10
Source One: Westminster Census, 1851
City of Westminster
Where Born
Parish Of St George Hanover Square
Number on census
Street Number or Name of House
Name and surname of each person
H.R.H. Francis Albert Augustus Charles Emanuel Head Mar 31
Profession or OccupationRelation to Head of family
Married or notAge of
10H.R.H. Victoria Adelaide Mary Louisa Dau
Her Majesty Alexandrina Victoria Wife Mar 31
Census Detective Source Two: Transcript What can you find out?
Town of Village of
If - 1. Deaf-and-Dumb2. Blind
3. Imbecile or Idiot
Males Females 4. Lunatic
Stonemason Hereford
LaundressGloucestershire Cheltenham
Lodging House Keeper Cornwall , St.Cullum
John Frowde Son unmarried 14 Errand boy London St Brides
William Bailey Lodger unmarried 38 Labourer Surrey Guildford
Henry Ayling Lodger unmarried 25 Labourer Surrey Guildford
3 Edward Young Head married 29 Carpenter Surrey Clapham
Elizabeth Ann Young Wife married 29 Straw bonnet maker Hants, Gosport
Edward Young Son 5 Surrey, Lambeth
Harriet Young Daug 1 month Middlesex Pimlico
2
Source Two: Westminster Census, 1851
20 Brewer St
48
Parish of St George Hanover Square - Ecclesiastical District St Peters City of Westminster
Number on census
Street Number or Name of House
Name and surname of each person
Married or not
WifeAnna ditto
Profession or Occupation
Age ofWhere Born
51
Relation to Head of family
WidowMary Frowde
1
Thomas Greenwood Head married 65
married
Census Detective Source Two: Transcript What can you find out?
4 Martha Brown Wife married 41 Chandlers Shop Keeper Surrey, Lambeth
Thomas Brown Son 11 Scholar Middlesex Pimlico
Emily Brown Daug Ditto Ditto
5 John Barber Head married 41 BricklayerSuffolk Framlingham
Mary Ann Barber Wife married 32 Bricklayers Wife Suffolk Stowmarket
Frederick Barber Son 10 ScholarWestminster St Johns
Maria Barber Daug2
monthsMiddlesex Pimlico
Total of Persons
10 8
Census Detective Source Three: Transcript What can you find out?
Town of Blackrod
If
1. Deaf-and-Dumb2. Blind3. Imbecile or Idiot
Males Females 4. LunaticChurch Street
Lancashire Blackrod
Do Do
38 1 Do Do
Elizabeth Ditto Wife Mar 23 Power Loom Cleaner Do Do
Alice Ditto Daur 1 Do Do
39 1 John Harrison Head Un 52 Farmers Labourer Lancashire Blackrod
40 1 John Acton Head Mar 48 Calico Printer Do Do
Jane Ditto Wife Mar 50 Do Do
Mary Ditto Daur Un 22 Cotton Winder Do Do
Elizabeth Ditto Daur 1 Do Do
41 1 Ralph Smith Head Mar 32 Coal Miner Lancashire Blackrod
Elizabeth Do Wife Mar 32 Do St Hellens
Alice Ditto Daur 7 Scholar Do Blackrod
Margaret Ditto Daur 6 Do Do Do
Edward Ditto Son 4 Do Do Do
Elizabeth Ditto Daur 2 Do Do
42 1 William Horton Head Mar 46 Coal Wainer Lancashire Blackrod
Cathrine Ditto Wife Mar 42 Do Darwen
James Ditto Son Un 20 Blacksmith Striker Do Blackrod
John Ditto Son 18 Waggoner at a Colliery Do Do
Nancy Ditto Daur 16Cotton Power Loom Weaver
Do Do
Alice Ditto Daur 14 Do Do Do
Cathrine Ditto Daur 12 Scholar Do Do
Faith Ditto Daur 8 Do Do Do
Hope Ditto Daur 8 Do Do Do
5 9 16
Source Three: Blackrod Lancashire Census, 1861
25
Thomas Ditto Son 3 Do
Coal Miner
Daur
In-habited
Peter Ratcliffe Head Mar
Total Of Houses… Total of Males and Females
Where BornNumber on census
Name and Surname of each person
Relation to Head of family
Elizabeth Farrimond
Married or notAge of
Profession or OccupationUnin-habited
Ecclesiastical District of BoltonParish (or Township) of
Blackrod
9 Scholar
Road/Street or Name of House
HOUSES