Suggestions

It's a shame that Genes Reunited are unable to show anything beyond 1841. It would be fantastic if there were access to details on here, just like the American census on Ancestry.

Regards
Barbz

The American Census goes back to the 1700s

well, that's basically because there is NOTHING before 1841!


There were a couple of what might be called censuses done in small areas of England .... but these amount to little mroe than the names of the men in the town.


So you are asking for something which doesn't exist!



and which can not be found on any other site!





sylvia

Did they even have *that* much information on them Sylvia? :) I was under the impression that the census records before 1841 amounted to nothing more than mere head counts!

I think some showed names, but you're right .... they really were head counts, and I think they were aimed at identifying, or knowing, how many "militia men" might be available in the event of an invasion



so some list the weapons that each man might have.


I've seen one for a village in Buckinghamshire where one of my ancestors had a pitchfork!



sylvia

I've seen census returns for 1831 and 1821 for a small part of Norfolk. As far as I can remember the 1831 gives you the surname (and forename of the male HoH) plus how many people live in the house - no other details. The 1821 gives you the surname and not much else. I found the 1831 useful in that it confirmed that my ancestor lived in the village in 1831 - it didn't help much in any other way though! And if you were looking for a common-ish name you'd probably have no luck at all.

Very few of these early censuses survive.

I did find a note in the parish register about the 1821 census being taken in a village in Kent. One of the people involved in collecting the information was one of the people I was researching - and there was me thinking that he was likely to be illiterate or semi-literate at best - but he could obviously count and presumably write as well!! So that was a bonus.

Jill

It's ideal for those who have uncommon names, just to see how far back the name can originate from etc

Barbz

Every name is unique, no matter how common or uncommon it is

"Every name is unique, no matter how common or uncommon it is" - Barbz - try searching the census for my great-grandfather Luke Sadd :)


To return to the question, genes reunited could not put census here prior to 1841 :-)

......... and as most of our ancestors were illiterate, or all but illiterate, you'd have to know ALL possible spelling versions of the name used down the ages to be sure that you were tracing YOUR ancestor!

and all possible transliterations from the original documents



Joy's Luke Sadd, could be my ancestor Luke Cadd

or the one who married in, Luke Ladd



I've also wondered about Suke Cadd :-D



However, be that as it may ........ the fact is that there were NO censuses before 1841 that are really of any use to us in this century.

HoH doesn't tell you the name of the son, or grandson, living in the same house ..... and that might be the only name that you have. Let's not think of the daughters and grandaughters.

Even my "ancestor" who owned a pitchfork (mentioned above) could in fact NOT be my ancestor. It could be a cousin ...................... forenames were used and re-used over and over again, even for cousins born within days or weeks of each other.


The names might be there in the parish registers ........... baptisms, marriages and burials. But you would have to visit the relevant village churches, or find out where the relevnat parish registers were being held, and go there in person.



No easy way, I'm afraid!



sylvia

There is a website for access to Parish records, which I have not tried just yet: www.freereg.org.uk

It enables the search of UK Parish Register Indices.

Census prior to 1841 was just a thought

Thanks
Barbz x

Unfortunately freereg is in its infancy. There are,as yet, only a tiny proportion of the records available that are on that site. Nevertheless I have found it very useful for one parish that I am interested in.

Ken

In time freereg will improve its resources, it will take time. I will get around to looking at it eventually.

Barbz x

one way to improve freereg's data is to volunteer to transcribe some :-)

you can even try to pick a parish and time period that is exactly what you are wanting to look at yourself

mmm interesting

Sylvia - there is only one real Luke Sadd ;-)


Barbz - free BMD, free census, free REG are all done by volunteers; also, online parish clerks are volunteers - time and, in some cases, for instance when microfiche are bought in order to do transcribing, money freely given :-)


http://freebmd.rootsweb.com/
http://freecen.rootsweb.com/cgi/search.pl
http://freereg.rootsweb.com/index.htm
http://www.onlineparishclerks.org.uk/

ah yes, Joy


but I've seen C, S and L's all transcribed as each other!



so I actually have had a Cadd appear as Ladd and Sadd



and how about Iain as Cain and Lain? :-D



onlineparishclerks is great, for the counties that are doing it. Lancashire is superb!!



sylvia

"Ladd and Sadd" - I forgot to say that before the demise, sadly, of the Family Records Centre in London, we used to enjoy many a visit there and one time I did see a relation with the surname written as Ladd instead of Sadd in the big book ;-)

I've seen Ladd quite often for Cadd!

"Ladd quite often for Cadd" - I can see the writing now, with the loops ;-)