Family and Local History
[Bill Macafee's Website]

Databases compiled from Eighteenth-Century Census Substitutes

1740 Protestant Householders' Returns

In 1740 a list of Protestant Householders was compiled for Ireland. Within Ulster transcripts of  names and places are available for counties Antrim, Armagh, Down, Donegal, Londonderry and Tyrone. The transcripts are arranged by county, barony and parish. As far as I know, townlands are not given except for the baronies of Keenaght and North West Liberties in County Londonderry.

I think that the persons who compiled this information were the Hearth Tax collectors. This was in contrast to the later 1766 Religious Census which was compiled by the local rectors. Because the compilers of the 1740 returns were tax collectors the areas surviving for a county reflected the "Walks" which they followed. For example in County Antrim the Dunluce Walk covered the baronies of Cary, Dunluce and Kilconway as well as the baronies of Coleraine and North East Liberties in the adjoining county of Londonderry.

Below you will find databases of names listed in the 1740 Protestant Householders' Returns for the parishes in the baronies of Cary, Dunluce, Kilconway and Toome in Co. Antrim and all of the parishes in Co. Londonderry. Remember that each database is a transcript of a transcript which, to some extent, compromises its accuracy. For more information on the Co. Londonderry Returns - click here. Sorry, there is not a similar paper for the Baronies of Cary, Dunluce, Kilconway and Toome but they are much the same as those for the Baronies of Loughinsholin, Coleraine and the N.E. Liberties of Coleraine,

1740 Protestant Householders' Returns for the Baronies of Cary, Dunluce, Kilconway and Toome.	Excel	PDF
1740 Protestant Householders' Returns for the County of Londonderry	Excel	PDF

I have also included a database containing names and places from the 1740 Protestant Householders' Returns for the counties of Londonderry [All Baronies], Antrim [Baronies of Cary, Dunluce, Kilconway and Toome], Donegal [Barony of Inishowen] and Tyrone [Parishes of Derryloran and Kildress, Barony of Dungannon Upper] - read more.

1766 Religious Census

In March and April 1766, Church of Ireland rectors were instructed by the government to compile complete returns of all householders in their respective parishes, showing their religion, as between Church of Ireland (Episcopalian), Roman Catholic (termed ‘Papists’ in the returns) and Presbyterians (termed Dissenters), and giving an account of any Roman Catholic clergy active in their area. Some of the more diligent rectors listed every townland and every household, but many drew up only numerical totals of the population - read more.

I have databased the information in the sources extant for Co. Londonderry and North Antrim. Unfortunately, within Co. Derry names are only extant for the parishes of Banagher, Bovevagh, Drumachose and Dungiven in the barony of Keenaght and Artrea, Ballynascreen, Derryloran, Desertlyn, Desertmartin, and Magherafelt in the barony of Loughinsholin. Only the parishes of Ballymoney and Ballintoy are extant for North Antrim. I have just added the 1734 Religious Census for Ballintoy. My thanks to the Glens of Antrim Historical Society for permission to use the data from the paper by Harry Doyle in the The Glynns: Journal of the Glens of Antrim Historical Society, Vol. 25, 1997, pp. 30-37.

1796 Flaxgrowers' List

As part of a government initiative to encourage the linen trade, free spinning-wheels or looms were granted to individuals planting a certain area of land with flax.

The premium was up to 4 spinning wheels. The number of spinning wheels given to each person depended on the amount of flax that they sowed between 10th March and the 1st June 1796. Persons sowing at least an acre received 4 wheels, those sowing 3 roods - 3 wheels, those sowing 2 roods- 2 wheels and those sowing 1 rood - 1 wheel. For younger readers there are 4 roods in an acre.

The lists of those entitled to the awards were published in 1796. I have created a database of the names listed for the parishes in North and Mid Antrim that are listed within the source and a database for all of the parishes in Co. Londonderrty. Note that this source only lists the names of persons, the parish in which they lived and how many wheels they received. It does not tell us where they lived within the parish.