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Census
Records
Although
the first government-organised census in Ireland was
carried out in 1821 and a census was taken every ten
years until 1911, the Enumerators’ Returns which contain
details of the members of each family for all places
in Ireland, only survive for the years 1901 and 1911.
| 1901/1911
Census |
I
would normally use the"free" online
1901/1911 Census [National Archives, Ireland]
as my starting point for moving back into the
nineteenth century or forward to the present day.
These two censuses provide details on the members
of each household in a townland or street at that
time as well as details of the houses in which
they lived. Even more importantly, they provide
a window into the nature of the society and economy
within a locality in the early decades of the
twentieth century. The census records, when used
in conjunction with valuation records, allow us
to see exactly where people lived in the early
years of the twentieth century. This is demonstrated
in the case study Town
of Portstewart [1901 to 1911] and, indeed,
in most of the case studies of localities and
families. Click on the Case Studies link
in the top menu to access the Portstewart and
other examples. See also, this example of an Excel
file of Heads of Families in Draperstown
District 1901 & 1911 - read more. |
Recently
some of the fragments of earlier censuses 1821, 1831,
1841 and 1851 have been added to the 1901/1911 site.
Because of its piecemeal nature, it is probably best
to "browse" this new data rather than, initially,
do a search for a name.
The
best of these fragments are those of the 1851 Census
for Co. Antrim. These are available [free] online
at searchforancestors.com
- read
more.
I
have also created separate Excel & PDF databases
of the 1851 Census for the Parishes and Townlands
extant in the Barony of Kilconway - Excel
- PDF
and the Barony of Glenarm - Excel
- PDF.
There
are earlier sources that bear the name census but
none of these is a proper census. They are normally
referred to as census substitutes.
The
best of these is the 1831
"Census" for Co. Londonderry.
My database of this "Census"
contains all of the data in this source.
See
1803 Agricultural
" Census" for parts of North Antrim.
See
Church Census material
extant for Co. Londonderry and North & Mid Antrim.
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