 | |||||
| dundeeroots.com | About Angus & Dundee | Getting Started | Your Visit | Site Map | Contact Us |
CENSUS
The first decennial census was taken in 1801, but the returns of most use to family historians are those from 1841 onwards. Records can only be inspected after 100 years, so census records presently available for public scrutiny cover the years 1841-1901.
In order to make efficient use of the census from 1841-1871, you need to have some idea of an address, since there are no surname indexes. Street indexes are available for some urban areas, but for rural areas, knowing the name of a village should be sufficient to enable you to find an entry. Family history societies in various localities are actively involved in producing surname indexes for their own areas. See Tay Valley Family History Society for details of the completed indexes for the Dundee/Angus area.
The 1881, 1891 and 1901 Censuses have been indexed electronically by the General Register Office, for the whole of Scotland. Access to the indexes plus digital images of the 1891 and 1901 Censuses is available at New Register House, Edinburgh, or on-line through Scotlandspeople.
The 1881 Census national index is available on CD-Rom at LDS Family History Centres and at TVFHS. Local libraries hold the 1881 index on microfiche for their own area.
LDS holds copies of census records for the whole of Scotland on microfilm, while local libraries usually have films for their local area. TVFHS has copies of census records for the whole of the Tay Valley (including Angus).
Census schedules for each household were entered into transcript books by locally appointed enumerators. In 1841, the name, age (by sex), occupation and whether the person was born in the county where enumerated, were recorded. Family relationships and marital status were not given. Also, ages in the 1841 returns were supposed to be rounded down to the nearest five e.g. a person aged 29 would be recorded as 25), with exact ages recorded for those under 15. From 1851 on, the relationship of each person to the head of the household was recorded, allowing researchers to distinguish between family members and servants, lodgers or visitors. Marital status was included and, most importantly, birthplace. Ages were supposed to be at the last birthday, but cannot always be relied upon to be accurate. In 1861, the number of rooms in each dwelling with one or more windows was recorded and in 1881, whether a person was deaf or dumb. In 1891 whether a person was employer or employed was added, along with whether they were a gaelic-speaker.
Dates when each Census was taken are as follows:
7 June 1841
31 March 1851
8 April 1861
3 April 1871
4 April 1881
6 April 1891
31 March 1901