1881 Census Online >> Clues in the 1881 British Census Index

Clues in the 1881 British Census Index
– Robin Chalmers

"One good thing about the war," my grandfather used to say, "was that the destruction caused by the bombing forced people to rebuild." He recalled the drafty walls and the privy behind the three hundred-year-old stone house where he grew up. Sometimes these everyday details escape us, but with the help of censuses and other genealogical materials we’re able to paint a more accurate picture of our ancestors’ lives and surroundings.

The British government has taken a census every ten years since 1801– except during the war in 1941. At first the censuses only included statistical information, but by 1841 the government was keeping records of each individual’s name, age, gender, marital status, occupation, and place of birth.

British censuses are particularly important when searching for people born before the civil registration of births, marriages, and deaths were required (1837 for England and 1855 for Scotland).

Besides providing clues to birth dates and places, the census typically shows individuals as part of a larger family unit and describes everyone’s relationship to the head of the household. Therefore, you may find family members and assorted relatives living in the same household or next door, making your search that much easier.
The 1881 Index Project
In 1988, the Genealogical Society of Utah and the British Genealogical Record Users Committee brought together thousands of volunteers to index the 1881 census, covering England, Scotland, Wales, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, and the Royal Navy. Previously available only on microfiche, the 1881 British Census and National Index was recently released on a twenty-five CD-ROM set by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is available at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, and at other repositories for purchase. More than 30 million names are included in the index.

The CD-ROM set is divided into two parts: the alphabetical National Index to the 1881 British Census (eight discs) and the 1881 British Census by region. The first part is essential for one-name studies and for researchers who do not know the place of birth and/or the 1881 residence of individuals.

In the National Index I found 7,321 matches for the Chalmers surname in Great Britain. From there, I modified my search with other details such as first name, birth year (within five years), birth county/country, and census county. Names are listed on the screen in birth order, and include first name, surname, estimated birth year, birth county/country, and census county. After pinpointing possible matches by county, switch to the 1881 British Census regional CDs for details.

If you already know which county your individuals were enumerated in, you can skip the National Index and go right to the regional CDs to perform searches. Unlike other CD-ROM census indexes, the British set is like viewing a typed transcript of the original record. You will see the individual’s name, marital status, age, birthplace, relationship to head, and occupation–all within the actual household group.

Although British census takers were often exacting, they were not always accurate. For relationship to the head of household, you may come across intended son-in-law, love child, concubine, servant’s husband, step granddaughter-in-law, and visitor to housekeeper. Occupations run the gamut too, such as convict, ostler, lance sergeant, vagrant, bath man, taskmaster, beadle, dresser, choirboy, lighterman, superioress, and messman.

In all, when using the index, remember that the census was taken between 31 March and 8 April 1881. If you can’t find your relatives, they may have been away from home and are listed elsewhere. (Search the National Index in that case.)

And, like all compiled records, these CDs depend upon the legibility of the original records. In some cases, the original census details were wrong, but the compilers did not correct them. The interpretation of the data is left up to you.
Searching the Census
I already knew my grandfather’s family came from Ayrshire and my grandmother’s family came from Aberdeenshire, so I concentrated on the two Scotland CDs.

According to their marriage certificate, Robert was a thirty-one-year-old widower when he married Ann McIlwraith, a twenty-nine-year-old spinster, in 1877 at St. Quivox, Ayrshire, Scotland. I didn’t know who his first wife was or if they had any children so I expected to find a family of four–Robert, his wife Ann, and their children Adam and Mary in the 1881 census. I clicked on the Robert who was born about 1846 and was currently living in St. Quivox. He fit the profile from my previous research. According to the index, the family lived at 7 Ritchie Square in St. Quivox. The entry reads:

Chalmers, Robert; head of household; married; age 35; cotton weaver; born Newton, Ayr

Chalmers, Ann; wife; married; age 34; bobbin wynder; born Newton, Ayr

Sinclair, Alexander (Chalmers); stepson; age 9; scholar; born Pollokshaws

Chalmers, Isabella; daughter; age 7; scholar; born Newton, Ayr

Chalmers, Adam; son; age 3; born Newton, Ayr

Chalmers, Mary; daughter; age 1; born Newton, Ayr

Who were these two "new" children? Since everyone in the census is listed in relationship to the head of household, you can’t always determine other relationships within the household. Here, Alexander Sinclair (Chalmers) is listed as the stepson of Robert Chalmers. It does not say the nine-year-old boy is the illegitimate son of Ann McIlwraith, although that is also a strong possibility that would require further research. The census gives several clues to follow up on: the Sinclair surname, the age, and the birthplace listed as Pollockshaws [sic], which is about thirty miles from St. Quivox.

Since Isabella was born three years before Robert’s second wedding, I hypothesized that she was Robert’s daughter by his first wife. With Isabella’s name and age in hand, I checked out the International Genealogical Index (IGI) and found an Isabella Chalmers born 7 September 1873 in Ayr, Ayr, Scotland, to Robert Chalmers and Jessie Parker. From there, I did a parent search and found Robert and Jessie also had a son Robert Chalmers born 23 March 1871 in Monkton, Ayr, Scotland. I couldn’t find an exact match for a Robert Chalmers marrying a Jessie Parker, but there was a close one: a Robert marrying a Janet Parker 22 September 1871 in Monkton.

To confirm whether or not the seven-year-old Isabella in the census was the same as the IGI listing, I went to the 1871 marriage record on microfilm. It listed a Robert Chalmers, twenty-five, cotton weaver, bachelor, residing in Newton-on-Ayr. His parents were listed as Joseph Chambers and Elizabeth Gray. (In all records, his father is known as Joseph Chambers.) However, his mother’s first name was really Isabella. I almost stopped searching at that point. But then I figured Robert may have been nervous at his wedding and couldn’t remember his mother’s name. After all, she died in 1862. (Plus, children are often named after their grandparents, which may have been why the first daughter was called Isabella.)

I checked Robert’s 1871 birth record to find he was the illegitimate son of Jessie Parker and Robert Chalmers, cotton weaver from Newton-on-Ayr. Although the birth and marriage both happened in Monkton, it wasn’t enough information. (Since this boy is not listed in the 1881 census, he may have died before then.)

Isabella’s birth record confirmed that Jessie Parker and Janet Parker were most likely the same person because Isabella’s parents married in September 1871 in Monkton. It also says Isabella was born at York Lane in Newton, the same place where Robert Chalmers resided in his 1877 marriage record to his second wife. The clincher, however, was Robert Chalmers’ signature. It matched another signature I had. I now knew who Robert’s first wife was with clues from the 1881 census index.
The Name Is the Same
Besides surname searches, you can also do first name searches. That way you may be able to find "missing" daughters who married. By narrowing down the list by birth and census place and birth date, you may get a manageable number of individuals to look for in marriage records. However, my families did not have any unusual first names, just one uncommon surname, Prahm. When I checked the National Index, I was not surprised to find that all of the Prahms were living in Aberdeenshire and that all seven of them were from my family.

From the 1881 British Census I learned that Robert Prahm was born in Pillan, Prussia, about 1836. That narrowed down my search to a very specific location. (I haven’t found a reference to Pillan on any European map. However, Pillau fits the family stories of him being born near Danzig. It looks like the indexer or the census enumerator may have made a mistake. Checking the handwritten census original may confirm my suspicions.)

In 1881 the Prahms lived at 34 Brae Heads, Fraserburgh, Scotland. By clicking on the Neighbors tab, I was able to see the census as enumerated by the census taker. From this view, it was obvious this location was an apartment building, since six households lived at number 34. I also found that my Prahms were living in the same building as the Noble, Buchan, and Findlay families–all surnames that I recognized as being related to my family. From the list of occupations–fisherman, ship carpenter, cooper, tinsmith–I could tell this was a working-class neighborhood, with many occupations centered on Fraserburgh’s seaport.

Since I was curious about the community, I did a new search where I put Fraserburgh in the census town/city field and left all other fields blank. I discovered that 7,562 people lived in Fraserburgh in 1881. Since I did not include a surname, the top screen listed the names alphabetically, with the details in the bottom screen. When I clicked on the Neighbors tab, however, I could see residences in the order of the census taker’s route. By clicking on the Details button, I could view their occupations, too. Not surprisingly, I found fish curers and coastguard men as well as ministers, hotel keepers, and bar maids.
Addressing the Clues
I continued to browse by location until I came across a familiar address. Since houses often pass from one generation to the next, searching the 1881 census by address can lead to important finds.

In the late 1950s, my grandmother was writing to her cousin, Mrs Bertha Bruce, at 20 College Bounds in Fraserburgh. Even though it was decades after the census, my search was worthwhile. I looked up 20 College Bounds and found Mary Taylor, age thirty-seven, head of the household there. (Her husband, a fisherman, was enumerated elsewhere.) Her children were listed as Margt, age 14; Matilda, 8; Sarah, 6; William, 3, and Marian, 1. From the census, I guessed that Mary Taylor was Bertha Bruce’s grandmother.

Here’s why: Roberta (Bertha) Prahm married George Bruce (1899—1947) and lived at 20 College Bounds in the 1950s. Bertha was the daughter of John Prahm (1870—1935) and Matilda Taylor. From the International Genealogical Index, I speculated that the Matilda Taylor who was born in 1872 could be the one who married John Prahm, but I had no evidence to base this on. In the IGI Matilda’s parents were listed as William Taylor and Mary Noble and her siblings were Margaret, Sarah, William, and Marian, just like the census! Now all I need are the vital records to back up my theory!
Conclusion
The 1881 British Census CDs offer many clues for genealogists. I learned about the individuals, families, and their neighborhoods at a given place and time. I also gathered clues that give me direction for further research.

Although the census CDs are a typed version of the original record, they are still secondary sources. The CDs will save you hours of scrolling through handwritten census returns. But now you have easy access to the volume, enumeration district, and page number where your relatives are recorded in order to double-check the data from the primary source.

Robin Chalmers has three immigrant grandparents to trace, including two from Scotland. She works in the Boston area and on the weekends can often be found at the New England Historic Genealogical Society. She is the list host and web master for the Union county, New Jersey, USGenWeb pages at www.rootsweb.com/~njunion.