Friday 13 July 2012

1851 UK Census - an Overview

It has taken a while but I’ve collected the STEERS and variants from the 1851 UK Census. This has taken longer than I had hoped, but I have a valid excuse… I’m getting married in a couple of months and have had to spend my time looking at dresses, shoes,  flowers, and such so I’ve not had as much time to chase dead people.

In this census collection I have come across the following variants;

·         STEARES
·         STEARS
·         STEERES
·         STEERS
·         STIERS
·         STEIRS

There are 450 individuals in the 1851 Census, which is an increase of only five persons since 1841. The variation ‘STEIRS’ also makes its first appearance.

There has been a movement of families across England as shown in the tables below.

Movement in number since 1841
County
Frequency
(%)
Frequency
(Actual)
MDX
16.67
75
KEN
13.56
61
SRY
12.89
58
SSX
9.56
43
YKS
9.11
41
NTH
6.67
30
BKM
4.89
22
HAM
4.89
22
BDF
3.78
17
STS
6.27
12
LAN
2.22
10
DOR
2.00
9
DEV
1.33
6
DBY
1.11
5
OXF
1.11
5
SOM
1.11
5
BRK
0.67
3

Movement in number since 1841
County
Frequency
(%)
Frequency
(Actual)
CAM
0.67
3
*new*
DUR
0.67
3
LIN
0.67
3
WOR
0.67
3
*new*
DEN
0.44
2
GLS
0.44
2
*new*
CHS
0.22
1
ESS
0.22
1
HRT
0.22
1
HUN
0.22
1
JSY
0.22
1
LEI
0.22
1
*new*
NBL
0.22
1
*new*
NFK
0.22
1
*new*
SFK
0.22
1
WAR
0.22
1

The main concentration of the surname remains in Middlesex, but Kent has moved up into second place and Surrey has dropped to third. At first glance it appears that there has been a huge exodus from Yorkshire, however the actual frequency has only dropped by one. The surname is now also found in the English counties of Durham, Cheshire, Northumberland, Norfolk, and Suffolk, as well as the Welsh county of Denbighshire.

For this Census I have also complied the following; ‘Top 10 Occupations’

Top 10 ST[EI]*R[ES] Occupations 1851
1
In Education
2
In Servitude
3
Working on the Land
4
Military (serving or pensioned)
5
Dress Maker
6
Laundress
7
Carpenter
8
Gardener
9
Nurse
10
Tailor

‘Top 10 Male Names’ and ‘Top 10 Female Names’.

Top 10 ST[EI]*R[ES] Forenames in 1851
Male
Female
1
William
1
Ann
2
John
=
Mary
3
George
3
Elizabeth
4
James
4
Sarah
5
Thomas
5
Jane
6
Edward
6
Martha
7
Samuel
=
Charlotte
8
Charles
8
Eliza
9
Henry
9
Hannah
10
Joseph
10
Harriett

Outcomes

·         To date there is a total of 681 individuals; however there are still a number that I need to add from the Census.
·         On the 1851 UK Census there are 450 individuals
o   Each census image has been downloaded (a total of 213 images).
·         Servants named William and Ann are going to drive me crazy!
·         STEIRS has been added to my list of variant spellings.

 Next Steps

·         Add all individuals to the ONS master tree
·         Assign the Census images
·         GRO Births between 1842 and 1851
·         GRO Marriages between 1842 and 1851
·         GRO  Deaths between 1842 and 1851