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The official census for 1841-1891 in association with The National Archives
With a FREE 14 day trial of Ancestry.co.uk, you can search the complete 1841-1901 Census collection for FREE.
These invaluable records can help you build up a detailed picture of your ancestors - where they lived, who they lived with, even what they did for a living.
So start your search now. Who knows what you'll find?
fascinating historical records
Here's a brief history of the UK Census records:
The first national census was taken in 1801 - and a census has been taken every 10 years since then (apart from 1941).
The first census to record names was taken in 1841.
All census records included details of anyone who was staying in a property on census night - including guests. So you may discover some strange names in your search!
From 1851, a person's health was recorded (often in less than flattering terms). In 1881, for example, people could be recorded as being "deaf and dumb, blind, imbecile or idiot, or lunatic".
tips
- Always search from the individual Census, rather than doing a general search (you'll find a list of Censuses here at the bottom of the page). You can then refine your search by filling in all the details you know.
- Not ticking the "Exact" box will give you a larger number of potential matches.
- Remember some names may have been transcribed incorrectly. If you're not sure how a name is spelt, just enter the first three letters followed by an asterisk (*).
- When entering birth year, it's best to select +/- 2 years, as the information given on Census forms is not always correct.
- Only tick the "Exact" box on information that you're sure about.
- Found an entry that's been transcribed incorrectly? Click on 'Comments and Corrections' to notify us by email. We action all corrections every two weeks.