2001 marked the bicentenary of the Census in Britain. To celebrate this great British tradition we delved into the archives of census taking during the last two turbulent centuries revealing a wealth of census stories and facts - some are strange, others are amusing but all are true and based on real census returns.
Census forms are confidential and remain ‘closed’ for 100 years - so in 2001, only forms from 1901 and previous censuses could be viewed.
We look at how and why the census was created during the Industrial Revolution, the Victorian Era, two World Wars, post-war, and modern day Britain.
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History of the Census
Overview and articles on the early days of the census in Britain
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Area Monitors
Looking back at two centuries of census taking in local areas
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Census Hall of Fame
Census returns featuring famous historical people
