Search features and tips

The census form and search fields


At launch it will be compulsory to use a surname or street name in order to conduct a search, but all of the following search features will be available after the initial launch period.

Person search

All the fields on the census form that relate to people have been transcribed. Because you can search by all of these fields, you have access to the widest possible search. And you can use any or all of the fields to narrow your search, although we do advise that you use as little information as possible to begin your search.

The search fields:
  • First name
  • Surname
  • Year of birth (+/- 2 years)
  • Marital status (this will not be available when the website first launches)
  • Relationship to head of household
  • Occupation
  • Civil parish
  • Keywords (this draws information from all fields; you should only enter one word)
  • Place of birth

Other members of the household:
  • First name
  • Last name
Location:
  • County/other
  • District/other
  • Residential place

Census reference
  • Census reference
  • Shipping
  • military

Place search

If you are searching for a particular address you can search by the following fields:
  • Street name
  • County/other
  • District/other
  • Registration sub district
  • Residential place
  • Census reference
  • Shipping
  • Military


Explanation of search fields


You can find more information on each of the search fields by clicking on the ‘?’ to the right of each field on the search form.

Less is more


If you fill in too many search terms, the search results may exclude what you are actually looking for, as one or more of the fields may not match exactly. Start your search with the basic information and fill in more of the fields to narrow your search results.

Wildcard search


Read about the wildcard search

The variants option


Even if you are sure that you have the correct name of your ancestor, they may not be recorded exactly as you’d expect. It’s not uncommon for the spelling of a name to change as it is passed down through the family, or your ancestor may have gone by a different name in everyday life to the one they were christened with and used on the form.

The variants option will automatically check the name you have entered against a database of alternative spellings, abbreviations and diminutives, and return these variants in the search results. So, for example, it will return ‘Elisabeth’ if you entered ‘Elizabeth’, ‘Smyth’ and ‘Smythe’ along with ’Smith’, ‘Sally’ along with ‘Sarah’ and ‘Polly’ with ‘Mary’.

Households, institutions, vessels


Census returns were not only taken at household addresses, but also at the addresses of institutions such as factories or hospitals. Ships that were docked in English and Welsh ports were also included in the census. The website will allow you to search for your ancestors any or all of these three types of address.

Sort results


If your search returns a large number of results you may wish to sort them, to help you read the list. You can sort using any of the columns in the search results by clicking on the column heading.

Redefine search


You may run a search that produces too many results for our website to reveal all at once. In these cases (more than 1,000 results) you will be asked to redefine your search.

To do so, click on ‘redefine your search’, enter more criteria into the search fields and click 'search' again. Do not feel that you have to complete all the fields though when you redefine the search.

Related topics


Why can’t I find my ancestor?

Available features