Genealogy Chat

Has anyone else had this problem. The family were living in a small town or village, and the only address given on the census and on certificates is the name of the town or village. No house number or name and no street name..

Hi Carol, I had the same problem with one census. Across the top of the page it just 'All of U*******. Not even a church name. Most annoying as there were quite a few pages and I wanted the address. They don't want us to know about our ancestors! :-)

I only noticed it recently when I decided to track various peoples` movements from a succession of censuses and certificates.

I think it depended on the recorder. I have a couple of quite small villages that do put a street name (but not the house number). On the other hand even a small town just says the name of the town all through it!! I managed to get some idea of where they were by looking at the nearby entries and finding the pubs - some of which are still there. Anne

House numbers are a fairly recent invention. I've seen discussions in local papers about using house numbers: usually simply to benefit the postman. Even in the 1980s, I could mention my relatives in Norfolk and people could immediately direct me to their un-numbered house. Unfortunately, census order is not necessarily a guide to actual house order. Three families lived as neighbours over three censuses. On each occasion the order is different and as one is the rectory, I cannot deduce anything useful from the information.

Yes, most of my rural relatives just have a village name on censuses and on certificates. Occasionally it is slightly clearer- on one wedding cert the groom came from Upper Chedworth and the bride from Lower Chedworth. Chedworth itself on the map doesn't seem big enough for these distinctions. Another Gloucestershire village, Rendcomb, my relatives' address is '8 The Village'. As Brenda says, trying to work things out by looking at the neighbours isn't very useful - especially as people often moved a short distance between censuses. I have a lot in Cambridge whose house number varied - 3, 13, 12 etc. I wonder if this is the same place with different numbering system in each census, or really no. 13 with the 1 missed off in the first case and the family tagged onto no 12 instead of the next dwelling in the end case. House numbering also changed a lot. Very tricky. But I did find out that Vestry Cottage where some of my Richmond relatives lived, was according to the street directories of the period in 'the Old Burying Ground'. Now there's an address to be proud of! nell

Thank you all for your replies. Glad its not just me. As a matter of interest, I recently received a marriage certificate from 1837 where the bride and grooms address is No 4 and No 6 Ainslies Belvedere Apparently it is Walcot in Bath, Somerset and is still there.

Most of the rellies I try and find all live in small villages. Useful to find them in theory but not always!

I have had addresses of 'Bottom of the Bank' and 'Allotments'. Not very helpful when you want to find exactly where the place was.

How about this for an address: 1881 British Census Cornelius GOWEN Head U Male 59 Cantley, Norfolk, England Drover Source Information: Dwelling A Shed Census Place Limpenhoe, Norfolk, England Family History Library Film 1341472 P RO Ref RG11 Piece /Folio 1961 / 59 Page 26 nell