Census Returns

Find out about the Victorian returns available at Croydon Local Studies Library and Archives Service, and the population of Croydon.

• About the Census
• Using the Census
• Croydon Population Figures 1801-1991

Croydon Census, 1811

About the Census

A census of the population of England and Wales has been compiled every 10 years since 1801.  Until 1841, the principle aims were to obtain overall population figures for each parish, and some idea of how many people earned their living from manufacturing, agriculture, and a few other economic categories. For most parishes, information about individuals was not kept.  However, we are fortunate to have an 1811 list of the heads of households in the parish of Croydon, which was probably compiled to help with the population count, and has survived by chance.  The occupation of each head of household is given, and the number of males and females who lived in the household.

In 1841, a decision was taken to list the names of everyone in the country, wherever they happened to be on the night of the census.   Their occupation was recorded, along with their address, their age (above the age of 15 usually rounded down to the nearest 5 years) and whether they had been born in the county in which they now resided, or in 'foreign parts'.  In 1851, this information was increased. Relationships within each household (head, wife, daughter, son, servant, etc), exact ages, marital condition and places of birth were given.  In virtually every census since then, the information collected about each individual and household has grown steadily more detailed and complex.

Early on, to protect privacy, it was decided to keep all census returns closed until most of the participants were likely to have died.  As a result, although statistical information is published almost as soon as it has been compiled, information about individuals is withheld for 100 years.

Using the Census

A transcript and index of the 1811 Croydon Census has been compiled, and is available in the Local Studies Library.  We also have a street index for each census 1841 - 1891, although it can be difficult to match modern addresses with those given on the census returns.  In rural areas, such as Coulsdon and Addington, even road names were sometimes non-existent, and beyond the main streets of larger towns, houses were not numbered until the later part of the 19th century. We have a name index, published by the East Surrey Family History Society, of the 1851 census. For the 1881 census, we have indexes (on microfiche) of returns for the whole of Surrey (including Croydon) and Middlesex.  A name index of the 1891 census has been compiled and is available.  A name index for the 1861 and 1871 census is currently being compiled.

Croydon Population Figures 1801 - 1991

Croydon is the area covered before 1889 by the old parish of Croydon; from 1889 to 1965, the County Borough of Croydon; and from 1965 to the present the London Borough of Croydon. Coulsdon and Purley is the combined ancient parishes of Coulsdon and Sanderstead, which became Coulsdon and Purley Urban District Council in 1915, and were absorbed into the London Borough of Croydon in 1965.

• 1801: Croydon 5,743 - Coulsdon & Purley 624
• 1811: Croydon 7,903 - Coulsdon & Purley 625
• 1821: Croydon 9,279 - Coulsdon & Purley 705
• 1831: Croydon 12,479 - Coulsdon & Purley 872
• 1841: Croydon 16,733 - Coulsdon & Purley 1,305
• 1851: Croydon 20,548 - Coulsdon & Purley 948
• 1861: Croydon 30,240 - Coulsdon & Purley 1,199
• 1871: Croydon 55,652 - Coulsdon & Purley 1,858
• 1881: Croydon 79,615 - Coulsdon & Purley 2,971
• 1891: Croydon 102,695 - Coulsdon & Purley 4,959
• 1901: Croydon 133,895 - Coulsdon & Purley 7,524
• 1911: Croydon 169,551 - Coulsdon & Purley 14,242
• 1921: Croydon 190,684 - Coulsdon & Purley 21,426
• 1931: Croydon 233,032 - Coulsdon & Purley 37,635
• 1951: Croydon 249,870 - Coulsdon & Purley 63,773
• 1961: Croydon 252,387 - Coulsdon & Purley 74,926
• 1971: Croydon 333,870
• 1981: Croydon 316,557
• 1991: Croydon 313,510
• 2001: Croydon 330,700

1811
Parish of Croydon, names heads of household only. Gives occupations and number of residents in each house. Name index available.

1841
Covers Addington, Chaldon, Coulsdon, Croydon, Sanderstead, Selsdon, and Woodmansterne. Street index available.

1851
Covers Addington, Coulsdon, Croydon, Penge, Sanderstead and Selsdon. Street and name indexes available.

1861
Covers Addington, Coulsdon, Croydon, Penge, Sanderstead and Selsdon. Street index available.

1871
Covers Addington, Coulsdon, Croydon, Penge, Sanderstead and Selsdon. Street index available.

1881
Covers Addington, Coulsdon, Croydon, Penge, Sanderstead and Selsdon (Croydon Sub- District); Beddington, Mitcham, Merton, Morden, Wallington and Woodmansterne (Mitcham Sub-District). Name index (covers whole of Surrey) and street index (for Croydon Sub-District only) available.  We also have a CD-ROM index covering the whole country.

1891
Covers Addington, Coulsdon, Croydon, Penge, Sanderstead and Selsdon (Croydon Sub- District); Beddington, Mitcham, Merton, Morden, Wallington and Woodmansterne (Mitcham Sub-District). Name and street indexes available for Croydon Sub-District only.

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