Census Years
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Anyone wishing to trace a seaman in any one of the census years may find the
following information helpful. A census was taken every ten years in Great
Britain, and the records for 1841 - 1891 are available on public access at
the Family Record Centre http://www.pro.gov.uk

1841  Seamen on shore on census night were enumerated in the same way as the
general public, in the place where they spent that night. There was no
provision made for recording seamen at sea on census night.

1851  Seamen on board ships in port or docked on rivers were recorded for
the first time. They were enumerated by the Master and collected by the
local Officer of Customs whose duty it was to submit the records. The RGSS
had similar responsibility for the enumeration of ships at sea within
territorial waters. Survival rate for these records is poor. The records may
be located following the normal census records for the port at which the
ship was docked or the port to which it returned at the end of its voyage.

1861 Seamen on board all ships in port or docked in rivers were recorded and
returns submitted to the Officer of Customs. The RGSS assumed responsibility
for those at sea in territorial waters and for the first time, those 'on the
high seas.'  These records are filed in a separate schedule and found at the
end of the regular census. The records have been indexed and alphabetical
indexes are available on microfilm to both ships and seamen. These are
available in many archives world wide and also through LDS libraries.

1871 - 1891 Returns filed as above, following the ordinary census records
for the port at which the ship was docked on census night, or to which it
returned following its voyage.

The census of 1881 requires special mention. The returns were filed as
above, but in addition there is a separate index of all names in the 1881
census which includes all named mariners, along with an index of vessel
names available on microfiche. The Royal Navy was separately enumerated and
are similarly indexed but on separate fiche.