Census for 1871 published online

21 Mar 2005

The public will be able to get a glimpse of Victorian life today with the online publication of the national census for 1871.

Former Emperor of France Napoleon III, children's author Beatrix Potter, Karl Marx, author George Eliot and the then Prime Minister William Gladstone are some of the notable citizens whose details are recorded in the census, which is availabe at http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/census/.

Potter was just four in 1871 and was living in Kensington in west London with her barrister father, while Marx was in north London's Camden Town.

"The census accorded no job title to Eliot, though her husband George H. Lewes's profession was listed as literature, even though she was much the more famous author," a spokesman for the National Archives told Reuters.

"The census is a really good family history resource and is also fascinating from a social history point of view," the spokeswoman added.

The 1881, 1891 and 1901 censuses are already available online.

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