The Census returns for Long Whatton

The 1871 Census

The census was held on Sunday the 2nd April 1871. Film RG10/3258
The census was conducted in two parts:-
Part 1: Part of the Parish of Long Whatton which lies West of the road leading from Hathern to Diseworth, including Riste Farm and Industry Row (or Turvey) and all the houses on that side of the village
Part 2: All that remaining part of the Parish which lies to the East of the road leading from Hathern to Diseworth, comprising all the houses on that side of the village and including the Windmill Cottages, Whatton House Mansion and Lodges, Hall Farm, Field Farm, Water Corn Mill and the Parsonage House


Statistics

Part 1 Totals, Inhabited Houses 108, Uninhabited Houses 10, Total 118
Males 224, Females 219, Total 443
Enumerator - Joseph Peat, District No 28
Part 2 Totals, Inhabited Houses 69. Uninhabited Houses 6, Total 75
Males 158, Females 155, Total 313
Enumerator - Thomas Draper, District No 29
An Index has been provided for a quick check. Please note that the Enumerators numbers are duplicated as they refer to both Part 1 and Part 2.
Parts 1 and 2 give; The Enumerator's number for each household, steet, the surname and other names, relation, condition as to marriage, ages, occupations, birthplaces and disability

The 1871 Census -b>An Introduction by Keith Murphy
19th century saw unprecedented economic growth in Britain, at least from the end of the Napoleonic War in 1815 to 1873. We could rightly be called the “workshop of the world”. However this growth was industrial rather than agricultural. In 1815 most of the population lived and worked in the countryside. At the end of the century Britain had a mainly urban population, employed in manufacturing and commerce rather than farming. Long Whatton’s mixed manufacturing and agricultural economy probably cushioned it to some extent from this movement away from the countryside but it was in no way immune. There was a gradual decline in population from 1841, when it was higher than both 1811 and 1821, to the end of the century. During this period, which saw an explosion in the population of Britain, Long Whatton’s population was reduced by over a third. By 1871 it had fallen from the high of 842 in 1841 to 756 in 1871, 23 fewer than 10 years earlier. (The next three decades would see it slump to just 537 in 1901). This reduction of 23 was represented by 13 fewer men and 10 fewer women in the village. During this 10 year period the Parish Records show 150 baptisms, 14 from outside the village, but only 92 burials, 8 from outside the village. Of course baptisms and burials of local people could also take place in other than the Parish Church but this does suggest an exodus from Long Whatton rather than a natural reduction in population.
Two age groups showed significant population falls between 1861 and 1871, the 21-30 and 46-55 year olds. The former group, being the more mobile, would perhaps be expected to be in decline. There were 27 fewer, 82 against 109 in 1861. The male population was most affected, with 21 less than in 1861. This may have been because there were better and more varied employment opportunities elsewhere than could be found in the village, which was restricted in the main to hosiery, predominantly framework knitting, and agriculture. The reduction, of 26, in the older age group is difficult to explain, though again the bigger reduction was in the male population, down 21. Certainly there is no evidence in the burials register to account for the reduction in this age group.
Between 1861 and 1871 the number of occupied households fell by 13 to 177 while there was an increase in unoccupied houses from 8 to 16. Thus the average household consisted of 4.27 people, up from 4.1 in 1861. Most households consisted of between 2 and 6 people. There were 16 single occupancies and 8 with 9 people or more. Perhaps surprisingly two person households were the most common with 33 double occupancies. The largest household was, as would be expected, Whatton House. This contained 12 people, 10 of whom were servants. At this time Thomas Tillotson, a County Magistrate, and his wife Charlotte were resident at Whatton House. The largest households consisting only of family members were headed by William Lester, with his wife Mary, 5 sons and 3 daughters, and William Wilkins, with his wife Charlotte, 4 sons and 4 daughters.
At the higher end of the age scale 11 were over 80, compared with 22 in 1861. According to the 1871 census the oldest resident was John Bott, aged 88. He was a widower, born either in Swannington (1851 census) or Newbold Verdon (1861 and 1871 censuses). He had moved with his family to the village some time between 1841 and 1851 and was a farmer. He died in early 1872 and was buried in the All Saints churchyard on 29 January. The next oldest was George Miller who was 87 and also a widower. Born in Sheepshead (Shepshed) he married a Long Whatton girl, Mary Hutchinson, at All Saints on 10 May 1812. He was a framework knitter and had lived in the village from at least 1841, probably a lot earlier. He died in 1873 but was not buried at All Saints, possibly being interred in the Baptist churchyard
The oldest female resident was Ann Thurman. She was 86 years old and had been born in Thorpe Acre. She was married to a Shepshed man, William Thurman, who gave his age as 58. They had married in 1855 but not at All Saints. At the time of their marriage William was a widower, having previously married Maria Hayes on 29 July 1839 at All Saints. Ann married as Ann Woolley but it is probable that she was a widow so this may not have been her maiden name. She had moved to the village after 1851, probably after her marriage to William, and died in 1877, aged 94. She was buried at All Saints on St. George’s Day.
The oldest locally born resident was Edward Barker who was aged 80. His wife, Ann, was also a local girl being a dressmaker, aged 72. There is no record of a baptism, marriage or burial of Edward in the Parish Records which suggests he was a nonconformist, possibly Baptist. He died in 1883 aged 93 years.
The main industry was, as in 1861, hosiery with 282 people employed in one form or another, 184 as framework knitters. Framework knitting was predominantly, though not exclusively, a male preserve. The other main occupation within the hosiery industry was seamer or seamstress with 76 people employed. Of these 75 were female, with a 10 year old Herbert Wilkins also being recorded as seamstress, though this may have been in error. Agriculture employed a further 87 people with 13 of these being farmers. In comparison with 1861 269 people had been employed in hosiery and 116 in agriculture but comparisons are difficult owing to the way occupations were recorded in the various censuses, especially those of women. Servants of one form or another accounted for a further 52 and 10 people were employed in the brewing and selling of beer, 4 being innkeepers or publicans. There were still 4 public houses in the village in 1871, The Falcon Inn (James Pritchard), Royal Oak (Sampson Sherwood), The Boot Inn (William Peat) and King William IV (George Gunn).
Other occupations included baking, 4 people, butchers, 3, a grocer and a blacksmith. There were 3 wheelwrights and 2 joiners. Of the three people employed in boot or shoe making 2 were recorded as Cordwainers. These were the top of their profession, supplying boots and shoes predominately for the local gentry rather than those lower down the social scale. Education accounted for a further 3 people. Alfred Dawson was the school master and his wife Myra the school mistress for the 173 children recorded as scholars, though 42 of these were aged below 5. They were assisted by 17 year old Alfred Holmes.
A total of 137 different surnames were recorded. Of the 46 which occurred only once half were family members or friends, 21 were servants and 2 lodgers. Most were single or widowed. The most common surname, as in 1851 and 1861, was Barker with 38 recorded in 10 households with a further 2 employed as servants, giving 40 in all. Cartlidge was the next most common with 38 references in 8 households. In previous censuses there were a number of Cartridges but none were recorded in 1871. However there was always a measure of interchangeability with these surnames in that people were recorded at different times with either surname. However by 1871 Cartlidge appears to have won this particular battle. Other common surnames were Wilkins, Draper, Lester, Peat and the inevitable Smith. Since 1861 two normally well represented families, the Groves and Peppers, saw there numbers fall considerably. There were 5 Groves families in 1861 plus an elderly lodger, giving a total of 22 residents. This had fallen to just 8 in 1871 from 3 families. The two largest families, headed by George and William, had both moved to Hathern. A further two of the more senior members had died. Similarly in 1861 there were 4 largish Pepper families giving a total of 26 residents. By 1871 this number had fallen to 13 from 3 families. Although 4 of those missing had died others had not only left the village but some had left the area. One had moved to Manchester, another London and a third Walsall. Others could be found more locally e.g. Mountsorrel but these families were probably typical of what was happening in the village, whole families or individuals moving away looking for better prospects.
As had been the case since 1851 William and Mary were the most common first names with 69 Williams and 67 Marys, 12 being Mary Ann. John was the next most common male name with 49. Thomas, George, Charles and Joseph were also well represented. The next most common female name was Ann, Anne or Annie with 40 and another 23 women and girls named Hannah. Sarah was the next most common with 43, 9 being named Sarah Ann, and 35 named Elizabeth. However John was the most popular boys name for those baptised at All Saints in the 10 years between 1861 and 1870, just one ahead of William with 12 and 11 respectively. Other popular boys names were George with 9 and Thomas or Tom with 8. Mary continued to be the most popular name for girls, 14 being baptised between 1861 and 1870. There were also 9 girls named Sarah and 6 Anne, Anna or Annie. The practice of giving children Biblical names persisted. These were normally Old Testament names such as Eli and Enoch.
Most people, 485 in all, were born in the village with a further 21 originating from Sheepshead, 20 from Kegworth, 16 from each of Diseworth and Belton and 12 from Loughborough. In all 671 originated from Leicestershire. Of the remaining 85 32 were from Nottinghamshire and 20 from Derbyshire. There were 7 from Suffolk, these comprising the family of Robert Mann, Rector of All Saints, plus one of his 3 servants. Only one person originated from outside the British Isles, that being Phillip James Haydock. He farmed at Hall Farm and was from France, though his name is anything but Gallic.
As well as the normal family members, wife and children, some households also contained a range of other, some more distant, family members, 53 in all. Grandchildren were most common, 12 of the 18 being granddaughters. Also present were parents, siblings, nephews, nieces and even an aunt, as well as 4 sons in law and 2 daughters in law. There were 5 mothers living with their married sons. I wonder how much friction that created between the two women of the household.
A small number of people were still single beyond the age of 30, 14 men and 11 women. Of these only one man but 7 women were servants. There were 5 men and 5 women still single beyond the age of 40. There were also 17 widowers and 19 widows. All the widows were 45 or older but two widowers were aged 37 and 38, the remainder over 50. The youngest was Joseph Foulds. He had married Sarah Dawkins in 1866 but she died early in 1871, being buried at All Saints on 20 February. He had a 3 year old son, William. He later married a widow, Emma Elizabeth Jacques, in 1879. The other young widower was James Bowler. He was also married in 1866, to Martha Haywood. She died a year later, being buried at All Saints on 25 August. He was left with a 5 year old son, William. He re-married on 10 October 1881 to Hannah Huner, also a widow, at All Saints. Her maiden name was Smallwood.
Finally the census records 3 children with disabilities. Eleanor Woolley was recorded as deaf and dumb. She was 12 years old. Mary Ann Bott, who was aged 10, was cruelly recorded as an imbecile and Mary Ann Storer, aged 5, as a cripple. Mary Ann Storer died in 1876. No record of her burial has been found in the village.


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