As Free UK Genealogy embarks on its new FreePRO project, our Digitiser & Admin Support, Helen Bainbridge, shares an article she first wrote for Gressenhall Farm & Workhouse in 2019. Benjamin’s story shows how probate records can help open windows into the lives of our ancestors. With FreePRO, researchers will be able to search by many more details than ever before, making it easier to discover connections, trace family stories, and add real depth to historical research.
Living in the Gressenhall Farm & Workhouse in 1881 with his unmarried mother and three of his four siblings Benjamin Newell, born in 1879, had a traumatic start to life. Not just because he was in the workhouse but because he had undergone a controversial surgical operation. At twelve weeks of age the Board of Guardians, with permission from his mother, wrote to the Poor Law Commissioners requesting permission for the Medical Officer to perform an operation on a hare lip. The Commissioners replied, after much debate, that 'the cure of hare lips, although beneficial to personal appearance is not necessary for the preservation of life'. They also advised that the operation was never quite without risk to life, with a mortality rate of just under five percent. Professional opinion was divided as to the best age to undertake such an operation, with some advising aged 4 or 5 and some early infancy. The Commissioners' reply arrived over two months after the original enquiry was made which meant the Medical Officer had already successfully performed the operation
Gressenhall Farm & Workhouse
Benjamin may not have spent his whole childhood in the workhouse, but he can be found there in 1891 whilst his mother and some other siblings are living in the nearby village of Great Dunham. At the age of fourteen, Benjamin, who would have learnt some shoemaking as part of his education in the workhouse was sent as an apprentice to Mr Abraham Bacon Matthews of Wollaston, Northamptonshire. Mr Matthews had been taking one Mitford and Launditch Union workhouse boy a year since at least from 1891 until 1901, apprenticing them as boot finishers. Benjamin remained single, living in and around Wollaston and Northampton, working as a boot finisher except during the First World War where he served in the 6th Northants Regiment. On the 10th April 1915 at the age of 37, Benjamin Newell joined the Northamptonshire Regiment at Wellingborough, Northamptonshire as a willing volunteer. Benjamin must have remained in contact with his family as his declared next-of-kin on his Short Service Testation was one of his siblings still residing in Norfolk
On 1st July 1916 Benjamin's battalion went ‘over the top’ on the first day of the infamous battle of the Somme. The 6th Northamptonshire regiment suffered the following losses on this first day of the battle as recorded in the official regimental war diary:
On the 14th July 1916 the battalion was involved in an attack on an area known as Trones Wood. During this action Benjamin was shot in the left arm causing his upper arm to be badly broken near the elbow. As a result of his wounds he was sent to the Queen Mary's Military Hospital in Whalley, Lancashire, where he was admitted on the 19th July 1916. It was for his bravery during this action that Benjamin was awarded the Military Medal. In some ways Benjamin was fortunate to be wounded early in the Somme campaign because it led to him missing some of the worst fighting of the entire war.
101 days later on 27th October 1916 he was discharged from the hospital and sent to the depot at Shoreham by Sea on 1st December 1916 for recuperation and physiotherapy. He was declared fit on 2nd April 1917 with the comments:
“He had Gymnasium treatment, arm and leg drill and can now march 4 to 6 miles per day (quick march)”
Benjamin returned to duty in France on 30th April 1917. He fought in the Battle of Passchendale, and the Battle of Amiens. Benjamin's last action of the war was at the Battle of Epyhe, a minor battle that formed part of the allied 100-day offensive aimed at breaching the Hindenburg line. During this action Benjamin was wounded for the second and last time. Benjamin was repatriated to the UK and admitted to the 2nd Western General military hospital in Manchester. He was finally discharged from hospital care on the 6th June 1919.
Although Benjamin was not with his unit when the war finally ended the entry in the regimental diary simply reads: "HOSTILITIES CEASED”.
Benjamin was invalided out of the army with disabilities resulting from gunshot wounds to his left fore-arm and leg in October 1920. With none of his own family alive, Benjamin died aged 74, leaving his effects to his executors, the Boddington family (valued at £682 2s. 2d: the equivalent to £16,278 today) who he lodged with in 1939. The descendants of the Boddington family had no idea that Benjamin had links with their family other than that of being a lodger. For example the 1921 census shows that Benjamin Newell and Frederick Boddington worked for the same boot and shoe manufacturer. If they had been able to find their family name in a search of the probate records they would have been prompted to investigate the relationship more closely. However they had to wait until the researcher contacted them to find out if there were any photographs of an unknown man with a scarred hare-lip.
Every two years, the Free UK Genealogy community comes together to step back from day-to-day work and ask the big questions:
How can we ensure our transcriptions and data remain high-quality?
How do we create the most value for family historians, researchers, and the wider public?
How can we grow – in records, in community, and in impact – while staying true to our principles of free and open data?
In 2023, our Strategy Weekend defined these three pillars – Quality, Value and Growth – as the foundation of our long-term strategy. This year we’ll be building on that framework, turning it into concrete actions for 2025–2030.
The weekend will mix workshops, breakout groups, and whole-community discussions. The full agenda will follow, but themes include:
✨ Projects and Progress
Updates on FreeBMD2, FreeComETT, and the new FreeProbate project
Exploring how these developments align with our strategic pillars
🤝 Volunteer Experience
Building a stronger culture of community
Improving support, training, and recognition for volunteers
Expanding opportunities for leadership and contribution
🔍 Quality and Value
Strengthening transcription accuracy and support tools
Identifying what makes our data unique and how we can expand its impact
Open data and accessibility commitments
🚀 Strategy in Action
Setting clear deliverables and accountability for the next 12–24 months
Agreeing on how we track progress and share updates across projects
Trustees, staff and Steering Group members will be facilitating sessions, and we warmly welcome volunteers from all projects, whether you’ve just started transcribing or you’ve been involved for years. Remote participation will be available, so geography is no barrier.
Outcomes we’re aiming for
Clearer priorities for projects and volunteer support
Practical steps to improve quality assurance and community growth
A shared roadmap for delivering our QVG strategy
Stronger connections across our community
Will you join us?
This is your chance to shape the future of Free UK Genealogy. Your voice – whether transcriber, coordinator, trustee or supporter – will help us decide where to focus our efforts in the years ahead.
We can help fund travel and accommodation expenses for anyone who would need assistance in meeting these costs. Please use this form to let us know if you will be able to join us, so we can get an idea of numbers and plan for the event. If you’re unable to join us for both days, but can make one day or the Saturday evening, that would be great as well.
Time commitment: Approx. 4–6 hours per week (flexible)
Location: Home-based, with online meetings as required
FreeREG is the part of Free UK Genealogy dedicated to transcribing and publishing parish register data. It is run by volunteers for the benefit of family historians everywhere.
Like all Free UK Genealogy projects, FreeREG is also volunteer-led: managed by a team of volunteers (the “Exec”).
We are now looking for a committed volunteer from within the FreeREG community to step into the role of Executive Lead. This is the most senior volunteer leadership role in the project, responsible for guiding the work of other Exec volunteers and coordinators, supporting the community of transcribers, and ensuring FreeREG continues to flourish.
We don’t expect you to be an expert in everything - what matters most is your experience of FreeREG, an understanding of what the project does and how it works, and a willingness to support, encourage and coordinate others.
Help shape the future of FreeREG as part of the wider Free UK Genealogy strategy.
Support and inspire other volunteers so they feel confident and valued in their roles.
Ensure that FreeREG continues to provide accurate, free access to parish register data for family and community historians worldwide.
Develop your own leadership and coordination skills while making an even bigger difference to a project you already care deeply about.
The Role
As Executive Lead, you will:
Represent FreeREG in cross-project matters such as FreeComETT
Attend technical development meetings (currently every two weeks) in a non-technical capacity and FreeREG steering committee (FRSC) meetings (monthly)
Handle non-technical queries that are not county-specific (or pass to the relevant person/group)
Approve and create new Syndicates (and delete, where necessary)
Manage and support County and Syndicate Coordinators:
FreeREG website housekeeping
Compile and distribute a quarterly newsletter to all FreeREG volunteers working closely with the Coordinator Liaison Lead and Free UK Genealogy COO
Uphold the FreeUKGEN volunteer Code of Conduct and manage issues in line with Free UK Genealogy processes.
Warning! If you’re new to genealogy, this blog could lead you to spending many hours glued to your device, unearthing many family history treasures buried within the UK’s censuses.
Why? Because the censuses are a really rich source of information to the family historian – leading you, for example, not only to the ancestor you were seeking, but also to their parents, siblings, children, neighbours and more – depending on who they were living with or happened to be visiting on the night the census was taken. You can also discover their address, occupation and where they were born – and, in the later censuses, a lot more personal information about them.
Here, we summarise what a new family historian needs to know about the censuses, using the questions we are often asked.
When were censuses taken?
National censuses have taken place in the different jurisdictions of the UK* nearly every 10 years since 1801.
The first four censuses (1801, 1811, 1821 and 1831) were simple headcounts, with virtually no personal information recorded, so they are not of much use to family historians. (However, some local records offices do hold notes made by enumerators in the production of those censuses, and these might name people or heads of households. So, it could be worth checking with your local record office whether they have any such records.)
The 1841 census was the first to officially record the names of all individuals in a household or institution. Later censuses recorded even more information about those individuals (see below: ‘What will I find in each of the censuses?’).
However, contrary to popular opinion, the objective of the census was not to obtain detailed information about individuals, but to provide information about the population as a whole. Listing everyone by name, wherever they happened to be on a single night, was seen as the most efficient way to count everybody once, and nobody twice. From a genealogy perspective, however, it’s these names and details which are such a treasure trove in terms of answers – although be warned, they will usually raise many more questions! (For example, why was my 2x great grandfather listed with only 1 of his several children in the 1861 census? Answer: further research revealed the rest staying with other relatives who happened to live nearby!)
Which UK censuses are available to search?
The censuses from 1841 through to 1921 are available to search via various subscription sites, but some can also be searched for free – via our own FreeCEN database. The FreeCEN project began 25 years ago and, while the database is far from complete, it does now hold high-quality census data for more than 50 million individuals across the UK, from 1841 to 1901, so it’s always worth consulting. (For more information on FreeCEN, see the final 2 questions and answers at the end of this blog.)
As well as providing access to the full censuses from 1841 to 1921, subscription sites such as Ancestry and FindMyPast also offer the opportunity to search the National Register of England and Wales, which was carried out in 1939 as a population count prior to the Second World War. This is a very valuable resource for family historians, since the census returns for 1931 for England and Wales were destroyed in an accidental fire during the Second World War; and there was no census taken in 1941 because of the disruption caused by the Second World War. Hence the 1939 National Register is the only census-type record of the population available between the censuses of 1921 and 1951.
You might wonder why we can’t yet access the later censuses (1951 onwards). This is because they are subject to the Census Act 1920, as amended by the Census (Confidentiality) Act 1991, which makes it an offence to disclose personal information held in them until 100 years after the date they were conducted. When the 1939 National Register was made available, a decision was taken that individuals’ records remain closed for 100 years from their date of birth or until proof of death. These records appear blanked out in the images.
What about the censuses for Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland?
National censuses in Scotland were taken on the same dates as those in England and Wales, but with differing legislation, governorship and archiving arrangements. The 19th-century Scottish censuses were all released after 50–80 years of closure, while the 1901 and 1911 censuses were made available to the public after their 100th anniversaries. You can search and view the census returns for Scotland from 1841 to 1921 at Scotland’s People (charges apply).
Irish censuses from before 1901 have not generally survived to the present day, for a variety of reasons. The 1901 and 1911 censuses for Ireland (all of which was then part of the UK) have been available for inspection since 1960 – they were made available earlier than the other British records, since Irish law is different on this matter. No census was taken in 1921 due to the disruption of the Irish War of Independence. The first census taken in the Irish Free State (now the Republic of Ireland) was in April 1926 and this will be opened to the public by the National Archives after 2026. No census took place in Northern Ireland in 1931, but one took place there in 1937.
What will I find in each of the censuses?
(I have included examples from my own family’s story, to illustrate) In the 1841 census, you will find the following information: Name. Age. Please note, for those aged over 15, the age was rounded down to the nearest 5 years; although this instruction was not obeyed in all cases. Occupation. Whether they were born in same county as where they were living: this was recorded as ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ of resident county; and, if ‘No’, whether born in Scotland, Ireland or Foreign Parts, which was indicated by an 'S', 'I' or 'F', as appropriate. Religion – in Ireland only.
In the 1841 census, my 2x great grandfather George, is aged 19 and is an apprentice to a tailor in London.
In the 1851 census, a person’s relation to the head of the household was added, plus their marital status and place of birth. There was also a column to indicate whether a person was blind, deaf or dumb. In Ireland, it indicated which language was spoken by the person. The rounding down of ages was dropped, and actual ages were given.
In the 1851 census, my 2x great grandfather George, now aged 29 has diverged from tailoring into 'Bonnet-Shape’ Manufacturing. He is living in London with his first wife, young son, and a servant. Also present on the day the census is taken is his sister-in-law, an errand boy (14) and a girl (8) who is a 'visitor'.
In the 1861 census, nothing new was added or changed; but in the 1871 census, a person’s ‘economic status’ was added, and whether they were an ‘imbecile’, ‘idiot’ or ‘lunatic’.
By the 1871 census, however, George is living with his new wife, Hannah – my 2x great grandmother – and 2 of their children, plus 5 children from his first marriage, a servant and a nursemaid.
In the 1881 census, for Scotland, the language spoken by the person was now required; and in the 1891 census the language spoken in Wales was added, along with information about whether a person was an employer, an employee, or neither. A person also had to state the number of rooms they occupied, if it was fewer than five rooms.
In the 1881 census, my 2x great grandfather George (pictured below), now aged 59, has moved out to Hackney, and is living with my 2x great grandmother Hannah, 3 grown-up children from his first marriage, 1 son from his second marriage, plus a housemaid and servant. Later, I found 3 more of their sons at boarding school in Kent.
The story changes in 1891: my 2x great grandmother Hannah is now a widow, aged 43, living with 3 of her grown-up sons and 2 daughters aged 6 & 7. They have no servants, but they do have a 'boarder'.
By the 1901 census, the number of rooms in the dwelling was requested, and the person was asked to state whether they were an employer, ‘worker’ or ‘working on one's own account’ and whether ‘working at home or not’. In a tweak to the question about language spoken in Wales, children under three years of age were excluded.
In 1901, my 2x great grandmother Hannah, now aged 53, is living in 'five rooms' on her 'own means', with one daughter - my great grandmother Mabel, aged 17, who is a dressmaker's apprentice. Later, I found her other daughter as a visitor in a house along the road on the night the census was taken.
The 1911 census was the first UK Census where the Census Return for a particular household or institution was written directly by the ‘Head of Household’ (rather than by an enumerator). People were asked to state with which industry or service they were connected; how long couples had been married; how many children had been born alive, how many are still alive, and how many have died. It was the first time a person ‘born in a Foreign County’ was asked to state their ‘Nationality’. The terminology of the final column was changed to ‘INFIRMITY: Totally Deaf and Dumb, Totally Blind, Lunatic, Imbecile, Feeble-minded’.
By 1911, my 2x great grandmother Hannah, aged 63, has moved in with one of her sons, his wife, and 2 servants, and they are living in Kent. Hannah’s daughter, my great grandmother Mabel, is now aged 27, married and living with her husband and 3 daughters in Balham, one of whom is my grandmother, Nancy.
The 1921 census asked for a person’s place of work and industry, and whether a marriage had been dissolved by divorce.
By 1921, now aged 73, my 2x great grandmother Hannah was living with her daughter Mabel (pictured below) and her family, including my grandmother Nancy, in Tooting.
Finally, while the 1939 Register is not a census, it is arranged along similar lines and includes similar, if less detailed, information. It does, however, show exact dates of birth where census returns simply give a person’s age.
In the 1939 Register, my great grandmother Mabel has died, but my grandparents, Nancy and Teddy, are living with their 2 daughters, including my mother Anne, in Surrey.
So, the censuses are truly a treasure trove for the family historian!
How complete are the census records in FreeCEN? The FreeCEN project aims to provide a free-to-view, online, searchable database of UK census returns. The project began in July 1999, with a pilot transcription for Devon, and the database now holds census data for more than 50 million individuals, from 1841 to 1901.
Currently, the 1861 census is the most fully transcribed (70%), followed by the 1841 and 1891 censuses (50% and 48%, respectively). Transcriptions of the 1881, 1901 and 1911 have only just been started. (See the most current information about FreeCEN transcriptions here: https://www.freecen.org.uk/freecen2_contents?locale=en
We are always in need of volunteers willing to undertake the transcription of census pieces or make available transcriptions that they have already completed. If you would like to know more about transcribing, or are interested in being a technical volunteer, please visit our Volunteer page.Transcriber Registration | FreeCEN
How do I search the census records in FreeCEN? To search the FreeCEN records, simply visit Search Query | FreeCEN and complete the fields with as much information as you know, and then click on ‘Search’. If you only have your ancestor’s name, this may be enough.
To search census records in sites such as Ancestry and FindMyPast, you will first need to pay a subscription to them; although you may be able to access their ‘Library Editions’ for free through membership of your local library or family history society.
Happy searching – and please do let us know what you find!
*The UK is defined as England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales together with the Crown Dependencies of the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, and including the Orkney and Hebrides Islands, provided that each was the responsibility of the Crown at the time that the census was taken.
Sources: Wikipedia, The National Archives (Census images are Crown Copyright), Free UK Genealogy
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