The Wigtownshire Pages, 1851 Census of Wigtownshire, Index of Heads of Household
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Heads of Household, 1851 Census
Wigtownshire Parishes
John Roy's Index of Heads of Family

This 1851 census has also been indexed by John Roy, by Heads of Households, and we are very happy that we are able to include his invaluable key on these pages. In a rather compact manner, it offers both an index and an overview for those who need a more rapid feel for the location of entire groups of families by surname, for instance. Also, if you intend to use the D&G census you may find it useful to refer to John Roy's index to obtain the page number, as the noted URL reference doesn't give that information.

This valuable index should not be confused with the full transcription of the 1851 Census on the Dumfries and Galloway local government's library system web site, for Dumfries and for the two Galloway counties of Wigtownshire and Kirkcudbright, and we are pleased to cite their URL where you can browse it as you wish. To access the census directly, enter:
http://www.dgcommunity.net/historicalindexes/census.aspx

Census references are by parish number / enumeration district number / page number, for example the first entry of the first district on the Leswalt film will be 891/1/1. The exception to this was in 1851 where the page numbers were abandoned and replaced by 'entry numbers'. Therefore, the first entry in Leswalt will have the same number as other years but the second entry, which will normally be on the same page, will read 891/1/2.

The on-line 1851 census developed by the Friends of the Dumfries Archives does not use parish numbers in the search fields, instead, you need to type in the parish name (be careful with the spelling) if you are narrowing the search down to an individual parish. Once you find a likely candidate for the family you are searching for you can start a new search by typing in the parish name and the reference number in district / household number format That will bring up all of that entry only.

But please do remember that these are transcriptions, and therefore, despite best efforts of the volunteers who worked on them, they are liable to introduced errors. The information should therefore always be backed up by reference to original data, using for example the LDS film of the original census.




Acknowledgements

We wish to thank Mr. John Roy for the contribution of his index to the 1851 Census. All census material is the property of the Crown.

Issue of Copyright

To read more on copyright issues concerning Crown census material, please click here

Date of Census

The 1851 census was taken March 30th, 1851.

Information on the Index

This index details only the names of the heads of family within the parish. Wife/husband, children, occcupation, and ages are not included within the following index.

If you find a promising lead, we request that you make arrangements to view the 1851 census film. Viewing the actual record will provide you with further information such as age/sex, origin, occupation, additional members of the family. The page,sequence, and enumeration district listed beside each entry will help you to locate the reference within the census.

The following fields are found within this index:

To Search the Index by Parish

Click on the parish link below.

Not a Wigtownshire parish, but deserving of honourable mention - Minnigaff.

Review the Summary for all Parishes

This summary tries to list all surnames within the 51 census, and how often each surname appears within each parish. The index is divided into 39 pages, arranged in alphabetical order. Again, we urge researchers to use this as a guide. Omissions and errors are possible, and for that reason we suggest viewing the census films for your own satisfaction.

Click on the appropriate link.