Suffolk Returns From the Census of Religious Worship of 1851

On Sunday, 30 March 1851, the day appointed for the decennial population census, there also took place throughout mainland Britain a unique census of places of worship. There were three different forms: for Anglicans, for Quakers, and for other Nonconformists. Some of the questions asked were: how many free and other (appropriated) sittings each place had; what was the estimated number of attendants (general congregation and children) in the morning, afternoon, and evening of 30 March, with the average number over a period of months. Questions were also asked regarding the buildings in which the congregations met. Unlike completing population schedules, filling out the forms of the religious census was not required. Census takers were to leave that decision in the hands of the clergy. As a result, not all census returns were completed. (Taken from the Editor's Introduction: The Census and How It Was Taken in Suffolk.)

This database contains the information gathered from the 1851 religious census for all of Suffolk County. It is arranged first by registration district and then by parish. Under each parish it lists the name of the church and all of the answers that were provided to the types of questions listed above.