Reference Centre, Quick Reference Charts
Census - Irish Census Substitutes
Return to Ireland Census quick reference chart
| RECORD | DATE | PARTICULARS |
| Fiants | 1521-1603 | The Irish fiants of the Tudor sovereigns during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI, Philip & Mary, and Elizabeth I published in 4 vols., by Edmund Burke, 1994 at Dublin and available for consult at the National Library of Ireland under call number Ir 94105 i 1. These documents are unique to Ireland and were created to facilitate the issuing of royal grants to Irish chieftains. Long lists of names of extended family and followers are given for many of the Irish chieftains who submitted to English authority under the policy of surrender and re-grant. These fiants were originally published as a series of appendices to the Reports of the Deputy Keeper of Public Records in Ireland in the late nineteenth century. Calendar of Fiants granted during Elizabeth I 1558-1583 can be viewed free online starting on page 36. Philip & Mary can be viewed free online, go to page 59. Calendar of Fiants granted during Edward VI can be viewed free online, go to page 26. Calendar of Fiants granted during Henry VIII can be viewed free online, go to page 27. |
| Undertakers | 1612 | Lists of English and Scottish landlords, who were known as undertakers, who were granted land in the northern counties of Cavan, Donegal, and Fermanagh. Found in the Historical Manuscripts Commission Report, 4, (Hastings Mss). |
| Denization Records | c1616-1629 | Denization records can function as a sort of census of the Scots in Ulster who were given grants of denization in the early seventeenth century. The names of these individuals appeared in the Calendar of the Patent Rolls of the reign of James I. As a denizen a Scot occupied an intermediate position between an alien and a native-born subject. It meant that he was able to purchase land and was to his family's benefit in matters of inheritance. A database of denizations granted is available on the Ulster Historical Foundation's website. |
| Muster Rolls | 1630 | These are lists of major landlords in Ulster province with the names of the able-bodied men that they could expect to assemble to fight, if the need arose. The Muster Rolls are arranged by county, and then by district within the county. The Armagh County Museum copy is available in the National Library of Ireland on microflim #206. Other published lists along with later rolls can be found at the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. |
| Depositions | 1641 | Eye-witness testimonies given mainly by Protestants, but also by some Catholics, from all social backgrounds, concerning their experiences of the 1641 Rebellion in Ireland. The Depositions provide vivid accounts of the events of that year and also list large numbers of people accused of participation in the rebellion or claiming to have suffered losses. The Depositions are online at the Trinity College Dublin website. |
| Books of Survey and Distribution | 1641 | The English government required solid information on land ownership throughout Ireland in order to carry out its policy of land redistribution following the wars of the mid-seventeenth century. The Books of Survey and Distribution record ownership before the confiscations of circa 1641 and after 1666. The Books for Clare, Galway, Mayo and Roscommon have been published by the Irish Manuscripts Commission. For other counties, manuscript copies are available at the National Library of Ireland. |
| Civil Survey | 1654-56 | The Civil Survey was another record of land ownership in 1640, but compiled between 1655 and 1667. This survey was more complete than the survey recorded in the Books of Survey and Distribution. It contains a great deal of topographical and descriptive information, as well as details of Wills and deeds relating to land title. Only this Civil Surveys for the counties of Cork, Derry, Donegal, Dublin, Kildare, Kilkenny, Limerick, Meath, Tipperary, Tyrone, Waterford and Wexford survive, all of which have been published by the Irish Manuscripts Commission. |
| Pender's Census | 1659 | Pender's Census was compiled by Sir William Petty (who was also responsible for the Civil Survey) and records the names of persons with title to land (known as "tituladoes"), the total numbers of English and Irish living in each townland, and the principal Irish names in each barony. All of the counties except Cavan, Galway, Mayo, Tyrone and Wicklow, are covered. The work was edited by Seamus Pender and published in 1939, hence the name Pender's Census. This record can be found at the National Library of Ireland, call number I 6551, Dublin. |
| Subsidy Rolls | 1662 | The Subsidy Rolls record the nobility, clergy and laity who paid a grant in aid to the King. They supply name and parish, and, sometimes, the amount paid as well as the occupation of the payor. They relate principally to counties in Ulster province. |
| Hearth Tax Rolls | 1662-1669 | The Hearth Tax was levied on the basis of the number of hearths in each house and as such cross all economic classes of people in Ireland. These Rolls list the householders' names, as well as the number of hearths in each home and tax paid. The hearth tax rolls for Northern Ireland were transcribed primarily by Tenison Groves and copies of his transcripts are available in the LDS Family History Library collection. A few surviving copies are also available for counties in the Republic of Ireland, namely for counties Dublin (1663), Louth (1664), Sligo (1662), Tipperary (1666-1668), and Wicklow (1669). For the copies of the rolls listed in The Public Record Office of Northern Ireland under archival collection T.307, an index is available on the Public Search Room shelves. |
| Cess Tax Accounts | Various | Cess Accounts (an abbreviation of the term "assessment") was applied to taxes levied for a variety of reasons. In Ireland it was very often to support a military garrison. The accounts generally consist of lists of householders names, along with amounts due. |
| Protestant Householders Returns | 1740 | These returns were originally part of the Irish Parliament records which were eventually transferred to the Public Record Office of Ireland. The original returns were lost in the destruction of the Public Record Office of Ireland but some transcripts made by the antiquarian and genealogist, Tenison Groves, relating to parts of Counties Antrim, Armagh, Down, Donegal, Londonderry and Tyrone have survived. The returns list the names of heads of Protestant households only and are arranged largely by county, barony and parish. About half of the returns were broken down by townland. No further information given about the individuals or the composition of their families. The records can be viewed free online at PRONI. |
| Tithe Applotment Books | 1823-1838 | Records names of owners only. Urban areas were not included. This series is indexed with Griffith's Valuation in the Householder's Index.These can be searched for free online at Family Search and at the National Archives of Ireland. |
| Griffith's Valuation | 1848-1864 | Records names of all tenants and owners of privately held land and buildings. Some valuations were performed as early as 1839. This series is indexed with the Tithe Applotment Books in the Householders' Index. Griffith's Valuation can be searched for free online at Ask About Ireland website or on Fáilte Romhat. |
| School Records | 1850-1920 | Public school records include names of pupils, ages, religion, occupation of their parents, residence and often the name of a county or former school attended. If a pupil is leaving for a new school the intended destination is also often recorded. |
| Old Age Pension claims (Northern Ireland only) |
pre-1922 | The Old Age Pension Act was passed during 1908 and provided that persons age 70 or older were eligible to collect a monthly pension from the government. However, proof of age was required for a person to be successful on an application for pension. As civil registration of births did not begin until 1864 applicants for pensions had to use the 1841 and 1851 census for proof. The records provide the name and age of the applicant, their parents' names including, in some cases, the maiden name of the mother, and their address. In some cases the applicants gave the names of their brothers and sisters, and other records, to prove their age. Located in the fourth floor microtext department, the index consists of 9 microfiche of 39,000 records created between 1908 and 1922 and held in the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland. They cover only the counties of Antrim, Armagh, Derry, Donegal, Down, Fermanagh and Tyrone. |
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