PLYMOUTH |
The Encyclopaedia of Plymouth History |
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1851 CENSUS STATISTICS The statistics from the census taken on Sunday March 31st 1851 reveal that the population of the Borough of Plymouth was 49,673. This comprised 14,175 males and 17,031 females living in the Parish of St Andrew's and 8,000 males and 10,467 females in the Parish of Charles. There were 3,161 inhabited houses in the the Parish of St Andrew's, along with 121 uninhabited and 116 under construction. In the Parish of Charles there were 2,017 inhabited, 122 uninhabited and 61 houses under construction. In the ten years list the census of 1841 the population had increased by 36,527, mostly by immigration. Within the Parish of St Andrew's the majority of males were between 10 and 20-years-old while the highest number of females was in the 30 to 40 age bracket. Only one male was over the age of 100 but there were 15 females. In figures for the Parish of Charles followed the same pattern but there were only five males and six females over the age of 100. There were 842 British subjects and 172 foreigners aboard ships moored within the Port of Plymouth. The population of Stonehouse was 11,971. This comprised 5,154 males and 6,817 females living in 1,178 houses. In addition there were 49 uninhabited properties and 6 under construction. The population had increased by 2,259 since 1841. Devonport's population was 37,499 but the figures for male and female and the number of properties was not declared at the results were published. Figures were also published to show how the numbers of properties in the Three Towns had increased since the first census in 1801. Then there were only 1,782 houses in Plymouth, 3,407 in Stonehouse and 23,747 in Devonport. From this it will be seen that Devonport was much larger than Plymouth. Between 1821 and 1831 over 1,000 new houses were built in Plymouth while Stonehouse's greatest development took place between 1831 and 1841. The growth of Devonport was less than its neighbours and declined over the decades up to 1851. The population of the outlying parishes that now make up modern Plymouth was: Compton Gifford, 391; Eggbuckland, 1,468; Pennycross, 321; Plympton St Mary, 2,815; Plympton St Maurice, 833; Plymstock, 3,302; St Budeaux, 1,096; and Tamerton Foliott, 1,147. The Parish of Plymstock therefore had a greater population than Plympton St Mary. It had also seen the biggest growth in population since 1841, with 330 newcomers. Plympton St Maurice had seen a decrease of 96 and Tamerton a decrease of 47. Compton Gifford had 62 inhabited properties; Eggbuckland, 273; Pennycross, 45; Plympton St Mary, 475; Plympton St Maurice, 137; Plymstock, 500; St Budeaux, 197; and Tamerton Foliott, 233. There were eight properties under construction at Compton Gifford and five in Plympton St Mary but only a few elsewhere. At the time of the census the Plympton Union Workhouse had 72 males and 68 females in occupation and there were 28 males and 22 females in the Plympton Lunatic Asylum. These figures are included in the population numbers given earlier. A population figure for the whole of the area that now constitutes Plymouth cannot be given accurately as some of the properties in the enumeration of 1851 might now be outside the area and other ones may now be inside the boundary but using the figures above the comparable population was 110,516.
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