PLYMOUTH |
The Encyclopaedia of Plymouth History |
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The first reliable census of the population was not undertaken until 1801 so the early population of the Town is a matter for conjecture. R N Worth in his "History of Plymouth" gives the view that at the time of William the Conqueror, the figure for this area was probably not more than 60 persons. The Domesday book itself accounts for only 30 but they would probably be only the male population. In 1377 the Subsidy Roll of lay persons aged fourteen and over who were eligible to pay the poll tax was 4,837. This was just over a tenth of the figure for the whole of the County of Devon. Worth thought this would indicate an actual population of around 7,000. Surprisingly, this figure is also quoted for the end of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. The reason for the apparent stagnation is probably the frequent attacks by the French and the normal pestilence of that period in history. By 1740 it is thought the population of Plymouth alone was 8,400. In 1733 it was said that the number of inhabitants in Plymouth Dock was 3,361. There is no figure for Stonehouse. From 1801 the official census gives the following figures:
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