Re: 1881 Census oddity

If indeed there are pages missing, then they must be missing from the
ORIGINAL census books. I checked the 1881 transcrption on the LDS
CDs and this also shows the family as you state it. However, there has
undoubtedly been an error somewhere, since on the LDS CDs the
McGrath family are enumerated TWICE with different numbers of
children !!!

The first reference is RG11 piece no. 0082, folio 116, page 50, address 9
Little Blenheim St, Chelsea.

Michael McGrath, a tailor, aged 52, his wife Jane, 40, and five children
aged from 25 down to 16, are all shown as having been born in Ireland,
while Maria Wedlock, 16, is shown as born at St Pancras and Walter E
Wedlock, 10, as born at Kensington.

I suspect an error somewhere, since the previous household is shown as
8 Little Blenheim St, occupied solely by a widow called Bridget Sullivan,
61, born Cork, and before her the schedules go into Cale Street, while
the entry immediately after the McGrath-Wedlocks is 10 Walmer Rd.

Doing a search on the CDs with "Neighbours - Advance Query" reveals
that the McGrath family has been enumerated TWICE! They are shown
again at 9 Little Blenheim Street but in the second entry on folio 86 page
12. This time they have 10 children, 5 more having been added to the
other entry, with ages down to three, making 10 children all together and
all born In Ireland. Maria Wedlock and Walter E Wedlock do not appear
in this other entry, therefore I believe you are correct in the assumption
that they have somehow become detached from their real family.

It looks as if either there must be something like 30 folios missing from
the original census books or someone made an almighty cock-up
somewhere along the line. I have come across people being enumerated
twice in different places in the 1881 census but never before a whole
family being enumerated twice at the same address but on different folios
and with a different number of children!

Peter Goodey...

Well, one of the families was crossed out and it arguable whether it
should ever have been indexed.