Evaluating the 1881 Census Transcription: A Pilot Survey of Hertfordshire

Introduction This survey arose from an invitation received to attend a workshop at the University of Essex held 17-18 September 1998, hosted by the staff of the History Data Service of the UK Data Archive, to discuss the uses of the 1881 census transcription which had been coordinated by the Genealogical Society of Utah (hereafter GSU) in alliance with the Federation of Family History Societies. This invaluable resource, now held by the History Data Service, was being supplied on request to historians in datasets of various sizes to facilitate both teaching and research, and the main purpose of the meeting was to determine the needs of end-users with a view to discovering the most appropriate ways of developing and distributing the data. Somewhat surprisingly, there appeared to be minimal concern about the quality of the transcription, despite the fact that there was significant anecdotal testimony that should have given historical researchers cause for concern. As the coordinator of an ongoing project to work with family historians on computerising the 1851 and 1891 Hertfordshire censuses, I had received numerous personal communications concerning the 1881