England Electoral Registers 1832-1965.

[Stephen49.]

Just now I looked up my Great Grandfather and found him on the Register for 1891 in the Marylebone area.
I know from the 1891 Census he was living with his wife, but she doesn't appear on the Register.
Was it usual for only the 'head of the house' to show on the Register ?
When did the Register start to show all members living at a given address ?

Your help and advice would be much appreciated.
Cheers.
Stephen

 

[Britjan]

There is a helpful guide at the British Library site and Family Search and Electoral Registers has some information as well. In very general terms men over 21 years old were listed but I believe women don't appear on UK registers until between 1918 -1928, when of course they began to be eligible to vote.

 

[Alexander Bisset]

Just now I looked up my Great Grandfather and found him on the Register for 1891 in the Marylebone area.
I know from the 1891 Census he was living with his wife, but she doesn't appear on the Register.
Was it usual for only the 'head of the house' to show on the Register ?
When did the Register start to show all members living at a given address ?

Err Stephen it is an ELECTORAL register it shows who is permitted to vote. Women did not have the vote in 1891!! They had to fight fiercely for that simply right that was for too long denied them. It took another 27 years after 1891 for them to get the vote, and then only aged over 30. See this article on when various groups were allowed to vote.

 

[Stephen49.]

There is a helpful guide at the British Library site and Family Search and Electoral Registers has some information as well. In very general terms men over 21 years old were listed but I believe women don't appear on UK registers until between 1918 -1928, when of course they began to be eligible to vote.

Many thanks for your help. The sites you recommended give a lot of useful information.

 

[Stephen49.]

Err Stephen it is an ELECTORAL register it shows who is permitted to vote. Women did not have the vote in 1891!! They had to fight fiercely for that simply right that was for too long denied them. It took another 27 years after 1891 for them to get the vote, and then only aged over 30. See this article on when various groups were allowed to vote.

Thank you for your message. I meant The Electoral Register, unfortunately sometimes what I'm thinking and what I'm typing don't always tally-up. I'll try and be more careful. The article you sent me was very informative and has been a great help. I should have known women didn't have the vote at that time, which can be a nuisance for people nowadays researching that period.

 

[peter]

Stephen, the answer to your question is that in 1891 most women wouldn't have been entitled to vote at all - however many widows and single women who were householders were able to vote in local elections.

Women weren't able to vote in national elections at all until 1918, and weren't treated equally with men until 1928.

However, it's worth bearing in mind that the discrimination wasn't just against women. Even after reform in 1832 only 1 in 7 men were able to vote, and despite further reforms in 1867 and 1884 40% of men continued to be disenfranchised. It was only in 1918 that all men over 21 became eligible to vote in General Elections!

In the Registers of Electors those who are only entitled to vote in local elections are often listed separately.

 

[Stephen49.]

There is a helpful guide at the British Library site and Family Search and Electoral Registers has some information as well. In very general terms men over 21 years old were listed but I believe women don't appear on UK registers until between 1918 -1928, when of course they began to be eligible to vote.

Happy New Year and many thanks for your advice. The three sites you suggested have been very helpful. All the best for 2014.

 

[Stephen49.]

Stephen, the answer to your question is that in 1891 most women wouldn't have been entitled to vote at all - however many widows and single women who were householders were able to vote in local elections.

Women weren't able to vote in national elections at all until 1918, and weren't treated equally with men until 1928.

However, it's worth bearing in mind that the discrimination wasn't just against women. Even after reform in 1832 only 1 in 7 men were able to vote, and despite further reforms in 1867 and 1884 40% of men continued to be disenfranchised. It was only in 1918 that all men over 21 became eligible to vote in General Elections!

In the Registers of Electors those who are only entitled to vote in local elections are often listed separately.

Peter, sorry for my late answer, but many thanks for your help and information. That part of my research will be easier to understand.

 

[Britjan]

It's such a pity that the electoral registers have not even been uniformly preserved let alone digitised and I am fortunate enough ( for this purpose) to have a number of London relatives who can be found in the digitised collection at Ancestry. I am having such a good time digging up all kinds of odds and ends......

1. Now I can trace the history of a silver cigarette box I inherited from my paternal grandmother about 50 years ago. She was given it by a neighbour whose name I had forgotten until I found her living just up the street about 1921. It was a presentation gift to this lady's husband, on his retirement I believe.
2. Living in the same house as my grandmother in 1921 are a couple with her maiden name who are not on my family tree.The man's first name is very familiar to me from my very early childhood and having two names might be helpful in untangling the puzzle of who he was.
3. I've filled in a gap in the history of where my mother lived shortly before she married in 1940.
4. I've put a name to the couple my maternal grandmother lived with in the late 1940's to early 1950's. I've mentioned them in passing when I posted a comment about comic books in one of the "growing up threads."

This is the stuff that fleshes out census info, family fables and childhood recollections and incidentally is helpful with spelling variations. I encourage anyone with London roots, or branches to check out the registers.

 

[Stephen49.]

It's such a pity that the electoral registers have not even been uniformly preserved let alone digitised and I am fortunate enough ( for this purpose) to have a number of London relatives who can be found in the digitised collection at Ancestry. I am having such a good time digging up all kinds of odds and ends......

1. Now I can trace the history of a silver cigarette box I inherited from my paternal grandmother about 50 years ago. She was given it by a neighbour whose name I had forgotten until I found her living just up the street about 1921. It was a presentation gift to this lady's husband, on his retirement I believe.
2. Living in the same house as my grandmother in 1921 are a couple with her maiden name who are not on my family tree.The man's first name is very familiar to me from my very early childhood and having two names might be helpful in untangling the puzzle of who he was.
3. I've filled in a gap in the history of where my mother lived shortly before she married in 1940.
4. I've put a name to the couple my maternal grandmother lived with in the late 1940's to early 1950's. I've mentioned them in passing when I posted a comment about comic books in one of the "growing up threads."

This is the stuff that fleshes out census info, family fables and childhood recollections and incidentally is helpful with spelling variations. I encourage anyone with London roots, or branches to check out the registers.

I couldn't agree with you more. The Electoral Registers at Ancestry have been a boon and a blessing. Yet at the same time the Electoral Registers at FindMyPast have also been valuable to a certain degree, what with people and families moving about far more from the latter half of the Twentieth Century to last year. Finding them without the Electoral Registers could have been a nightmare.
Many thanks for your input.