Person appearing in more than one place on Census

[krisesjoint]

In the last couple of days I have come accross 2 individuals who appear in 2 different places in the same census. They r deffinately the same people there is no doubt about that. In one situation an 18 year old girl appears at home with her parents with no accupation listed in one town and in a different town she lists a servant at her grandparents home. She has a very unusual name so there is no doubt it is the same person. In a separate incident there is a man who as well as being listed as a ships fireman at home with his family also appears to be aboard ship. I have logged both references to my file but surely in years to come someone will be confused as I am with the two entries. I thought about that and went back and added comment that the person was located in 2 separate places. As well as the usual people that no matter how hard u look u just cant find. Must we now keep our eyes open for persons appearing in more than one place at the same time? Has anybody else found this?
Kris 

[Welsh Jen]

I have heard of individuals duplicated within the same census, as for how to note this you seem to have done all that you can. No one is ever going to know for definate where the individual actually was on census night.

Quite a test for genealogy databases everywhere! 

[krisesjoint]

Yes I thought it was a bit peculiar to find 2 of them over the last 2 days. Initially I was not going to add the second entry it is not for me 2 know where the person actually was and as I have proof they were in 2 places at the same time I would have to say so. I could imagine somebody looking at my work in years to come and thinking what sort of a genealogist was this woman  so thought I had better add a note that that is how it appears. As u say I have no way of knowing where the individual actually was Kris

[Welsh Jen]

Just another thought. I know it won't solve this problem, but have you looked at other resources to find these individuals and their place of abode around the time of the census? e.g: Voters lists (however this is also a problem for you as It won't include females).

You have done well to note the two references try to emphasis in your notes how odd this is, then people won't think you were a hopless researcher in years to come! 

[Eking]

I have someone that was in the same place but emumerated twice on the 1871 census.

It was on a ship in Purfleet and the 2 entries differ slightly - different folio/page number and one them says boy under detention.

[louisem]

I've come across this twice too. Once with someone aboard a ship and also someone listed with his wife and child and then again at his parents house. It must crop up quite often.

[Sylviaann]

While looking for my Hillman family in the 1881 census I found one family down twice at different addresses.  I became convinced that they had been mis transcribed and that one of them was mine.  However I eventually found my family sepeately in a workhouse in a different area.

Sylviaann

[corinne]

Beware of assuming that what you think of as an uncommon name is actually unique.  I have been surprised at how many people I have found who share the same "uncommon" names, and are of similar age.  I'd check out more thoroughly each person - looking at place of birth, see if I could find the same two people on the next or previous census etc, check for two birth records - all to decide if it really was one person duplicated or two separate people.

The other explanation already hinted at by several other people is that the person giving census information at the usual or home address could have just assumed they were there, when actually they had returned to work in another town the day before (and got recorded there as well).  Also, there could have been a bit of misunderstanding in the recording.  I'm thinking of a father perhaps thinking he was meant to give the names of all his children to the enumerator, not just the ones who happened to be staying in the house right then and there.

[Kazza]

Hi,

This week's Family Tree Magazine has a very interesting article by Tom Wood where he says that doubling up on the census records is more common than we would assume. 

One reader has 4 instances of it within his tree.  One is at both his business and home addresses,  another with his family and also with his mother.  A female ancestor was at home and work and yet another staying with his father and with his wife and family.

Another reader has an ancestor at home with her parents,  and with her name modified slightly,  staying with her grandparents.

These cases are likely to be the same people,  they all seem well investigated,  so it makes sense to look for a reason for duplications where you appear to have them.  It may even open up a new avenue of research that could prove fruitful. 

Kazza.