In the last blog, as an illustration of how to use the 1901 Census, we discovered the parents of famous Liverpool comedian Arthur Askey and their address in Toxteth.

We can now use this information to look at the other Census returns - going as far back as 1841 - to discover Arthur's ancestors.

The next step back is the 1891 Census. Where were Arthur's parents living then?
We have some basic information - Samuel and Betsey Askey were living in Moses Street, Toxteth, in 1901 and we have discovered that Samuel was a book-keeper who had been born in Liverpool. The Census also listed Betsey's brother - Edward Bowden - revealing that Betsey's maiden name was Bowden and that she had been born in Northwich. Both were aged 24 in 1901 which would make them teenagers (14) at the time of the 1891 Census.

A search of the on-line 1891 Liverpool Census return on the Ancestry website - www.ancestry.co.uk unfortunately lists TWO Samuel Askeys living in Toxteth in 1891 - Samuel born in 1877 and Samuel E born in 1874. Neither are living in Moses Street, so which is the one we are looking for?
A simple subtraction - taking 24 (Samuel's age in 1901) from 1901 gives a birth date of 1877, but Census returns (particularly the early ones) are notoriously bad at giving correct ages, so another check is necessary. If we go back to the 1901 Census we find Samuel E Askey, now married and still living in Toxteth, but he is not directly connected to our Samuel or his son Arthur.

So we can be sure that Arthur's dad is the Samuel Askey listed as living at 76 Woodruff Street, Toxteth Park, aged 14. We also discover that Samuel was living with his family and working as a port office boy.

The 1891 Census lists Samuel's father - also named Samuel - and wife Elizabeth. Both were born in Liverpool and Samuel senior worked as a sailmaker. Their other children were Thomas, Georgina, Joseph and Annie.

On Arthur Askey's maternal side, what can we discover? We know Betsey Bowden was born in Northwich around 1877, but the Census return for 1891 reveals she was living with her family across the road from the Askeys at No 77 Woodruff Steet, Toxteth Park. The 1891 Census is more specific than the 1901 return - it states Betsey was born in Budworth (near Northwich) and was living with her parents William and Martha and siblings Edward and James. Dad William was working as a shipwright and had been born in Davenham, near Northwich, Cheshire, while mum Martha had been born in Widnes.

So, from the information discovered in the 1901 and 1891 Census returns, we can map Arthur Askey's ancestors as follows:

So what more information about Arthur's ancestors can we discover in the Census returns? Watch out for the next blog.

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