Differing Responses to an Industrialising Economy - eTheses ...

Appendix 11: Male occupational structure in the 1851 census in Alcester
enumeration district compared with entries of fathers’ occupations in
baptisms in the same parishes 1813-40 1
Appendix 11, Table 1
Baptisms
1813-1840
Baptisms
1813-1840
1851
census
1851
census
Primary including agricultural
6579.5 51.2 1950 43.9
labourers
Secondary including non-agricultural 5467 42.5 2012 45.2
labourers
Tertiary 808.5 6.3 513 10.9
Total males with known occupations 12855 100 4446 100.0
The continued growth of the secondary and tertiary sectors and the
corresponding decline of primary after 1840 is shown by the table above. Labourers
in the baptism data were allocated to primary or secondary according to the figures for
agricultural or non-agricultural labourers in the 1831 census. This inflates the figures
for secondary, as some of the non-agricultural labourers were involved in quarrying,
which is a primary sector trade. However, the same is true of the 1851 census, so the
figures may be compared.
Many occupational groupings have similar percentages in both sources (as can
be seen in Appendix 11, Table 2 below). The largest difference is seen in agricultural
labourers where the 1851 figure is almost 10% lower than that in baptisms. By
contrast the farmers’ share increases by more than 3% over the same period. Other
1 The parishes in Alcester Enumeration District are: Alcester, Arrow, Bidford, Salford Priors,
Weethley, Abbots Morton, Aston Cantlow, Exhall, Great Alne, Haselor, Inkberrow, Kinwarton,
Morton Bagot, Oldberrow, Spernall, Stock and Bradley, Temple Grafton, Wixford, Coughton,
Feckenham, Ipsley, Studley and the Warwickshire part of Tardebigge parish. Data is included from
Tardebigge baptisms, but not from Redditch baptisms. (Redditch lay in the Worcestershire part of
Tardebigge parish.)
403