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The police cell household

The first UK Census was compiled in 1801 and has been undertaken at 10 yearly intervals ever since. Information includes anyone spending the Census night in an institution such as workhouses, prisons, hospitals and also police cells. What they reveal offers some reflection on the early 20th century morality.

Law enforcers or spoilsports? 

When Henry Fielding began to build the Bow Street force, he focused on serious crimes like highway robbery. But when his brother John Fielding took charge in 1754, he was also expected to deal with societal problems like drunkenness and gambling (or “gaming”).