Before the setting up of Civil Registration in 1837 census returns were just a headcount, and no information on individuals was recorded. After 1837 census information was collected in units of Civil Parishes. The area of the current Whitby Town Council and the previous Whitby Urban District was comprised of three Civil Parishes before they were merged into one in 1925. Consequently, Census returns for Whitby are enumerated in three or four seperate parish returns, Whitby, Ruswarp, Hawsker (later Helredale) and Aislaby.

Whitby Parish encompassed the area immediately at each side of the river, Ruswarp Parish stretched westwards from Silver Street and south from Victoria Square, and Hawsker-cum-Stainsacre Parish covered the East Cliff and Spital Bridge as well as Stainsacre and Hawsker. After 1894 the part of Hawsker within Whitby Urban District was seperated off as Helredale Parish. In 1925 all three Whitby parishes were merged into Whitby Urban District, and in 1932 another small part of Hawsker was added to form the modern Whitby Town Council area.

Year	Census Transcripts			Parishes included				Status
1861	Whitby1861.csv	Whitby1861.rtf	Whitby1861.txt	Whitby	Ruswarp	Hawsker	Aislaby	complete, being checked.
1871	Whitby1871.csv			small sample.
1881	Whitby1881.csv	Whitby1881.rtf	Whitby1881.txt	Whitby	Ruswarp			about 80% completed.
1891	Whitby1891.csv	Whitby1891.rtf	Whitby1891.txt	Whitby	Ruswarp	Hawsker		complete, being checked.
1901	Whitby1901.csv	Whitby1901.rtf	Whitby1901.txt	Whitby	Ruswarp	Hawsker		complete, being checked.
1911	Whitby1911.csv	Whitby1911.rtf	Whitby1911.txt	Whitby	Ruswarp	Helredale		complete, being checked.
Street Directories:
1913	Kelly1913.csv		Kelly1913.txt	Kelly's Street Directory.				complete.
1921	Kelly1921.csv			Kelly's Street Directory.				partial.
1925	Kelly1925.csv		Kelly1925.txt	Kelly's Street Directory.				complete.
1937	Kelly1937.csv		Kelly1937.txt	Kelly's Street Directory.				complete.
Residents/Electoral registers:
1941	Whitby1939.csv	Whitby1939.rtf		Whitby				about 50% completed.
1951	Whitby1951.csv	Whitby1951.rtf		Whitby				complete.
1971	Whitby1971.csv	Whitby1971.rtf		Whitby				about 25% completed.

CSVNotes	description of the CSV file format
Area	how the Whitby district boundaries changed over time
Totals	Whitby census population totals
Totals.xls	Whitby census population totals spreadsheet