What life was like for families in 1921

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ANCESTRY^® BLOG

Ancestry Team

08 January 2025

The 1921 Census of England and Wales is a key resource for discovering more about our ancestors during a fascinating period of recovery and change. It provides a snapshot of what life was like for almost 38 million people across 8.5 million households - where they were living, who they were living with and their occupations.

This detailed window into the past can often provide vital clues to help further your family history research. But as you dive into the census records, it’s natural to become curious about the wider society and times our ancestors were living in, and this knowledge can help us make more meaningful connections with them. So, what was family life like for our ancestors in 1921

The shadow of war and the winds of change

In 1921, the UK was still recovering from the devastating impact of WWI, and the Spanish flu pandemic. Whilst the 1918 armistice brought peace, the nation was still recovering, emotionally and economically and the consequences of war changed the lives of millions of families.

The family unit

For many families in 1921, life was a struggle. Almost 900,000 men had died in the war, with many more disabled. As a result, thousands of families were grieving and on a practical level, having to adapt to life without their main male breadwinner. These challenges were compounded by wider financial instability, with inflation and levels of unemployment soaring.

Whilst the ‘bright young things’ of the aristocracy and wealthier classes were starting to enjoy the hedonism of the roaring twenties, unfortunately this wasn’t the reality for most families. The vast majority of the population (78%) were working class and could only dream of enjoying the privileged night life of jazz clubs and cocktail bars. Instead, they were contending with making ends meet amidst the rising cost of living and often poor, cramped housing conditions.

The average family size in 1921 was 4.1 people, but extended families or multiple generations often lived together, or close by, pooling resources.

The role of women in the family

Family life in 1921 was impacted by the changing role of women. With hundreds of thousands of men lost during WWI, there were 1.7 million more women than men living in England and Wales at the time of the census.

During the war, millions of women had taken on roles that had been traditionally reserved for men, such as railway guards, postal workers, police, firefighters and farm workers. The 1921 Census shows that many women continued this work after the war - either seeking economic freedom and independence, or out of necessity, to support their household after their husband’s death. For many women, it was a juggle between their domestic responsibilities and paid work.

In 1918, after decades of campaigning from the women’s suffrage movement, women had been granted the right to vote, but there were restrictions. Therefore at the time of the 1921 Census, only women over the age of 30 who were householders, wives of householders, occupiers of property with an annual rent of £5 or graduates of British universities had a democratic voice. In reality, this comprised only 40% of women, almost entirely from the middle classes. Further progress and independence for all women was on the horizon, but for most, traditional gender roles still heavily influenced family life.

An unemployment crisis

In 1921, over two million people in England and Wales were unemployed, due to a combination of factors including wider economic instability, industrial changes and the 1921 miners’ strike (a disruption that postponed the census from April to June).

For those fortunate to be employed at the time, the most common industries for men were coal mining, agriculture and building work. There was also a significant workforce in the railway industry and central and local government.

Whilst some women maintained or took on roles that had previously been the preserve of men, most still carried out roles that were perceived as more traditionally ‘female’. The private personal service industry - including jobs like domestic servants, housekeepers and charwomen (cleaners) - was the most common for women in 1921, and women were also the backbone of the textile and tailoring industries.

Much employment at the time, particularly for working class families, was dictated by where people lived. For our ancestors living in cities, office work and professional services would have been more common. But for those in more rural areas, agriculture and local industry shaped job opportunities. For example, Staffordshire - the centre of the UK pottery industry - is the only county to feature potteries as a place of work in the 1921 Census and 79% of all female pottery workers in the census were enumerated in Staffordshire.

Childhood over 100 years ago

Many of our grandparents or great grandparents would have been children in 1921, their lives characterised by changes in educational reform, family needs and simple play.

After the 1918 Education Act had raised the minimum school-leaving age to 14, children were spending more time in school. For most, these would be free, local schools but in middle-class families, children were often sent to private schools.

When they weren’t at school, children, particularly those in working class families, were expected to muck in around the house and look after younger siblings or work to support the family income. When there was time for play, it was invariably with wooden toys and games, or outside on the street. With fewer cars on the roads in the 1920s, it was safe for children to run outside to play hopscotch, skipping games, cricket and football. And at weekends or during the school holidays, children would often go out to play in the morning and not return until dusk.

There were, however, childhood struggles. In 1921, children were contending with diseases like typhus, tuberculosis and scarlet fever, especially in areas with high levels of poverty and poor sanitation. Additionally, many children had lost one or both parents as a result of WWI and the 1918-1920 flu pandemic.

In the 1921 Census, this is reflected by the chilling words ‘father dead’ being recorded for more than 730,000 children. This was also the first, and only, census to show orphaned status for children aged 14 and under and there were 55,000 orphaned children in England and Wales at the time. This data helped prepare the financial framework of the Widows, Orphans and Old Age Contributory Pensions Act, 1925, a contributory pension system that provided income for widows, orphans, and older workers.

To find out more about your own ancestors and the lives they led, you can explore the 1921 Census here.