Sydney, Nova Scotia (1881 census)
Sydney was a census subdivision in Cape Breton County, Nova Scotia, recorded in the 1881 Census of Canada with a population of 3,667. The administrative centroid was at approximately 46.073°N, 60.220°W.
Population
In 1881, Sydney had a population of 3,667: 1,779 male and 1,888 female residents. Population density was 54.4 people per square mile.
Population trajectory across census years
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1871 | 2,900 |
| 1881 | 3,667 |
Cross-year identity established by spatial polygon overlap (SAME_AS chains across the Canadian Census Subdivision boundary files).
Boundary continuity (non-identical overlaps)
Spatial polygon overlaps with adjacent census years where the boundary shifted enough that the SAME_AS chain didn't merge them. These show where the territory came from and went to even when it isn't tracked as the same persistent place.
Later boundary forms
- In a later year, this CSD contained South Forks, 1891 (87.3% of this CSD's polygon).
- In a later year, this CSD contained Sydney, Town—Ville, 1891 (12.7% of this CSD's polygon).
Neighbouring Census Subdivisions in 1881
In the 1881 census, Sydney shared boundaries with:
Full census record, 1881
The 1881 census recorded 102 measurements for this Census Subdivision across 6 categories. Tables below are collapsible.
Population & families (12 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| FAM NO | 627 |
| Number of families | 627 |
| Number of females | 1,888 |
| Number of males | 1,779 |
| Number of married females | 481 |
| Number of married males | 483 |
| Number of married persons | 964 |
| Number of widowed females | 125 |
| Number of widowed males | 35 |
| Number of widowed persons | 160 |
| POP TOT | 3,667 |
| Total population | 3,667 |
Age structure (3 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Number of single females under 18 | 1,282 |
| Number of single males under 18 | 1,261 |
| Number of single persons under 18 | 2,543 |
Buildings & housing (4 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Number of houses under construction | 16 |
| Number of inhabited houses | 589 |
| Number of occupied houses | 589 |
| Number of uninhabited houses | 43 |
Agriculture (29 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Acres of hay crops | 2,622 |
| Acres of potatoes | 504 |
| Acres of wheat | 262 |
| BAR BU | 872 |
| Bushels of barley produced in the past year | 872 |
| Bushels of buckwheat produced in the past year | 47 |
| Bushels of clover, timothy, or other grass seed produced in the past year | 49 |
| Bushels of corn produced in the past year | 7 |
| Bushels of oats produced in the past year | 17,545 |
| Bushels of other root crops produced in the past year | 1,125 |
| Bushels of peas and beans produced in the past year | 95 |
| Bushels of potatoes produced in the past year | 53,247 |
| Bushels of rye produced in the past year | 1 |
| Bushels of spring wheat produced in the past year | 3,139 |
| Bushels of turnips produced in the past year | 3,894 |
| Bushels of winter wheat produced in the past year | 72 |
| BWT BU | 47 |
| CRN BU | 7 |
| HAY AC | 2,622 |
| HAY TONS | 3,704 |
| OAT BU | 17,545 |
| PEA AND BEN BU | 95 |
| POT AC | 504 |
| POT BU | 53,247 |
| RYE BU | 1 |
| Tons of hay produced in the past year | 3,704 |
| WHT AC | 262 |
| WHT SP BU | 3,139 |
| WHT WTR BU | 72 |
Fisheries (17 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Barrels of eels produced in the past year | 16 |
| Barrels of gaspareaux produced in the past year | 45 |
| Barrels of halibut produced in the past year | 13 |
| Barrels of herring or alewives produced in the past year | 1,525 |
| Barrels of mackerel produced in the past year | 55 |
| Barrels of other fish produced in the past year | 1 |
| Barrels of salmon produced in the past year | 18 |
| Barrels of trout produced in the past year | 2 |
| Fathoms of fishing nets | 7,068 |
| Gallons of fish oil produced in the past year | 649 |
| Number of fishing boats | 104 |
| Number of fishing vessels | 2 |
| Number of men on fishing boats | 130 |
| Number of men on fishing vessels | 4 |
| Number of shoremen | 47 |
| Quintals of cod produced in the past year | 1,722 |
| Quintals of haddock, hake, or pollock produced in the past year | 264 |
Other recorded variables (37 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| BBL HERR OR ALE | 1,525 |
| BOAT MEN Q | 130 |
| BOATS FOR FISH | 104 |
| C UNMD F | 1,282 |
| C UNMD M | 1,261 |
| C UNMD TOT | 2,543 |
| CD NAME | Cape Breton |
| COD DX K | 1,722 |
| D OCC | 589 |
| EEL XB Q | 16 |
| FEMALE | 1,888 |
| GAL FISH OIL | 649 |
| GRA BU | 49 |
| GSP XB Q | 45 |
| H CON | 16 |
| H INHAB | 589 |
| H UNINH | 43 |
| HAD DX K | 264 |
| HAL XB Q | 13 |
| MALE | 1,779 |
| MCK XB Q | 55 |
| MD F | 481 |
| MD M | 483 |
| MD TOT | 964 |
| NET XX F | 7,068 |
| NUMBER CD | 6 |
| OTHFISH XB Q | 1 |
| OTHR ROOT BU | 1,125 |
| SHOREMEN XX Q | 47 |
| SLM XB Q | 18 |
| TRT XB Q | 2 |
| TUR BU | 3,894 |
| VESSEL MEN Q | 4 |
| VESSEL XX Q | 2 |
| WID F | 125 |
| WID M | 35 |
| WID TOT | 160 |
Identifiers
- TCP UID:
NS006016— year-scoped identifier from the Canadian Census Subdivision boundary file - Persistent place ID:
PLACE_NS006016— computed from spatial-overlap chains across census years - Wikidata: not yet grounded. This page covers a place whose persistent identity has not yet been linked to a Wikidata entity. Identification is via TCP UID and spatial polygon only.
Sources
Census tabulations from the 1881 Census of Canada, transcribed and georeferenced by the Canadian Peoples / TCP project, hosted at the HGIS Lab, University of Saskatchewan. Persistent place identity computed from spatial-overlap chains across all available census years (1851–1921). Identity grounding to Wikidata performed via the HGIS Canada Knowledge Graph project's MCP-assisted disambiguation pipeline. See the About / Methodology page for the full data pipeline.
Cite this page
Clifford, J. (2026). "Sydney, Nova Scotia (1881 census)" in HGIS Canada Knowledge Graph. Retrieved from https://jimclifford.ca/hgiscanada/places/ns/sydney-ns006016-1881/.