Guelph, Ontario (1881 census)
Guelph was a census subdivision in Ontario, recorded in the 1881 Census of Canada with a population of 2,793. The administrative centroid was at approximately 43.559°N, 80.285°W.
Population
In 1881, Guelph had a population of 2,793: 1,437 male and 1,356 female residents. Population density was 42.8 people per square mile.
Population trajectory across census years
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1851 | 2,879 |
| 1861 | 3,088 |
| 1871 | 2,955 |
| 1881 | 2,793 |
| 1891 | 2,464 |
| 1901 | 2,423 |
| 1911 | 2,641 |
| 1921 | 2,606 |
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 became part of Guelph, 1891 (94.6% share).
Neighbouring Census Subdivisions in 1881
In the 1881 census, Guelph shared boundaries with:
Full census record, 1881
The 1881 census recorded 67 measurements for this Census Subdivision across 5 categories. Tables below are collapsible.
Population & families (12 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| FAM NO | 459 |
| Number of families | 459 |
| Number of females | 1,356 |
| Number of males | 1,437 |
| Number of married females | 389 |
| Number of married males | 390 |
| Number of married persons | 779 |
| Number of widowed females | 63 |
| Number of widowed males | 54 |
| Number of widowed persons | 117 |
| POP TOT | 2,793 |
| Total population | 2,793 |
Age structure (3 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Number of single females under 18 | 904 |
| Number of single males under 18 | 993 |
| Number of single persons under 18 | 1,897 |
Buildings & housing (4 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Number of houses under construction | 1 |
| Number of inhabited houses | 459 |
| Number of occupied houses | 459 |
| Number of uninhabited houses | 52 |
Agriculture (29 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Acres of hay crops | 5,213 |
| Acres of potatoes | 406 |
| Acres of wheat | 3,855 |
| BAR BU | 55,345 |
| Bushels of barley produced in the past year | 55,345 |
| Bushels of buckwheat produced in the past year | 46 |
| Bushels of clover, timothy, or other grass seed produced in the past year | 141 |
| Bushels of corn produced in the past year | 240 |
| Bushels of oats produced in the past year | 134,160 |
| Bushels of other root crops produced in the past year | 32,320 |
| Bushels of peas and beans produced in the past year | 41,648 |
| Bushels of potatoes produced in the past year | 37,002 |
| Bushels of rye produced in the past year | 2,810 |
| Bushels of spring wheat produced in the past year | 17,560 |
| Bushels of turnips produced in the past year | 651,720 |
| Bushels of winter wheat produced in the past year | 38,576 |
| BWT BU | 46 |
| CRN BU | 240 |
| HAY AC | 5,213 |
| HAY TONS | 7,969 |
| OAT BU | 134,160 |
| PEA AND BEN BU | 41,648 |
| POT AC | 406 |
| POT BU | 37,002 |
| RYE BU | 2,810 |
| Tons of hay produced in the past year | 7,969 |
| WHT AC | 3,855 |
| WHT SP BU | 17,560 |
| WHT WTR BU | 38,576 |
Other recorded variables (19 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| C UNMD F | 904 |
| C UNMD M | 993 |
| C UNMD TOT | 1,897 |
| D OCC | 459 |
| FEMALE | 1,356 |
| GRA BU | 141 |
| H CON | 1 |
| H INHAB | 459 |
| H UNINH | 52 |
| MALE | 1,437 |
| MD F | 389 |
| MD M | 390 |
| MD TOT | 779 |
| NUMBER CD | 151 |
| OTHR ROOT BU | 32,320 |
| TUR BU | 651,720 |
| WID F | 63 |
| WID M | 54 |
| WID TOT | 117 |
Identifiers
- TCP UID:
ON151002— year-scoped identifier from the Canadian Census Subdivision boundary file - Persistent place ID:
PLACE_ON152005— 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). "Guelph, Ontario (1881 census)" in HGIS Canada Knowledge Graph. Retrieved from https://jimclifford.ca/hgiscanada/places/on/guelph-on151002-1881/.