Nelson, Ontario (1891 census)
Nelson was a census subdivision in Ontario, recorded in the 1891 Census of Canada with a population of 3,269. The administrative centroid was at approximately 43.407°N, 79.858°W.
Population
In 1891, Nelson had a population of 3,269: 1,747 male and 1,522 female residents. Population density was 40.5 people per square mile.
Population trajectory across census years
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1851 | 4,078 |
| 1861 | 4,559 |
| 1871 | 4,619 |
| 1881 | 3,340 |
| 1891 | 3,269 |
| 1901 | 2,776 |
| 1911 | 2,910 |
| 1921 | 3,356 |
Cross-year identity established by spatial polygon overlap (SAME_AS chains across the Canadian Census Subdivision boundary files).
Neighbouring Census Subdivisions in 1891
In the 1891 census, Nelson shared boundaries with:
Full census record, 1891
The 1891 census recorded 174 measurements for this Census Subdivision across 6 categories. Tables below are collapsible.
Population & families (15 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Average size of families | 5.20 |
| FAM NO | 624 |
| Number of families | 624 |
| Number of females | 1,522 |
| Number of males | 1,747 |
| Number of married females | 542 |
| Number of married males | 540 |
| Number of married persons | 1,082 |
| Number of widowed females | 79 |
| Number of widowed males | 62 |
| Number of widowed persons | 141 |
| POP F | 1,522 |
| POP M | 1,747 |
| POP TOT | 3,269 |
| Total population | 3,269 |
Age structure (3 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Number of single females under 18 | 901 |
| Number of single males under 18 | 1,145 |
| Number of single persons under 18 | 2,046 |
Ethnic origin (2 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Number of French Canadians | 5 |
| Number of persons who are not French Canadian | 3,264 |
Buildings & housing (18 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Number of houses | 611 |
| Number of houses built of brick | 119 |
| Number of houses built of stone | 52 |
| Number of houses built of wood | 440 |
| Number of houses of 1 room | 2 |
| Number of houses of 1 story | 334 |
| Number of houses of 11 to 15 rooms | 93 |
| Number of houses of 2 rooms | 10 |
| Number of houses of 2 stories | 276 |
| Number of houses of 3 rooms | 21 |
| Number of houses of 4 rooms | 38 |
| Number of houses of 5 rooms | 54 |
| Number of houses of 6 to 10 rooms | 385 |
| Number of houses of more than 3 stories | 1 |
| Number of houses of over 15 rooms | 8 |
| Number of houses under construction | 7 |
| Number of occupied houses | 611 |
| Number of uninhabited houses | 33 |
Agriculture (67 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| Acres of barley | 2,857 |
| Acres of farmland in gardens or orchards | 1,829 |
| Acres of farmland in pasture | 5,870 |
| Acres of farmland in woodland or forest | 6,925 |
| Acres of farmland under crops | 31,314 |
| Acres of hay crops | 6,021 |
| Acres of improved land in farms | 39,013 |
| Acres of land in farms | 45,938 |
| Acres of oats | 3,839 |
| Acres of potatoes | 319 |
| Acres of turnips | 545 |
| Acres of wheat | 6,174 |
| BAR AC | 2,857 |
| BAR BU | 59,529 |
| Bushels of barley produced in the past year | 59,529 |
| Bushels of beans produced in the past year | 91 |
| Bushels of buckwheat produced in the past year | 507 |
| Bushels of clover, timothy, or other grass seed produced in the past year | 103 |
| Bushels of corn produced in the past year | 14,080 |
| Bushels of oats produced in the past year | 90,215 |
| Bushels of peas produced in the past year | 46,011 |
| Bushels of potatoes produced in the past year | 28,408 |
| Bushels of rye produced in the past year | 1,346 |
| Bushels of spring wheat produced in the past year | 20,279 |
| Bushels of turnips produced in the past year | 269,976 |
| Bushels of winter wheat produced in the past year | 74,726 |
| BWT BU | 507 |
| CRN BU | 14,080 |
| HAY AC | 6,021 |
| HAY TONS | 9,547 |
| Number of cattle killed or sold in the past year | 788 |
| Number of chickens | 20,842 |
| Number of ducks | 1,294 |
| Number of farm occupants who own their land | 449 |
| Number of farm occupants who rent their land | 93 |
| Number of geese | 1,409 |
| Number of horses aged 3 years and under | 597 |
| Number of horses aged over 3 years | 1,546 |
| Number of milk cows | 2,158 |
| Number of occupants of farms | 542 |
| Number of other cattle | 2,786 |
| Number of other fowl | 39 |
| Number of oxen | 2 |
| Number of persons living on farms between 101 and 200 acres | 140 |
| Number of persons living on farms between 11 and 50 acres | 69 |
| Number of persons living on farms between 51 and 100 acres | 161 |
| Number of persons living on farms over 200 acres | 22 |
| Number of persons living on farms under 10 acres | 150 |
| Number of sheep | 2,336 |
| Number of sheep slaughtered or sold | 867 |
| Number of swine | 5,058 |
| Number of swine slaughtered or sold | 4,123 |
| Number of turkeys | 1,063 |
| OAT AC | 3,839 |
| OAT BU | 90,215 |
| PEA BU | 46,011 |
| POT AC | 319 |
| POT BU | 28,408 |
| Pounds of cheese produced on farms in the past year | 5,600 |
| Pounds of coarse wool produced on farms in the past year | 9,244 |
| Pounds of fine wool produced on farms in the past year | 602 |
| Pounds of homemade butter | 211,117 |
| RYE BU | 1,346 |
| Tons of hay produced in the past year | 9,547 |
| WHT AC | 6,174 |
| WHT FALL BU | 74,726 |
| WHT SP BU | 20,279 |
Other recorded variables (69 variables)
| Variable | Value |
|---|---|
| A 101 200 | 140 |
| A 11 50 | 69 |
| A 201 PL | 22 |
| A 51 100 | 161 |
| BEN BU | 91 |
| BUTTER LB | 211,117 |
| CATTLE KS | 788 |
| CHEESE LB | 5,600 |
| CHILD AND UNMD FEM | 901 |
| CHILD AND UNMD MALE | 1,145 |
| CHILD AND UNMD TOT | 2,046 |
| COARSE WOOL LB | 9,244 |
| COLTS FILLIES | 597 |
| DUCKS | 1,294 |
| FAMILIES | 624 |
| FAMILIES AV SIZE | 5.20 |
| FINE WOOL LB | 602 |
| FRN CA | 5 |
| GEESE | 1,409 |
| GRA BU | 103 |
| HENS AND CHKN | 20,842 |
| HORSES OVR THREE | 1,546 |
| HOUSES | 611 |
| HOUSES B | 119 |
| HOUSES CON | 7 |
| HOUSES ELVN TO FIFTN RM | 93 |
| HOUSES FIVE RM | 54 |
| HOUSES FOUR RM | 38 |
| HOUSES ONE RM | 2 |
| HOUSES ONE STRY | 334 |
| HOUSES OVR FOUR STRY | 1 |
| HOUSES S | 52 |
| HOUSES SIX TO TEN RM | 385 |
| HOUSES SIXTN OVR RM | 8 |
| HOUSES THREE RM | 21 |
| HOUSES TWO RM | 10 |
| HOUSES TWO STRY | 276 |
| HOUSES UNINH | 33 |
| HOUSES W | 440 |
| INF 11 A | 150 |
| MD FEM | 542 |
| MD MALE | 540 |
| MD TOT | 1,082 |
| MILK COWS | 2,158 |
| NAME CD | Halton |
| OC F | 93 |
| OC P | 449 |
| OC TOT | 542 |
| OTHER FOWL | 39 |
| OTHER HRN CATTLE | 2,786 |
| OTHERS | 3,264 |
| SHEEP | 2,336 |
| SHEEP KS | 867 |
| SUP AM | 39,013 |
| SUP FOR | 6,925 |
| SUP JV | 1,829 |
| SUP PAT | 5,870 |
| SUP SC | 31,314 |
| SUP TOT | 45,938 |
| SWINE | 5,058 |
| SWINE KS | 4,123 |
| TOT DWLG OCC | 611 |
| TUR AC | 545 |
| TUR BU | 269,976 |
| TURKEY | 1,063 |
| WID FEM | 79 |
| WID MALE | 62 |
| WID TOT | 141 |
| WORKING OX | 2 |
Identifiers
- TCP UID:
ON071007— year-scoped identifier from the Canadian Census Subdivision boundary file - Persistent place ID:
PLACE_ON117003— 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 1891 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). "Nelson, Ontario (1891 census)" in HGIS Canada Knowledge Graph. Retrieved from https://jimclifford.ca/hgiscanada/places/on/nelson-on071007-1891/.