Map
Hearth tax returns are presented digitally as interactive GIS maps on
this page. These are based on the GIS shapefiles created by Mike
Shand (University of Glasgow) for the Hearth Tax Project &
Centre, with a focus on distributions of population, wealth and
poverty. The parameters are those frequently used in hearth tax
studies, but users can also refine the criteria according to their
own interests.
The geographical data is based primarily on pre-
1881 parish boundaries modified to match as closely as possible with
parish boundaries in the late seventeenth century, using secondary
sources, such as Kain & Oliver (pre-1851 parish boundaries) and the Phillimore Atlas (pre-1832 parish boundaries). The GIS
shapefiles cover the parishes in a number of English counties, and
GIS coverage will include County Durham, Essex, Kent, Middlesex,
Surrey, and Yorkshire East Riding and Hull.