Week 5 - In the Census - 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks

It is time to think about Week 5 of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge, and the prompt is 'In the Census'.  I love census records, and it is a constant disappointment that so few census records in Australia have survived.
For several branches of my family, the English census has been invaluable, but my favourite is the story of the Hines family.  James Hines was born 12th March 1807 in Aldham, Suffolk.  He marries Susannah Woollard (born 1812 in Aldham) on 1st June 1830.  Their children are Susannah (1832), John (1834), Samuel (1836), Albert (1838) and Hannah (1840).  The family appears together in the 1841 census, which shows them living in Quentin Street, with James working as a carpenter.  Eldest daughter Susannah is not home on the night on the census.

Hines family 1841 census

Sadly, James Hines dies shortly after on 20th June 1841, followed by his wife Susannah (nee Woollard) just before the next census on 13th March 1851.  Tracing each of the 5 children through the census records tells quite a tale.
The two eldest children, Susannah and John, are 19 and 17 years old at the time of the 1851 census.  I eventually found them, living with their mother's parents John and Susan Woollard, where they are listed as servants.

Susannah and John Hines, 1851 census

Middle child Samuel Hines, age 15, is living as a lodger in the household of James Prentice, a labourer.  After a bit of research I found that James Prentice married Mary, one of the Woollard sisters, and was Samuel's great uncle.  And the two youngest children, Albert, age 13 and Hannah, age 11?  Eventually I found them together, paupers in the Cosford Union Workhouse.

Despite this rather sad beginning, all five children survive and marry.  John dies in 1866 in Yorkshire, age 32, but the other children all live fairly long lives - Susannah dies in 1917 age 84, Samuel dies in 1910 age 73, Albert dies in 1917 age 79, and Hannah dies in 1912 age 71.  I descend from Susannah, who marries Henry Pike in 1855 - they are my great great grandparents.