This article presents the method and first results of using the 1881 England and Wales Census Enumerators' Books (CEBs) to identify and extract employer records using occupational information. Over 230,000 employers are identified, of which about four fifths employ others. Important sub-groups are also identified of the own account selfemployed, company proprietors, directors and partnerships. The article demonstrates the feasibility of the method and uses the example of the building industry to illustrate firm-size distribution at parish level across England and Wales. The paper indicates the applicability of the extraction method to other censuses, which is now possible using the recently released I-CeM database. The paper also demonstrates some difficulties in the database for 1881, including data keying and coding errors, ranging from 0.5 to 5.5 per cent of entries for larger businesses. Gender miscoding appears to be a systematic error of about 0.7 per 1,000 people. The analysis suggests that where small or atypical sample groups are involved, users of the census database should make detailed checks with manuscript CEBs.
