Tithe maps and their accompanying apportionments are among the most rewarding records for family historians. Created mainly between the late 1830s and the 1850s, they capture a parish at a precise moment, naming landowners, occupiers, fields, cottages and farms. For anyone trying to place an ancestor in their community before the 1841 census, they are gold dust.

What tithe maps and apportionments actually are

Before 1836, tithes were paid in kind — a tenth of produce, livestock or crops — to support the church and clergy. The Tithe Commutation Act of 1836 replaced that system with money payments, known as tithe rentcharge. To work out who owed what, the Tithe Commissioners needed accurate maps and schedules. Most parishes produced a map and an apportionment, often called a schedule, between 1837 and the early 1850s. Three copies were usually made: one for the parish, one for the diocesan registry, and one for the national collection. The map shows each plot with a number. The apportionment lists those numbers alongside the owner, the occupier, the name and description of the land, its acreage, state of cultivation, and the tithe rentcharge. Together they form a detailed snapshot of landholding.

What the apportionment reveals about your ancestors

Search the apportionment for your surnames. You may find an ancestor as either owner or occupier. The occupier could be a tenant farmer, a yeoman, a shopkeeper, a widow with a smallholding, or a labourer with a cottage and garden. Look closely at the details: a house, garden, orchard, several closes, or a single field. Field names such as Great Meadow, Long Croft, Pinfold or Chapel Field can be surprisingly evocative. The acreage and state of cultivation — arable, pasture, meadow, woodland — tell you how the land was used. If the owner lives elsewhere, your ancestor was almost certainly a tenant. If owner and occupier are the same, you have an owner-occupier, perhaps a freeholder or copyholder. This is social and economic context you can build on.

Finding the right map for your parish

Start with your county record office or local studies library. Many tithe maps and apportionments have been digitised and indexed, often freely available online. Search by parish name and check the catalogue for both the map and the apportionment. Some parishes have only one surviving, or the map may be missing while the schedule survives. There may also be later altered apportionments, so note the date carefully. If your parish is urban, tithes may have been commuted earlier or not at all. Rural parishes are usually the most rewarding. Ask an archivist if you cannot find the parish — they often know the local quirks.

Putting your ancestor on the map: a practical method

• Find the apportionment index by surname. Note every plot number linked to your ancestor.
• Open the tithe map and locate those numbers. They may be scattered or clustered. A cluster often means a farmstead or a small landholding.
• Record owner, occupier, field name, acreage and cultivation for each plot. Build a simple table.
• Compare with the 1841 census and later censuses. Do the neighbours match? The tithe map often predates 1841 by a few years, giving you an earlier layer of evidence.
• Check parish registers and trade directories for occupations. An occupier of fifty acres was likely a farmer; a cottager with a garden might be a labourer or craftsman.
• Look at surrounding plots. Who were the big landowners? Where were the rectory, church, mill, pub or school? These anchor the community around your ancestor.

Field names, boundaries and community clues

Field names are a joy. They can preserve Old English or dialect words, reveal former land use, lost buildings or family nicknames. Names like Bury Field, Kiln Close, Hop Garden or Workhouse Piece tell stories. Boundaries on tithe maps often follow older furlongs, streams and hedges. Compare them with enclosure awards and estate maps. You may find your ancestor’s cottage on a green or lane, next to in-laws. Tithe maps show clusters of small cottages occupied by labourers, people often missing from other records. They sometimes show nonconformist chapels, schools, mills and blacksmiths. This helps you place ancestors not just in a parish, but in a living, working community.

Limitations and making the most of tithe maps

Not every parish has a tithe map. Some were tithe-free, some commuted later or earlier, and some maps are simplified, with boundaries drawn schematically and buildings omitted. Occupiers may not be residents — land could be let to a farmer living elsewhere. Labourers without land rarely appear unless they occupied a cottage with a garden. Use tithe maps alongside enclosure maps, estate surveys, poor law records, censuses, directories and wills. If your parish has no tithe map, check a neighbouring parish or estate papers. Even a single apportionment entry can be the only record naming a tenant before 1841. Treat it as a starting point, not a final answer. Transcribe the plots linked to your ancestor, trace the map section, and compare it with later large-scale maps. Note the field names in your family history software. The real prize is a community portrait, drawn plot by plot, with your ancestor standing in it.