To consult the 'historical census' in the UK - those between 1851 and 1911 – users have to pay a commercial firm a daily fee. But to access hundreds of these records for several streets, districts, an entire town, or to link names and addresses to other archival sources, the commercial firm acts as gatekeeper to protect or 'guard' its commercial interests. Such approvals are therefore rare.

So I would just like to know if, in your country, you can consult Census records freely. Does freedom of information really exist for what is an essential research tool - demographic data. Remember: I'm only referring to materials before 1914!!

Thanks in advance for any information you can provide.