In the 19th century women invariably adopted their husband’s surname when they married, and this makes it considerably more difficult to find them on the census.

The Index of Maiden Names is a partial index of the maiden names of women recorded in the censuses LostCousins supports who were, or had been, married. Although it contains nearly 120,000 maiden names it is far from complete - however the index is a unique resource that will continue to grow.

How to use the index

Enter at least the first three letters of your relative’s first name, her full maiden surname, and her approximate year of birth. Do not enter wildcards, initials, or more than one forename.

Click the Search button when you are ready - it will then take a few seconds to search the database.

The results displayed show the information that appears on the census for women who had the same maiden name as your relative, and are around the same age. The census references are shown in the same format as on your My Ancestors page.

You can then look up these individuals on the census to see whether any of them have the same place of birth as your relative. If so, it is likely that it is the same person.