The census figure for 1841 includes 39 people who were living in the workhouse. The 1851 figure includes 92 workhouse inmates.
As Hay was the market town for quite a wide area which included villages over the border in Herefordshire, the census shows a population working in shops and business and craftsmen hiring out their skills. (See the pages on earning a living). The figures above are for Hay parish which included surrounding farm and mountain lands as well as the town itself.

Compare this graph with those of other parishes in the area.
Is the overall trend the same?
If the trend differs, in what way does it differ?
What do you think was happening in the town to make the population increase in the middle of the Victorian period?
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