Dower family name history and map
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Dower in 1911 Ireland
The 1911 Census recorded 234 people named Dower in Ireland; roughly one in every 19,000 people carried the name. The name was split fairly evenly between men and women: 119 men and 115 women.
Counties with Dower in Ireland
The Dowers were heavily concentrated in Waterford, home to 64.1% of them (150 people). Next came Kerry (22), Cork (18), Tipperary (18) and Dublin (13).
Dower average age in 1911
The average Dower in 1911 was 29.2 years old, 29.5 for men and 28.9 for women; almost exactly in line with the national averages of 29.6 for men and 30.5 for women. That low figure reflects just how many children there were in Edwardian Ireland, along with high infant mortality and the limits of public health at the time. For comparison, average life expectancy in Ireland today is around 83.
Dower literacy in 1911
Of the Dowers whose literacy was recorded, 80.6% could both read and write, 2.7% could read but not write, and 16.7% could do neither. Men came out slightly ahead, 83.3% reading and writing against 77.8% of women. Bear in mind these figures include young children; the census itself only counted people aged nine and over when calculating illiteracy, on the grounds that it was unfair to label a child illiterate before they'd had a chance to learn.
Dower common first names
The most common male names were John (31), Patrick, William, James and Michael. For women it was Mary (25), followed by Margaret, Bridget, Catherine and Ellen.
Dower occupations in 1911
The most common entry on a Dower's census form was "Scholar"; 23.1% (54) were children at school. Among the rest, the most common occupations were farmer (14.5%), general labourer (7.7%), farm labourer (7.3%) and domestic servant (3%). Grouped by sector, agriculture accounted for 22.2% of all Dowers, followed by general labourers, domestic service and retail & commerce.
What religion is Dower?
Dowers were overwhelmingly Roman Catholic, 97.9% of them. The remainder were mostly Anglican (0.9%).
Visitor Notes
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Added by
Pete F
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Dower statistics (1911)
Number: 234
Rank: 2,276
Average Age: 29
Dower in the USA (2020)
Number: 1,228
Rank: 21,652
Note: If there were less than 100 in the USA census it will show as zero.