Sounds like a real puzzle, George. Is the first letter clearly a "D"? I can think of one possibility that sort of rhymes with Darsen, but the first letter is different. There is a very small townland (85 acres) just north of Errill called "Garrison" - which could sound like Garsen. An initial G and D can sound very similar sometimes, especially when spoken with not a lot of emphasis on the initial sound. Errill is in Rathdowney civil parish and about 4 miles west of Rathdowney town along the R433. "Garrison" seems to be one of the few places in the area that ends in anything sounding like -sen or -son. If the name clearly begins with a D, then could the -sen perhaps be -ren? There are a few places in western Laois that start with Derrin (which someone could write as Darren). However, they are not quite as close to Rathdowney as Garrison is. What is the name of the person in the census? Perhaps the woman's name could help us figure it out. Geralyn Wood Barry in Oregon, USA George Carter wrote: > I`ve come across a place name mentioned in the 1911 census of England that I can`t find. This lady`s sister says she was born in Rathdowney, so this may be close by but I can`t find it. > It looks like DURSEN or DARSEN, definately in Queens, Does anyone have any ideas. > > George Carter in Whaley Bridge