Understanding the Records
The Census, be it federal or local, is one of the most valuable resources a genealogist will use. Though its not perfect, it helps to place our ancestors and their FAN Club in a location at a certain time. The Census provides us with information that could answer questions, cause us to ask more questions and lead us to additional clues.
Though the Census is a record group that provides good information on the surface level, some researchers may be interested in gaining a deeper understanding of the information provided. One way to do this is learn what the different categories mean and what are the explanations of the responses listed.
There are several resources that can help researcher’s learn more about what the categories and terminology mean. Below are a few of them, including direct links to the original enumerator instructions. The first link is a great starting point as it is a landing page that contains links to several other resources.
Instructions to Enumerators and the Public (US Federal Census) (National Archives) – https://www.archives.gov/research/census/1950/enumerator-instructions
Measuring America: The Decennial Censuses From 1790 to 2000 – https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2002/dec/pol_02-ma.html
PDFs of Original Enumerator Instructions
**Note: From 1790 – 1850, the census enumeration instructions were included in the laws. In 1860, the instructions were issued as a stand alone document that referenced the Acts that approved the initiative.
- 1790 Census – https://www.archives.gov/files/research/census/1790/1790censusact.pdf
- 1800 Census – https://www.archives.gov/files/research/census/1800/1800-census-act.pdf
- 1810 Census – https://www.archives.gov/files/research/census/1810/1810-census-act.pdf
- 1820 Census – https://www.archives.gov/files/research/census/1820/1820-census-act.pdf
- 1830 Census – https://www.archives.gov/files/research/census/1830/1830-census-act.pdf
- 1840 Census – https://www.archives.gov/files/research/census/1840/1840-census-act.pdf
Amendment #1 – https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/service/ll/llsl//llsl-c26/llsl-c26.pdf
Amendment #2 – https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/service/ll/llsl//llsl-c26/llsl-c26.pdf - 1850 Census – https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/programs-surveys/decennial/technical-documentation/questionnaires/1850instructions.pdf
- 1860 Census – https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial/technical-documentation/questionnaires/1860/1860-instructions.pdf
- 1870 Census – https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial/technical-documentation/questionnaires/1870/1870-instructions.pdf
- 1880 Census – https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census/technical-documentation/questionnaires/1880/1880-instructions.html
- 1890 Census – https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/programs-surveys/decennial/technical-documentation/questionnaires/1890instructions.pdf
- 1900 Census – https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/programs-surveys/decennial/technical-documentation/questionnaires/1900instructions.pdf
- 1910 Census – https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/programs-surveys/decennial/technical-documentation/questionnaires/1910-instructions.pdf
- 1920 Census – https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/programs-surveys/decennial/technical-documentation/questionnaires/1920instructions.pdf
- 1930 Census – https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/programs-surveys/decennial/technical-documentation/questionnaires/1930instructions.pdf
- 1940 Census – https://www.census.gov/history/pdf/1940instructions.pdf
- 1950 Census – https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/programs-surveys/decennial/technical-documentation/questionnaires/1950instructions.pdf
The Census Book: A Genealogist’s Guide to Federal Census Facts, Schedules and Indexes by William Dollarhide
This resource provides general history of the US Federal Census
The History and Growth of the United States Census, 1790-1890 by Carroll D. Wright and William C. Hunt
https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015007025003&seq=11
https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/HisGrow1790-1890/HisGrow_toc.pdf (PDF Version)
State Census
Census.gov: https://www.census.gov/history/www/genealogy/other_resources/state_censuses.html
State Census Records by Ann S Lainhart
The Past is Prologue 