U.S. Census

U.S. Census Forms 

The first Federal Population Census was taken in 1790, and has been taken every ten years since.

US Census forms often contain a great deal of family history data.  However, they should be carefully evaluated before relying on them as source documents.  But with all their imperfections, they are a wonderful window into the lives of our ancestors.  When reading them, look for where they came from and where they were destined.  Often the city and the address can be very helpful when searching for local documents like marriage, birth and death certificates.  Most immigrants stayed and lived near relatives for many years.  It’s only in our modern age that our family generations disburse so quickly.

Very often they were filled out from information provided by a neighbor, and sometimes the census worker just guessed.  Poor handwriting and technical blotches on microfilm can obscure information.  Virtually no original paper manifests exist; all were preserved by microfilming. Memories often fade over the years, and you can often see your relatives information change too. When asked what year they immigrated, they often just gave their best remembrance; often it was wrong.  This can lead to many false trails when looking for ship manifests which are based on date and port of arrival.

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Census records can provide the building blocks of your research, allowing you to both confirm information, and to learn more.

From 1850 to 1940, details are provided for all individuals in each household, such as:

  • names of family members
  • their ages at a certain point in time
  • their state or country of birth
  • their parent’s birthplaces
  • year of immigration
  • street address
  • marriage status and years of marriage
  • occupation(s)
  • value of their home and personal belongings
  • the crops that they grew (in agricultural schedules), etc.

For specifics on what information was collected in each census year, see Availability of Census Records About Individuals

The National Archives has the census schedules on microfilm available from 1790 to 1930. (Note: Most of the 1890 Census was destroyed in a Department of Commerce fire, though partial records are available for some states.)