Making Sense of the Census

US Federal Census

Not instituted for family research but for taxation, federal fund allocation, and to establish the number of representatives in state and federal legislatures
1790 to present, a numbering of people taken every 10 years
Contains various information, depending on what the government wanted to know in that particular year
Each subsequent census generally has more information
Created by humans and subject to enumeration, transcription, and indexing errors
Most important primary source documents for US genealogical research
Follow the family over time
Find and determine family relationships
Find clues to other locations where the family lived

Only 1790 to 1940 censuses are available for research and viewing
Data considered confidential for a period of 72 years, a person's average life span
Census data is opened to the public exactly 72 years after the original recording
1950 census should be released 1 April 2022

For more information about slave, mortality, Civil War veterans/widows, etc. special censuses and schedules click here

For more information about manufacturing, agriculture, and other non-population schedules click here

For more information about American Indian Census Rolls and other tribe enumerations click here

For more information about state censuses click here

Perform a broad search in a small database
Start with the most recent census and work backwards
Study the original image - not just the transcription
Search several adjacent pages forward and backward looking for relatives
Cant' find them in an earlier census? Look for the neighbors from another census (enumerators worked in household order)
Don't trust other people's family trees - those are not "sources"
Print the series of census records to lay out and compare
Create a timeline
Record hints and suggestions on familysearch and ancestry don't automatically match - use caution
Remember:

Map Guide to the US Federal Censuses, 1790-1920 by William Dollarhide and William Thorndale, available at most libraries and the Altamesa Family History Center, Fort Worth
United States Enumeration District Maps for the Twelfth through the Sixteenth US Censuses, 1900-1940 click here
Census Instructions for enumerators click here
Clues in Census Records, 1790-1840 click here
Clues in Census Records, 1850-1930 click here
The Ultimate Quick Reference Guide to the U.S. Census for Genealogy click here
9 Tips for Searching US Census Records click here

Access for free here

Links for More Information

Use Google and familysearch.org Wiki to search for online information, resources, and access to census records from other parts of the world
Visit the Family History Library in Salt Lake City