Decennial Federal US Census records
There has been a decennial Census of the United States since 1790. US census records do not become public until 72 years after the date of the census for reasons of privacy. As a result, the last Decennial US Census currently available to the public is the US census of 1940.
1790 – 1840 Census Records – Heads of family
The federal US Census started out as little more than a head count. However, from the very first census of 1790, the names of each head of family were recorded.
Marshals of the Judicial Districts were responsible for enumerating the population living within their districts and assistant marshals were engaged to act as enumerators. Pre-printed forms were first used in the census of 1830.
Summary of US Census Returns
| Census date | Personal details | No of states* | Population | American President | Popular subscription sites - links to census year | Availability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1790 2 August | ✓ (Family head only) | 13 | 3,929,214 | George Washington | FindMyPast.com myheritage.com Ancestry.com | Approx 70% |
| 1800 4 August | ✓ (Family head only) | 16 | 5,308,483 | John Adams | FindMyPast.com MyHeritage.com Ancestry.com | Approx 70% |
| 1810 6 August | ✓ (Family head only) | 17 | 7,239,881 | James Madison | FindMyPast.com MyHeritage.com Ancestry.com | Approx 85% |
| 1820 7 August | ✓ (Family head only) | 23 | 9,633,822 | James Monroe | FindMyPast.com MyHeritage.com Ancestry.com | |
| 1830 1 June | ✓ (Family head only) | 24 | 12,866,020 | Andrew Jackson | FindMyPast.com MyHeritage.com Ancestry.com | |
| 1840 1 June | ✓ (Family head only) | 26 | 17,069,458 | Martin Van Buren | FindMyPast.com MyHeritage.com Ancestry.com | |
| 1850 1 June | ✓ | 31 | 23,191,876 | Zachary Taylor (d. Jul 1850)/Millard Fillmore | FindMyPast.com MyHeritage.com Ancestry.com | |
| 1860 1 June | ✓ | 33 | 31,443,321 | James Buchanan | FindMyPast.com MyHeritage.com Ancestry.com | |
| 1870 1 June | ✓ | 37 | 38,558,371 | Ulysses S Grant | FindMyPast.com MyHeritage.com Ancestry.com | |
| 1880 1 June | ✓ | 38 | 50,155,783 | Rutherford B Hayes | FindMyPast.com MyHeritage.com Ancestry.com | |
| 1890 2 June | ✓ | 42 | 62,979,766 | Benjamin Harrison | FindMyPast.com MyHeritage.com Ancestry.com | Most schedules destroyed. |
| 1900 1 June | ✓ | 45 | 76,303,387 | William McKinley | FindMyPast.com myheritage.com Ancestry.com | |
| 1910 15 April | ✓ | 46 | 91,972,266 | William Howard Taft | FindMyPast.com myheritage.com Ancestry.com | |
| 1920 1 January | ✓ | 48 | 105,710,620 | Woodrow Wilson | FindMyPast.com myheritage.com Ancestry.com | |
| 1930 1 April | ✓ | 48 | 122,775,046 | Herbert Hoover | FindMyPast.com myheritage.com Ancestry.com | |
| 1940 1 April | ✓ | 48 | 131,669,275 | Franklin D Roosevelt | FindMyPast.com myheritage.com Ancestry.com | |
| 1950 1 April | ✓ | 48 | 151,325,798 | Harry S Truman | Census records not yet available to public. | |
| * exclusive of districts and territories. | ||||||
Post 1850 Census Records
The 1850 census marked a major turning point in US census history when all the inhabitants of the US were enumerated for the first time. This massive increase in data collection (there were now six schedules in total) presented a huge challenge for census officials and, throughout the second half of the 19th Century, the amount of data collected continued to grow.
Many attempts at efficiencies were introduced and, in the 1880 census, the US marshals and their assistants were replaced with supervisors and their enumerators. Experts were also employed when required.
Despite many reforms, the US census of 1880 took an almost unmanageable 8 years to process and inspired the invention of Hollerith’s tabulating machine; a precursor to the modern computer first used in the census of 1890. It was finally replaced with the first civilian computer in 1950.
Immigration records
The 1900 – 1930 census schedules asked for the year in which a person immigrated to America (if applicable). This information, coupled with questions regarding parents’ place of birth, is very useful for researching passenger lists.
Area enumerated
The first Census of 1790 enumerated the original Thirteen Colonies plus four districts that later became States. As the geographical area of the United States expanded, so did the US population. Barely a decade after the first US census, the size of the US nearly doubled following the ‘Louisiana Purchase’ of 1803.
The 20th Century saw another expansion in the size of population enumerated in the US census. Alaska and Hawaii were both included in the US census from 1900 onwards and the populations of island areas referred to as ‘Puerto Rico and the outlying areas’ were also added to the decennial US census during the last century.
Destruction of records
US Census records are remarkably intact. However, not all records have survived. Around a third of the 1790 and 1800 census records have been lost or destroyed and around 85% of the 1810 records. Also, the 1890 records were destroyed by fire at the Commerce Department Building in 1921. Where census records have been destroyed, family historians have been able to rely upon wealth of ‘census substitutes’.
State census records and other ‘census substitutes’
The US decennial census is a federal census. However, family historians have a wealth of other US census records to research; state records, local records and veteran censuses. These additional records are invaluable for a number of reasons:
- They act as ‘census substitutes’ for lost or damaged federal census records. For example, the 1890 special enumeration of Union Veterans and Widows acts as a census substitute for the destroyed census of 1890.
- State census records and other non-federal US records often predate the federal census. For example, in Mississippi, there were almost 30 colonial, territorial and state censuses held before Mississippi joined the Union in 1817.
- State censuses tended to be held mid-way between the federal US census years – i.e. their census years often ended in ‘5’ rather than ‘0’, thus neatly filling the 10 year gap between the federal censuses.
- Finally, alternative censuses often asked different questions to reflect local needs or fulfil particular requirements.
American family history researchers are extremely fortunate to have such a wealth of US census records at their fingertips, stretched as they are over such a long period, without interruption and remarkably free from loss or damage.