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Census Jurisdictions Federal Census |
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In addition to the four parts of the federal census that deal with enumerating people (population, mortality, slave, and veteran schedules), each state took a census periodically to qualify for statehood, additional representatives in Congress, special federal funding projects, and for a variety of other reasons. |
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The Constitution of the United States specifies that a census be taken every ten years. At first, federal marshals were tasked with overseeing census activities. Congress did not pass legislation authorizing the formation and funding of the Bureau of the Census until 1902. As federal documents, the National Archives has been responsible for the care and preservation of census schedules. |
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The 1790, 1800, 1810, 1820, 1830, 1840, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880, fragments of the 1890, 1900, 1910, and 1920 census schedules have been microfilmed for each state. Microfilm copies can be used at the National Archives in Washington, D.C., regional branches of the National Archives, the Family History Library of the church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City, and at other public, private, and institutional libraries throughout the country. The locations and addresses of the National Archives facilities follow: |
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The National Archives
National Archives and Records Administration Seventh and Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20408 |
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National Archives Regional Centers
National Archives - Alaska Region
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National Archives - Central Plains Region
2312 East Bannister Road Kansas City, MO 64131 The Central Plains Region includes Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska.
National Archives - Great Lakes Region
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National Archives - Mid-Atlantic Region
Ninth and Market Streets, Room 1350 Philadelphia, PA 19107 The Mid-Atlantic Region includes Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia. |
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National Archives - New England Region
380 Trapelo Road Waltham, MA 02154 The New England Region includes Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
National Archives - Northeast Region
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National Archives - Pacific Northwest Region
6125 Sand Point Way, NE Seattle, WA 98115 The Pacific Northwest Region includes Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.
National Archives - Pacific Sierra Region
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National Archives - Pacific Southwest Region
National Archives - Rocky Mountain Region
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National Archives - Southeast Region
1557 Saint Joseph Avenue East Point, GA 30344 The Southeast Region includes Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.
National Archives - Southwest Region
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Family History Library and Centers
The Family History Library of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, located in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah, houses the largest collection of genealogical records in the world. Its more than 2,500 satellites, located throughout the world, are called Family History Centers. The main Family History Library operates daily, except Sundays, and welcomes its members and the general public. Operating times of the Family History Centers, also open for public use, vary with some facilities open daily and others only a few hours each week. Check local phone directories to call one of the congregations in your area for addresses and ask about operating times. Write to the Family History Library, 35 North West Temple St., Salt Lake City, UT 84150 for a list of Family History Library Centers in your area. |
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One or more censuses has been taken by most states to obtain facts that would assist legislators in predicting and planning for education, defense, and taxation, as well as qualification for statehood. Some states scheduled their enumerations to take place mid-way between the federal census. Those enumerations help family researchers identify children who were born within the five years after the federal census, but who died before the next federal census could be taken. The 1623 census of Virginia is the oldest surviving population schedule. Only Connecticut, Idaho, Kentucky, Montana, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Vermont and West Virginia have not taken a state census. |
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Early state census schedules asked for less information than federal population schedules, however, questions such as "Where did you live prior to moving to Kansas?," "How long have you lived in this state?," and "What military unit did you serve with during the War Between the States?," which do not appear in federal schedules, make them just as valuable to researchers. More modern state censuses contain a more detailed description of their citizens, especially those taken after 1925. |
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Family researchers use state censuses as substitutes for many of the federal census schedules that have been lost or destroyed especially the 1890 census. They also use them to obtain information not contained in federal schedules or other types of records. |
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Despite the value of state census records, researchers have underutilized them because most enumerations have not been indexed and or made as widely available as the federal schedules. Most state census records have been placed in the custody of the state's archives or library. The Family History Library has a large, but incomplete, collection of state censuses. |
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Lainhart, Ann S. State Census Records. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1992. Szucs, Loretto Dennis. "Research in Census Records" in The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy. Rev. ed. Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 1997. Thorndale, William and William Dollarhide. Map Guide to the U.S. Federal Censuses, 1790-1920. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1987. |
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