Back to Sources PageIn the United States, censuses have been conducted every ten years, beginning in 1790, for the purpose of apportioning seats in the US House of Representatives according to population counts. Census records were never meant for genealogical purposes although they can provide information to be found nowhere else.
Enumerators and Enumeration Districts
The Federal Government hired men to be Census Enumerator's. The Enumerator actually went door to door to get census information on families. The Enumerator was given a map of a route to follow by which he should locate and enumerate all persons within his area, and not overlap other Enumerators. His boundaries usually followed county boundaries and existing divisions within counties such as districts, precincts, wards, or townships. In the 1880 and subsequent censuses, states were divided into large Supervisor's Districts, usually consisting of several counties in rural areas or an entire city. The Supervisor's Districts were subdivided into about 200 Enumeration Districts, which were supposed to be of a size easily enumerated by one man in a few weeks, usually between 250 and 500 families. The Enumerators reported to the Supervisor.
Census Schedules
The Enumerator was given forms called Schedules, of which there were several types used in different censuses. Population Schedules are the most well known, but there were also Slaves Schedules in those states with slaves in 1860 and 1870, plus Mortality Schedules, which were supposed to list all persons who had died in the year prior to the census. Each Schedule contained columns for information the Enumerator obtained as he went from home to home.
Official Census Date
The enumeration began on the Official Census Date, which varied from census to census. All information on people was supposed to be as of that date, regardless of whether the Enumerator reached that family several weeks or even months after that date. Thus children born after the date were not to be included and people who died after the date were. People who moved during the time of enumeration were supposed to be enumerated where they were on the official date.
Census Records Before 1850
Censuses prior to 1850 (1790 - 1840) only listed the name of the head of household and then used columns of age and gender groups for the other persons in that household. In the chapter "Censuses of 1790 - 1840," the age and gender categories will be shown and some educated guesses made as to whom the numbers in these categories represent. Starting with the 1850 census, every person in each household was listed separately, with their age, sex, color, occupation, and their place of birth.
Slave Schedules
Prior to 1850, slaves were listed in the same schedules as their owners with no names and very little other information given. In 1850 and 1860 different schedules called Slave Schedules were taken where slaves were enumerated as belonging to a certain owner. No names were given, just age, gender, and race (which was either black or mulatto). After Emancipation, starting with the 1870 census, blacks are listed just like everyone else in the Population Schedules. In the chapters for Census Records for 1850 and 1860, any slaves found in the Slave Schedules are shown following their owners in the Population Schedules.
Privacy Laws
Privacy laws prohibit census records from being released sooner than 72 years after the actual census. Thus the most recent census records released by the federal government are those from 1920 which were released in 1992. The 1930 census records will not be released until 2002.
Damage and Destruction of Census Records Although federal law mandated that four copies of all census records be kept, in some cases no copies exist today. In the War of 1812, for example, the 1790 census for Virginia was destroyed when British troops burned some buildings in Washington, DC. The 1890 census for the entire United States was over 99% destroyed in a fire. With censuses before 1850, some of the records which exist today are the copies of the original record taken by the Enumerator. Of course, everything was copied by hand, and the person who copied what the Enumerator originally wrote had to be able to read the Enumerator's handwriting. Sometimes, the person who did the copying made mistakes. Attempts have been made to "reconstruct" destroyed census records using tax lists, although these reconstructions rarely have as much information as census records. Not all census records have survived intact; many have pages which have faded from age, or gotten wet causing the ink to smear, or been torn.
Microfilming
In the early 1900s, the United States began to microfilm all the census records which still existed at that time. Older census records were beginning to deteriorate simply from old age. Also, people doing family research were allowed to go to Washington, D.C. and handle the actual census records, wearing them out. Once the records were microfilmed, copies of the microfilm were sold to libraries throughout the United States, thus making them available to many more people. The National Archives still has the actual paper census records for censuses before 1910, although private citizens are no longer allowed to handle them. Unfortunately, some of photography done in the microfilming process was nothing short of shoddy, and where the original records are quite readable, the microfilm is not. The paper copies of the 1910 and 1920 Census records were destroyed after they were microfilmed to save the expense of preserving and and storing them. Obviously, no one at National Archives bothered to check the quality of the microfilm before the originals were destroyed because large portions of the 1910 Census microfilm and a few portions of the 1920 Census microfilm are difficult or impossible to read, simply due to poor photography.
The Enumeration Process
The Enumerator listed first the head of the household, usually the father, followed by his wife, his children, and lastly people not of his immediate family living under the same roof. Because of high infant mortality rates, many people did not name a child until it was a year or so old, at the time of baptism.
Dwelling Numbers / Family Numbers
Every census from 1850 through 1920 has both Dwelling Numbers and Family Numbers for each family. The Enumerator was supposed to number each dwelling in the order he visited it. The Family Numbers usually jibe close to the Dwelling Numbers; they were used when different families lived in the same dwelling. For the 1910 and 1920 Censuses, the names of roads and streets were often given, and for people living in large towns or cities, street addresses were given. Thus census records are not in any type of alphabetical order, only the order in which the Enumerator visited families. While this makes finding a particular family more difficult, it is actually much better for the genealogist, because a person's neighbors were very likely related. Families with Dwelling and Family Numbers which are sequential or close together lived very close to one another.
Census Index Books
Every state has Census Index Books for every census which it took part in, up through the 1870 Census. Certain states have indexes for censuses beyond 1870. These indexes are in book form, and are located in the same libraries as the census records on microfilm. Each index is arranged alphabetically by last name, and it tells you what county a person was in, and within that county on what page they can be found.
Who is Listed in the Census Index Books
A few Census Index Books list every person in the census, but these are the exceptions, not the rule. Usually, the people listed in the Census Index Books were the heads of households, unless there were people of more than one surname in the household. Thus if you are looking for a person who would have been a child when a particular census was taken, you actually need to look for that person's father in the Census Index Book. If a child was living with adults with a different last name (a step-child for example), that child would be listed as well. Sometimes adults lived with families with different last names as boarders or farm help, and they would also be listed. This can sometimes be confusing since related families with the same last name often lived in the same house.
Limitations of Census Index Books
Most of the limitations in Census Index Books are just the results of limitations in the Census records themselves, discussed below. However, some mistakes in the books are human error on the part of the people who compiled the books. Sometimes they did not index people whose names are very easy to read in the census records. Sometimes, they are off on their page numbers. Thus the census index books are a good place to start, but should not be trusted entirely. The best idea is to look through a county or section of a county where you believe the family was and see things with your own eyes.
Soundex - Introduction
For censuses from 1880 to 1920, if you can not find people in the counties where you think they should be, a system called Soundex has been used to index people. In Soundexing, a surname is given a code according to the sound of the name. The Soundex Code for Bushart B263. One of the big advantages of Soundex is that it has a large tolerance for spelling variations in names which sound either exactly alike or closely alike. The Soundex Code for Bushart is B263, and this code also works for Busshart, Busheart, Buzzard, etc. This tolerance for spelling variations can be handy, given the spelling variations that are often found in old records. I discuss Spelling Variations in more detail below.
Using the Soundex Microfilm
Once the people in a state are grouped by Soundex code, the people within that code are alphabetized by first name. The Soundex is then placed on microfilm, arranged by state and Soundex code. Usually, you can find a person very quickly in the Soundex microfilm. The Soundex tells you exactly where to find that person in the census records. Using the information given in the Soundex microfilm, you can usually locate someone in the census records very quickly. As with the Census Index Books, the persons on the Soundex microfilm are mostly heads of households, unless there were people living in a household with a different last name than the head.
Soundex Disadvantages
As with the Census Index Books, most of the limitations of the Soundex are the result of limitations in the actual census records, discussed below. For example, if a person was missed in the actual census, of course they will not be in the Soundex. Also, if the Enumerator really mispelled a name badly, or the person creating the Soundex had difficulty interpreting the records, a name could be assigned the wrong Soundex code. The people who made the Soundexes also missed a few people. The 1880 Soundex is limited in that only families with children 10 years old or younger were Soundexed; the 1900, 1910, and 1920 Soundexes listed every family. The biggest disadvantage of Soundex is that very few libraries have Soundex microfilm on hand, so you have to send way for it from the American Genealogical Lending Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. This costs $3.75 per roll of microfilm and takes two or three weeks to arrive. When you are looking for many people with many different last names who could possibly be in two or three different states the cost can become prohibitive.
Page Numbers
Page numbers can be bewildering in Census records. There can be as many as three different page numbers on a single page of census records. There usually is a number that has been stamped (or occasionally handwritten) in the upper right corner of the page, and I that is the number have used in the following census records.
Spelling Variations in Surnames
Most people have the notion that their ancestors long ago spelled their last name the same way it is spelled today, although that is often not the case. Remember that in the early 1800s, there were few public schools and the great majority of people in America were illiterate. People spelled their names various ways if they could spell it at all. Two brothers might have moved to different parts of the country and spell the surname two different ways, and thus the two brothers might have dsecendants today who spell the name differently and for that reason alone believe that they are unrelated. Often, how your ancestor spelled the name is less important than how the Census Enumerator or the County Clerk spelled the name. Many Enumerators could hardly spell at all and in cases where the head of the household could not spell his own name, or the Enumerator did not bother to ask, he would just make a guess as to the spelling. Soundex Codes come in handy because they find most spelling variations of names that sound alike. Most records, including Census Index Books, are not arranged by Soundex code, so you often have to think about all the various ways the name might be spelled.
Handwriting
Handwriting can be a problem. Some census records are in beautiful, easy to read script, where others are in horribly messy handwriting, with blots of ink obscuring some information. Also, handwriting styles were sometimes different then they are today. For example, "Ross" might look like "Rop" because double-s's were made that way. In certain censuses, particularly 1860 and 1870, lazy Enumerators used intials for people's given names rather than writing them out. Sometimes telling the capital letters apart is difficult. Some letters which look alike in cursive are:
Jump to Census Abbreviations
A and M
M and W
A and H
M and V
L and S
F and T
Remember, the interpretation of the Enumerator's handwriting greatly affects the way a name is indexed in Census Index Books or the way the name is Soundexed for Soundex microfilm.
Census Limitations
Some of the limitations of census records have been discusseed above, such as poor handwriting and spelling, damaged and destroyed census records, and poor quality microfilm. There were other types of mistakes in the census, however. The Enumerators were not always the most professional, trustworthy, diligent, or literate of men. Many were lazy, or were drunks. The Enumerator may have missed entire families or members of families. There are a few instances of this, but compared to the task of taking a census of the United States, very few people were missed. It is simply frustrating when the missed people are the ones you are looking for! Often, other records, such as county level deed or tax records can prove that a person was in a particular place, even though they were missed in the census. Enumerators missed many people, either because they lived far out in the country, or they were not home when the Enumerator came by, or they were in the process of moving from one place to another. Often people are enumerated twice, either because they moved during enumeration and were enumerated in both places, or an Enumerator strayed from his route, sometimes into another county. Sometimes, a family was so large that a child or two was missed. If a person was away when the Enumerator came by, he asked a neighbor or a child of the family, accounting for many of the errors in information given. Sometimes people did not truly know certain information, such as where their parents were born, but told the enumerator what they thought they knew. And finally, people often lied to the Enumerator, especially about age. Some of the mistakes made by the enumerators were just plain stupid, such as lising a persons relationship to the head of the household as "daughter" and then listing that persons sex as "male." Despite all these problems, census records give information about families not to be found anywhere else, such as familial relationships. One of the most important aspects of census records is that they show where a person was at a given time so that local records may then be researched in that time period.
Given Names
In regards to given names, the same person might be enumerated under different names in different censuses. Often the same person might be listed by their first name one census, their middle name in another, and their nickname in another. For example, a boy might be named Jimmie in the census as a child but James as an adult. Girls sometimes had two or even three middle names, sometimes using their maiden name as a middle name after marrying. Thus Margaret Rebecca might be Margaret in one census and Rebecca in another. Sometimes a middle initial is given in one census and then the name represented by that initial given in the another. Thus Thomas W. might be listed as William T. 10 years later.
The following is a list of abbreviations for men's first names often used by enumerator's in the census records:
Alex Alexander Jas James And Andrew Jno or Jn John Ar Archibald Jos Joseph Benj Benjamin Natl Nathaniel Chas Charles Robt Robert Ed Edward Saml Samuel Ez Ezekiel Thos Thomas Geo George Wm William
The following is a list of women's nicknames, many of which are used as names in their own right today. Some are well known by people today, and some are not so well known, at least not to me. Often girls and young women went by their nicknames, but used their proper name when older.
Ann Nancy Dorothy Dolly Elizabeth Eliza, Ella, Beth, Betty, Betsy, Liz Lucretia Lucy Margaret Marge, Meg, Maggie, Margie, Peg, Peggy Martha Mattie Mary Molly, Polly Rebecca Becky Sarah Sally, Sarry Virginia Jenny (also from Jennifer)
Often, it is difficult to determine whether a person is not in the census because they were missed, or you are not looking in the right place, or they died. When cemetery records, will records, or other records are lacking, sometimes you must assume a person died when they are no longer in the census. A child listed as 3 years old in one census should still be with his or her parents in the next census, 10 years later. If not, that child probably died during the ten years between censuses. A child who did not die before age 10 should always be found in a least one census with his or parents. Some children of course married before they turned 20, so they may only be listed with their parents one time in the census records. Since the 1890 census is gone, we don't get to see many daughters listed with their maiden name since were born soon after the 1880 Census and married before the 1900 Census. Sometimes the census provides other clues that a person died. The person's spouse may be listed as widowed. The person's children may be living with relatives. The person's spouse may be married to someone else, which before 1900 signified the death of the person, rather than divorce, the great majority of the time. The Enumerators sometimes listed illnesses a person was afflicted with, which probably killed the person shortly after the census was taken. Lastly, often people were just very old, and it would be very surprising for someone who was 83 in the 1880 Census to be found in the 1900 Census, 103 years old.
The Hunt for the Bushart Family
This section deals with the effort to find the Bushart family in the census records.
The Bushart name can be found in early census records of North Carolina as Bussard, Boshard, Bushard, and Buzzard. After moving to Tennesee, and later to Kentucky, MIssouri, and Arkansas, the name "stabilized" to the Bushart spelling, although it was ocassionally spelled Busshart, Bussheart, or Busheart. Due to mistakes in interpreting the records, the name was put in the index books as Burhart or Buchart sometimes. When you begin looking for all of the different surnames of the Bushart women after they married, the problems can multiply rapidly.
Since the 1890 census is gone, we don't get to see many Bushart children listed with their parents in their first census. A couple of Bushart daughters were born soon after the 1880 Census and married before the 1900 Census, so they are never seen in the existing records with the Bushart name.
Most people tend to do family research working backwards through time, finding an ancestor, and then trying to find that ancestor's parents. This is exactly how I started on the Bushart line, working back as far as I could go, to John Bushart, who first appears in North Carolina records in the 1760s. Then, I decided to work forward through time, and try and find as many descendants of John Bushart as possible. There is a big difference in working forwards through time as opposed to working backwards. When you work backwards, you have a person in a particular location and a particular time, and you try and discover where that person or his or her parents came from. You often have clues, such as when the Census Enumerators wrote the state in which a person was born and the states in which his or her father and mother were born. In working forwards through time, you try to discover where a person went, and often you have no clues. Females often did not go anywhere, they simply married and were listed under their husband's last name. Thus, for a forward search in which you are trying to find the families of female relatives, marriage records become crucial. Things can be become very confusing when the female you are looking for married more than once.
In my search for the Busharts, all of the Census Index Books have been consulted, and I have come to the fairly reasonable conclusion that through the 1870 Census, the Bushart family had lived only in North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri, and Arkansas. I searched the 1880 Soundex for the Bushart name in Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri, and Arkansas (none found in Missouri). I found some people with the Bushart name (or spelling variations of it) who I am fairly sure are not from my Bushart line (most of these being recent immigrants from Germany or Switzerland). I searched the 1900 Soundex for Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas, Missouri, and Illinois (none found in Missouri or Illinois). For 1910, I searched the Soundex for Tennessee, Arkansas, and Kentucky. Lastly, for the 1920 Census, I decided to cast a large net and find any Busharts who might have moved away from Kentucky, Tennessee or Arkansas, so in addition to those states, I looked for the Bushart name in the 1920 Soundex for Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. Outside of Tennessee, Kentucky, or Arkansas, the only related Bushart family I found in 1920 was that of Ernest Snow Bushart, living in St. Louis, Missouri.
I have also used the Soundex to try to find some of the families of the Bushart females, with varying degrees of success. If I do not locate them in the state I think they were in, then I usually give up the search, since I can not afford the cost of ordering Soundexes for every possible state to which they may have moved. Someday, I will get out to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah, where I can look at the Soundex for all the states for free, and then I may locate some of these families. Even though the families of Bushart males were located only in Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas, and Missouri in 1920, there were families of Bushart females in Oklahoma and Texas.
***Gender Column ***Color/Race Column
M Male W White
F Female B Black
M Mulatto
***Occupation Column
Carp Carpenter
Dom Servant Domestic Servant
Frm Lab Farm Laborer
Home At Home
House House Keeper
RR Works on Railroad
School At School
[Women were usually either not listed as having an occupation, or listed as house
keepers. Children not old enough to work on the farm were listed without any
occupation, or listed as "At School" or "At Home" when the enumerator came by.]
***Birthplace Columns
The standard two letter postal abbreviations for the United States have been used
in these columns:
AL Alabama KY Kentucky ND North Dakota
AK Alaska LA Louisiana OH Ohio
AZ Arizona ME Maine OK Oklahoma
AR Arkansas MD Maryland OR Oregon
CA California MA Massachusetts PA Pennsylvania
CO Colorado MI Michigan RI Rhode Island
CT Connecticut MN Minnesota SC South Carolina
DE Delaware MS Mississippi SD South Dakota
DC District of Columbia MO Missouri TN Tennessee
FL Florida MT Montana TX Texas
GA Georgia NE Nebraska UT Utah
HI Hawaii NV Nevada VT Vermont
ID Idaho NH New Hampshire VA Virginia
IL Illinois NJ New Jersey WA Washington
IN Indiana NM New Mexico WV West Virginia
IA Iowa NY New York WI Wisconsin
KS Kansas NC North Carolina WY Wyoming
In addition, the following abbreviations are also used for place of birth:
EN England
GE Germany
IR Ireland
SL Scotland
US United States, in a few censuses, the enumerator wrote this
un Unknown, used when the enumerator actually wrote this
-- Unknown, when the enumerator left this blank for a person.
***Relationship to Household Head Column
A Aunt GD Grandaughter SF Stepfather
Bd Boarder GS Grandson Si Sister
Br Brother H Head SL Son-in-Law
BL Brother-in-Law M Mother SM Stepmother
Co Cousin ML Mother-in-Law SR Stepsister
D Daughter Ne Nephew SS Stepson
DL Daughter-in-Law Ni Niece Sv Servant
F Father S Son SW Sister-in-Law
FL Father-in-Law SB Stepbrother U Uncle
GF Grandfather SD Stepdaughter W Wife
GM Grandmother
[Note that persons listed as Servants or Boarders were often relatives.]
***Marital Status Column
D Divorced
M Married
S Single
W Widowed
[Sometimes, a number was included with the the "M" for Married, indicating
what number marriage it was for both the head and his wife.]
***Miscellaneous Column
A Attended School in the last year
d&d Deaf & Dumb
N Can not read or write
R Can not read
W Can not write
In addition, a quesion mark in brackets [?] is used when the interpretation of
a word is in doubt. Asterisks * are used for notes which follow that particular
census record. Dashes -- are used where the enumerator left columns blank.
HEADING
The headings in the Census Schedules begin with a two letter state abbreviation,
followed by the county (or parish in Louisiana), town or district within that county,
roll of microfilm on which the information is found, and the page number
(see notes on Page Numbers above). Certain censuses also list the post office or the
Supervisor's District and Enumeration District.
Back to the top