Genealogy Boot Camp

Session Two:

Federal Census Records

1790-1930

Federal Census Records

Mandated by the constitution. First Federal Census in 1790. Conducted every 10 years. Personal information open to public after

72 years. 1890 census destroyed in fire.

What Information Might I Find in Census Records?

Names of parents Names of siblings Places of residence Places of Birth Native Language Approx. year of

marriage Month and Year of birth

(1900 census)

Year of Immigration Naturalization Literacy Marital Status Occupations Rent or Own Property Native Language War Veteran

In Class Activity

1930 Census Record Analysis

Who was Recorded in the Census?

1790-1840 Only heads of household are named. Family members, lodgers and slaves are

enumerated but not named.

1850-1930 All enumerated household members (except

slaves) are named. Slaves were enumerated on separate

schedules, but they are generally not named.

1840 Census Record

Age ranges and sex are given for household members, but not names.

Only heads of household are listed by name.

Using Census Records

A Case Study

1930 census is a great place to begin your census research.

Choose a relative who was alive in 1930 and try searching for them.

1930 Search Result for Lorraine Black

Click on the link to view the Original Image.

1930 Census Record

Lorraine D. Black is living with her father, Ralph Black, his wife (presumably her mother) and her grandmother, Sienna E. Black.

Create a Timeline

Create a Pedigree Chart

Lorraine Black

b. abt. 1925 in Illinois

Ralph A. Black

b. abt. 1901 in Rhode Island

m. abt. 1923

Dorothy C.

b. abt. 1903 in Illinois

?

d. prob. bef. 1930

m. prob. bef. 1901

Sienna E.

b. abt. 1861 in Holland

Search 1920 census for Ralph Black who was born in Rhode Island.

1920 Search Result for Ralph Black

1920 Census Record

Ralph A. Black is living with his widowed mother, Mrs. S.E. Black, and his brother, Raymond J. Black.

Mrs. S.E. Black was born in Holland.

Raymond J. was transcribed Ray Morris J. by the indexer.

What Have We Learned?

Lorraine Black

b. abt. 1925 in Illinois

Ralph A. Black

b. abt. 1901 in Rhode Island

m. abt. 1923

Dorothy C.

b. abt. 1903 in Illinois

?

d. prob. bef. 1920

m. prob. bef. 1897

Sienna E.

b. abt. 1861 in Holland

1910 Census

1910 Census Record

Direct Evidence:Married for 28 Years in 1910.

Indirect Evidence:Married about 1882

Ralph A. Black is living with his father, Edward J. Black and his mother Sybretekia(?) E. Family sources confirm this was her “ethnic” name.

Three additional siblings are revealed.

Keep adding new information to your family timeline

What Have We Learned?

Lorraine Black

b. abt. 1925 in Illinois

Ralph A. Black

b. abt. 1901 in Rhode Island

m. abt. 1923

Dorothy C.

b. abt. 1903 in Illinois

Edward Black

b. abt. 1860 in Rhode Island

d. aft. 1910

m. abt. 1882

Sienna E./Sybret??ia

b. abt. 1861 in Holland

?

b. bef. 1844 in Ireland

?

b. bef. 1844 in Ireland

1900 Census Search

Transcription errors can make searching difficult!

1900 Census Record

Same household – next page

Edward Black household

Compare information from previous censuses.

Does the information match?

What Have We Learned?

Lorraine Black

b. abt. 1925 in Illinois

Ralph A. Black

b. abt. 1901 in Rhode Island

m. abt. 1923

Dorothy C.

b. abt. 1903 in Illinois

Edward Black

b. March 1860

d. aft. 1910

m. abt. 1882

Sienna E./Sybret??ia Dekker

b. April 1861

? Black

b. prob. bef. 1844 in Ireland

?

b. prob. bef. 1844 in Ireland

Ary Dekker

b. Jan 1852 in Holland

?

b. prob. bef. 1846

d. prob bef. June 1, 1900

1880 Census

1880 Census Record

More geographic detail is given for Catharine’s birthplace. Terschelling is an island in Friesland, a province in the Netherlands.

Sienna E. is enumerated under her middle name. Or is it really her first name?

One of the children was born in Massachusetts. Might this indicate they immigrated through Boston?

What Have We Learned?

Lorraine Black

b. abt. 1925 in Illinois

Ralph A. Black

b. abt. 1901 in Rhode Island

m. abt. 1923

Dorothy C.

b. abt. 1903 in Illinois

Edward Black

b. March 1860 in Rhode Island

d. aft. 1910

m. abt. 1882

Sienna E./Sybret??ia Dekker

b. April 1861 in Holland

? Black

b. prob. bef. 1844 in Ireland

?

b. prob. bef. 1844 in Ireland

Ary Dekker

b. Jan 1852 in Holland

Catherine

b. abt. 1833 in Terschelling, Friesland, Netherlands

d. bef. June 1, 1900

1880 Census

1880 Census

Note the different birthplaces for John Black’s children. Incorporate this evidence into your timeline.

Edward J. Black is living with his Irish father, John Black, and his presumed mother Jane.

Five siblings are also identified.

What Have We Learned?

Lorraine Black

b. abt. 1925 in Illinois

Ralph A. Black

b. abt. 1901 in Rhode Island

m. abt. 1923

Dorothy C.

b. abt. 1903 in Illinois

Edward Black

b. March 1860 in Rhode Island

d. aft. 1910

m. abt. 1882

Sienna E./Sybret??ia Dekker

b. April 1861 in Holland

? John Black

b. abt. 1813 in Ireland

m. prob. bef. 1847

? Jane

b. abt. 1821 in Ireland

Ary Dekker

b. Jan 1852 in Holland

Catherine

b. abt. 1833 in Terschelling

d. bef. June 1, 1900

Where Can I Find the Census Records?

Subscription Databases – Ancestry.com/Ancestry LE, Heritage Quest, Footnote.com, etc.

Familysearch.org - Free web site sponsored by LDS Church.

Microfilm – Available at large genealogical libraries, National Archives and LDS Family History Centers.

Searching Ancestry for Census Records

Tips and Tricks

This general search screen gives you limited options and searches only a fragment of what’s available on Ancestry.

For best results, search each census year individually.

Select an individual census year to search.

1930 Census Search Options

Narrow your search by entering a birthplace. (Use states or foreign countries)

Only include family members if they were living together in the same household in 1930.

Change the birth year range from 0 to 2 to accommodate for some variance in reported ages.

Exact Match

Results exactly match your search terms. Gives you greater control and accuracy. Allows you to use wildcards ( * and ?)

Soundex Search

Accounts for many (but not all!) spelling variations. Assigns each surname a code based on how it

sounds.

Soundex Results for Karsted(K623)

Ancestry Ranked Search

Does not allow for soundex searching or wildcards. Search results aren’t always very relevant. Give it a try, but don’t count on it always working.

When Exact match is unchecked, Ancestry uses the information you

provide to find potential matches for you.

Census Search Challenges

Use of Initials

Middle Names & Nicknames

1930 Census

1920 Census

Indexing/Transcription Errors

Correct in census. Wrong in index.

Additional Search Challenges

Census Taker Errors “Misspelled” names Americanization of Given Names Changing Surnames Changing County Boundaries

For Hard to Find Relatives

Try alternate spellings. Try phonetic spellings. Try searching for last names without first names, or

vice versa. Try searching by location without any names, but

limit by age, location, and birthplace. Try browsing images by enumeration district. Try searching for your ancestor’s neighbors.

Citing Your Census Record

Genealogy Boot Camp

Session Two:

Federal Census Records

1790-1930

1860 Slave Schedule