Finding Your Ancestors Online
in U.S. Census Records
Kip Sperry
Introduction to United States Census Records
United States census population schedules are one of the most useful sources of genealogical
data for the study of families. When used with cemetery, church, land, military, probate, vital
records, and others, census records help to identify historical families. The U.S. population is
enumerated every ten years and the results are used to allocate Congressional seats.
Information Found in Census Records
 1790 – 1840
 1850 – 1940
 1890 census schedules—only fragments survived a fire in 1921 in Washington, DC
 1890 Union Veterans Schedules (veterans and widows of soldiers)
Selected Internet Sites
Ancestor Search—U.S. Census
www.searchforancestors.com/records/census.html
Ancestry.com
www.ancestry.com
Availability of Census Records
www.census.gov/prod/2000pubs/cff-2.pdf
Census Finder
www.censusfinder.com
Census Links
http://censuslinks.com
Census Online
www.census-online.com/links
CensusRecords.net
www.censusrecords.net
censussearch.com
www.censussearch.com
Census Tutorial—BYU
http://census.byu.edu
Cyndi’s List—U.S. Census
www.cyndislist.com/census.htm
FamilySearch
www.familysearch.org
FamilySearch Research Wiki
https://wiki.familysearch.org/en/Main_Page
fold3.com
www.fold3.com
Genealogy.com—U.S. Census
www.genealogy.com
HeritageQuest Online
www.heritagequestonline.com
Historical Census Browser, 1790–1960
http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu
Internet Archive
http://archive.org
Morse, Stephen P.
www.stevemorse.org
National Archives—Census Records
www.archives.gov/research/census
RootsWeb.com
www.rootsweb.ancestry.com
United States Census Bureau
www.census.gov
U.S. Census Forms
www.ancestry.com/charts/census.aspx
USGenWeb Project
www.usgenweb.org
World Vital Records
www.worldvitalrecords.com
Indexes to U. S. Census Records from 1790 to 1940
Soundex Index (Soundex Coding) for Surnames, 1880, 1900 to 1930
Non-population Census Schedules
Agriculture Schedules, 1840–1910
Manufacturers Schedules, 1810–1880
Mortality Schedules, 1850, 1860, 1870, 1880 (1885)
Social Statistics and Others
Research Tips and Strategies for Finding Your Ancestors in U.S. Census Records
Limitations and Cautions when Using Census Records
Census Examples
“Follow Your Family Using Census Records” (Ancestry.com). See Google.com.
“10 Census Questions that Lead to More Answers” (Ancestry.com). See Google.com.
State and Local Census Records
Census Substitutes
City directories, church census, school census, tax lists, voters lists, and others
Other Census Records—Native American, etc.
Repositories of U.S. Census Records
United States Census Records: Selected Bibliography
Dilts, G. David. “Censuses and Tax Lists.” In Printed Sources: A Guide to Published
Genealogical Records. Salt Lake City: Ancestry, 1998, pp. 300–352.
Dollarhide, William and William Thorndale. Map Guide to the U.S. Federal Census, 1790–
1920. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1992.
Eichholz, Alice, ed. Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources. 3rd ed. Provo,
UT: Ancestry, 2004.
The Handybook for Genealogists. 11th ed. Logan, UT: Everton Publishers, 2006.
Hinckley, Kathleen W. Your Guide to the Federal Census for Genealogists, Researchers, and
Family Historians. Cincinnati: Betterway Books, 2002.
Kemp, Thomas Jay. The American Census Handbook. Wilmington, DE: Scholarly, 2001.
Lainhart, Ann S. State Census Records. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1992.
Shelley, M. H. Ward Maps of United States Cities: A Selective Checklist of Pre-1900 Maps in
the Library of Congress. Washington, DC: Library of Congress, 1975.
Sperry, Kip. “State and Local Censuses Supplement Federal Census Schedules.” Ancestry.
Szucs, Loretto Dennis and Matthew Wright. “Census Records.” In The Source: A Guidebook
to American Genealogy. 3rd ed. Provo, UT: Ancestry, 2006, 157–218.
Szucs, Loretto Dennis and Matthew Wright. Finding Answers in U.S. Census Records. Orem,
UT: Ancestry, 2001.