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Ancestry Genealogy Article
How To Use The Census In Your Genealogy Research
Debbie Pettitt
You've gone through the preliminaries.
You've collected all your household vital records, interviewed
relatives, gathered additional records from living relatives and
followed-up on some of the leads that were developed. Now,
you're stuck and not sure what to do next in your genealogy
research.
If you've worked your way far enough back, it might be time to
start checking the Census.
But first, you'll want to understand that while the Census
Bureau collects some great genealogical information, it has the
responsibility of confidentiality. As a result, the Decennial
Census of Population and Housing on individuals does not become
available to the public until after 72 years.
That's why you have to have worked your way far enough back in
your research before you'll find the Census helpful.
But here's what you'll really like ... not only will the Census
records help you locate where an acestor lived, after 1840 the
Census collected age, place of birth, occupation, personal
wealth, education, spouse, children, hired hands, and even
immigration information. A gold mine for genealogists.
Copies of the original decennial census forms from 1790 through
1930 are available on microfilm for research at the U.S.
National Archives and Records Administration in Washington, DC
(http://www.archives.gov/), at Archives regional centers, and at
select Federal depository libraries throughout the United
States. In addition, these records are available at various
other libraries and research facilities throughout the United
States.
You can also check with the reference librarian at your local
library and see if they're set up to borrow microfilm through
the National Archives' census microfilm rental program.
There's something else you're really going to like ...
immigration records are also on microfilm at the National
Archives. These records have been collected for all major U.S.
ports since 1820. They include Boston, New York, Philadelphia,
Baltimore and New Orleans. The western ports of San Franciso and
Seattle are also archived, though those records weren't started
until late in the 19th Century.
Here's what these immigration records include: the full name,
age, sex, place of origin, and destination for every passenger
on the ship. The records even include those who were born or
died during the voyage.
And there's more. You can also track down some naturalization
records through the U.S. National Archives and Records
Administration. Naturalization is the process by which a a
person becomes an American citizen. By law, a person can be
naturalized in any "regular" court. The Immigration and
Naturalization Service has records for the entire country
beginning in 1906, but before this time, the procedure will only
be located in the records of the court where it took place.
These records often provide a person's birth date and location,
occupation, immigration year, marital status and spouse
information, witnesses' names and addresses, and more.
For Pre-1906 Naturalizations: Contact the State Archives for the
state where the naturalization occurred to request a search of
state, county, and local courts records. Contact the NARA
regional facility that serves the state where naturalization
occurred to request a search of Federal court records
For Naturalizations After 1906: After 1906, the courts forwarded
copies of naturalizations to the Immigration and Naturalization
Service (INS). Naturalizations from Federal Courts are held in
the NARA's regional facilities for the Federal courts for their
area. Learn more:
http://www.archives.gov/genealogy/naturalization/
Here are some additional resources that you might find helpful
for learning learn more about the Census and how to access all
the incredible information available to genealogy researchers:
USGenWeb Census Project
http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/census/
Censuslinks.com http://www.censuslinks.com/
U.S. Census Bureau's Genealogy Page
http://www.census.gov/genealogy/www/
Census Finder http://www.censusfinder.com/
There's nothing quite as exhilarating as uncovering new
information about your ancestors. If you've reached a point
where you aren't quite sure what to try next in your genealogy
research, The Census might just be your best bet. Even if you
aren't at that point, it's a resource that you should
familiarize yourself with. Sooner or later, it's likely that's
where your research is going to led you.
About the author:
About The Author Debbie Pettitt is the webmaster of Ancestry
Review, an online site dedicated to helping genealogists weave
through all the available Internet genealogy, ancestry and
family tree resources to find those that best suit their needs.
For more information, please visit http://ancestryreview.com
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