LibGuides: Basics of Genealogy: Census Records

Intro to Census Records

Census records are a great source to find your family in a certain place, at a certain time. Almost everyone shows up in census records! The most recent census available is the 1940 census.

Census Tips from Ancestry/HeritageQuest

Accessing Census Records at FLITE

Access census records through:

Tips

There are a lot of ways to get to the census records - try looking under Census Collections. Click on U.S. Censuses and then on the year of the census you are interested in.

Fill in the name of one person and choose a state and maybe a county.

When you find a family that looks promising, check the names of the other family members with the information you've already gathered. Do they seem to match up? Does this seem to be the right family?

Remember to look at the names around the family - these were their neighbors and often other family members.

Other Information About Census Records

How Census Race Categories Have Changed Over Time
"Through 1950, census-takers commonly determined the race of the people they counted. From 1960 on, Americans could choose their own race."
La Raza: Mexicans in the United States Census
In 1930, the United States Census for the first and only time included a “Mexican” category on the race variable. This racial classification appeared in other federal records during the 1930s and was not fully rejected until 1939. In the 1940 census, the “Mexican” race category had disappeared, with enumerators instructed that “Mexicans are to be regarded as white unless definitely of Indian or other nonwhite race.”