CensusTools

You have diligently recorded (in a CensusTools spreadsheet of course!) all of the available information from the U.S. federal censuses for your ancestors. You still have some gaps of course. Some of the federal records you were counting on were unreadable. And there's that 2g-grandfather who somehow didn't get enumerated in 1850...just as everyone in a family was finally listed by name. You'd love to be able to pinpoint when your paternal g-grandfather and his family moved from New York to Iowa, but the 10 year gaps between federal census returns doesn't narrow it down much for you. What's a researcher to do?

Get familiar with state census records! My own experience with state census records has been spotty because few of my ancestors were considerate enough to live in states like New York or Kansas with a long history of conducting regularly scheduled censuses! After extensive research to develop my various state census spreadsheets, I hope to acquaint you with the types of data that can be found and some online sources for additional information.

State census records can be just as informative as their federal counterparts. The difference is that they are not as widely available and they may take some extra effort to find. Since we all now have ready access to the format of the Kansas, Massachusetts, New York and Wisconsin state census years (see my new spreadsheets!), let's use those as examples of the breadth of information available.

The first thing we might notice about the records of New York and Kansas (and Iowa when I release it) is that they have census data as recent as 1925! One state, Florida, has even released census data from 1945. Since we aren't going to get a look at the 1930 federal census for another year, these post-1920 records can be a treasure trove. In the 1925 Kansas census each person in a family was enumerated. In addition to the standard demographic info (age, sex, color etc.), we find the birthplace and from where each person came to Kansas. Surviving war veterans had military information recorded including state in which enlisted, regiment, command and arm of service. Immigrants were asked their year of immigration and year of naturalization.

New York in 1925 wasn't as comprehensive in questions asked but there are other important details. The census header is quite detailed in terms of location and each family's address was recorded. New York also recorded how many years a person has been in the U.S., as well as the date and place of naturalization. Lucky researchers of Iowa ancestors can consult the 1925 state census and find the maiden name of a person's mother and the location of a parent's marriage!

Just as it can be handy to get access to census records more recent than the 1920 federal enumeration, there are many other examples of state census returns filling in annoying gaps and providing information not requested in the federal census. Several states for example conducted censuses in 1885 and 1895 which can help compensate for the information lost from the destruction of the 1890 federal records. Other examples include the 1825-1845 New York census which recorded births and deaths in the preceeding year by sex, the 1855 New York census question which asked how long each person had lived in the city or town, and the 1885 Iowa census record of township, range and section land information. The 1865 Massachusetts census recorded whether a person was a naturalized voter. For an immigrant ancestor, a check in that column could help narrow the search for a naturalization record.

In summary, if you are fortunate enough to be researching ancestors in states with an extensive census history, you have the opportunity to create a very detailed timeline using federal and state census records. This kind of analysis can answer many nagging questions and tie up a lot of loose ends in your research.

So where can we get a look at state census records? That of course varies by state. No matter what state you are researching though, it will take more time and effort to get access to state returns. Even at the large San Diego FHC where I do all of my research, there are very few state films on hand. Since if you are reading this you have access to a computer, I recommend starting your search for state census records online. At the LDS Family Search website, simply enter the state and get the film number for the county and year you need. Then of course you can order the film from your local FHC. There are now thousands of websites which provide census extracts from federal and state records. My preferred place to start looking for a specific year and state is Census-online, where you will find almost 6,000 links arranged by state. Another handy jumping off point is Census Links, which also provides thousands of links to state sources.