1790 United States Census
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Census records are one of the basic building blocks of genealogy. The 1790 Federal Census was the first time a nationwide count was taken in the United States. Conducted between August 2, 1790 and May 1, 1791, this first federal census has valuable information for each household: -Name of the county, parish, township, town, or city in which each family resided -Name of each head of household -Number of free White males aged under 16 years -Number of free White males aged 16 years and upward -Number of free White females -Number of other free persons -Number of slaves -The ages of females and slaves were not recorded.
Because no paper or form was provided to enumerators, the organization of the information varies from enumerator to enumerator. Navigating the originals can sometimes be challenging. Indexes, whether manuscript, printed, or digital, are nowhere near perfect. Because names are easily misread by people unfamiliar with certain localities, indexes can be filled with incorrect names. This situation is only exacerbated in cases where residents do not necessarily speak the same primary language as the census taker. One way to find your missing ancestors is to look for families that lived next to them in previous or succeeding censuses. Search for those families and scan the pages around them. Hidden ancestors may pop right out at you.
Original data: First Census of the United States, Bureau of the Census. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 29. Micropublication M637.
For more information about the 1790 census, visit www.census.gov.
Original data: First Census of the United States, Bureau of the Census. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 29. Micropublication M637.
