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The
1840 census was begun on 1 June 1840. The enumeration
was to be completed within nine months but was extended
to eighteen months.
Questions Asked in the 1840 Census
Name of head of household; number of free white males
and females in age categories 0 to 5, 5 to 10, 10 to
15, 15 to 20, 20 to 30, 30 to 40, 40 to 50, 50 to 60,
60 to 70, 70 to 80, 80 to 90, 90 to 100, over 100; number
of slaves and free “colored” persons in
age categories; categories for deaf, dumb, and blind
persons and aliens; town or district; and county of
residence.
Additionally, the 1840 census, asked for the first
time, the ages of revolutionary war pensioners and the
number of individuals engaged in mining, agriculture,
commerce, manufacturing and trade, navigation of the
ocean, navigation of canals, lakes and rivers, learned
professions and engineers; number in school, number
in family over age twenty-one who could not read and
write, and the number of insane.
Research Tips for the 1840 Census
The same research strategies used in the previous census
apply to the 1840. A significant bonus comes from the
question regarding revolutionary war pensioners. A search
of revolutionary war sources (see chapter 9, Research
in Military Records) may provide a wealth of genealogical
information. A refinement of the occupation categories
makes it possible to pursue other occupational sources
and easier to distinguish individuals of the same name
in the ever-growing population. Reading and writing
skills and some indication of the educational level
attained add an interesting and more personal dimension
to a family history. An indication of the “insane”
within a household might point to guardianship or institutional
records.
For a state-by-state listing of census schedules, see
The 1790–1890 Federal Population Censuses: Catalog
of National Archives Microfilm (Washington, D.C.: National
Archives Trust Fund Board, 1993). For boundary changes
and identification of missing census schedules, see
William Thorndale and William Dollarhide, Map Guide
to the U.S. Federal Censuses, 1790–1920.
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The information above is an excerpt from The Source:
A Guidebook of American Genealogy, edited by Loretto
D. Szucs and Sandra H. Luebking, Chapter 5, “Research
in Census Records,” by Loretto D. Szucs (page
113).
Note: Ancestry.com has made a database of AIS Census
Indexes available to site subscribers at: http://www.ancestry.com/search/rectype/census/ais/main.htm
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