FEDERAL
CENSUSES
Federal censuses
originated as a head count for representation in Congress. The
earliest is a 1790 in New England, but Wisconsin wasn't far
behind. Just remember that Wisconsin as a state didn't exist
until 1848, so you'll be checking Wisconsin Territory and Michigan
Territory prior to 1848. The earlier the census, the more basic
the information. (The 1790 pretty much just counted heads!) By
1860, they started getting interesting; by 1880, they were
soundexed and really getting interesting; and by 1900-1930, you
could find out how long a couple were married, how many children
the wife had, how long in the country if they immigrated, year of
arrival/naturalization, and birthplace of the parents. Censuses
are definitely the place to start! I call them "cluster
genealogy"--if you find one, you'll find the rest of the family
nearby. Don't forget to notice who's living "down the block" as
these are possible future "kin-in-law". Every federal archive
(all 13!) has a complete collection of all the censuses for every
state! So, if you're like me, you can research Wisconsin federal
censuses for free, even though I'm 1300 miles away! If you're not
sure where you're nearest Federal Archive is, check out the
"LINKS" on the index/first page of this web site.
Indexed-- 1820 and
1830 (as Michigan Territory), 1840, 1850. 1860, and 1870
Soundexed*--
1880, 1900, 1920 and 1930
Unindexed--
1910
Mortality
schedules-- 1850, 1860, 1870, and 1880
Union
Veterans Schedules--1890
STATE
CENSUSES
We're fortunate
that Wisconsin also took a state census--typically on the "5's"
(i.e. 1855, 1865, 1875, 1885, 1895, 1905). This is great as these
censuses help fill in the twenty year gap between 1880 and the
1900 census, left by the destruction of the 1890 federal census.
The bad news is the state didn't ask the detailed questions that
the federal did. Wisconsin basically asked for the head of the
household and how many were living there, male or female. It does
still help us decide the time frame that our families lived here
and also, gives us a clue as to the ancestor's death or a marriage
in the family. All of these censuses are available at the State
Historical Library, some are also at the Area Regional Libraries,
and are also available through the LDS (Mormon) Family History
Center nearest you.
*Soundex" was a WPA
project that is the neatest thing since sliced bread! A surname
like Czaplewski could be misspelled more often than not! So, any
name that sounded like it to the ear, was grouped together, and
then arranged by first name. The code for Czaplewski is C142--C
because it's the first letter, and then the next 3 consonants are
given numerical values--the vowels aren't used at all. Anyplace
that has the census films will also have a chart for soundex. If
you have trouble finding your soundex names, e-mail me and I can
help. (There's also a link in the "LINKS" section on the first
page of this site that can assist you, too.)
NEW!!!
1905 STATE CENSUS
BLANK
CENSUS FORMS
SETTLING OF THE UNITED STATES, using census
data--pretty cool map!
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NOTE: Future
projects that we hope to make available through this website
will include 1880 - 1930 Federal Census indexes -- do check
back.
If you have access
to any of the STATE CENSUSES and would like to contribute an
index of them, just let me know! |
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