My absolute favorite things are census. Wait, maybe it's newspapers. hmmm maybe it's really Wills and Estates. Anyway - Census records are full of information while still lacking on things you need to know because they are done so far apart.
Many of you know that a Census was taken every Ten years. Some of you know that states at certain time periods also took a census of their population in between those time periods as well. Usually around times like 1866 or 1867, 1878 etc. Many states did these. Go to Google and type in the state and census year, and see what comes up [example "Alabama State Census Years"]. Then go see if there is one available for the person you are looking for. Another thing to know is that some of these federal census have alternate documents. For example there are some who have "agricultural census". There are many pieces of information on some that can tell you about the lives of those who were in that household so make sure you examine each and every column, not just name date and place of birth. Fill in the blanks between empty years. To do this, check out the city directories for the years between a census for your head of household. If a male child comes of age in the same place, look to see if they are in the city directory. Most of these are for the early to mid 1900s, but you can get lucky sometimes with older cities who have a long history such as New York City. The city directories can tell you if they are married, if the street was renumbered at some point, what occupation they had (and you can track them pretty easy that way), and what family lived near them. Census is a wealth of information about your family. I probably don't have to tell you about that. If you have some old research though, go back and take a fresh look and see if you missed any information that now makes more sense. Enjoy your Adventures!
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Help Me Keep this Website Free. Donate from just $1 to any amount of your choice!
AuthorMichele is an obsessed mother of 4 residing in North Alabama. Hobbies include long walks in the woods, on the beach and in strange cemeteries and libraries. Genealogy friends need only apply. Categories
All
|