United States Census State Censuses

Additional information may be found on the United States Census Portal page.

Availability
Location of records--State census records may be found at State Archives, State Historical Societies, State Libraries, the Family History Library and on the Internet. The state census records at the Family History Library are located with the United States and Canada films on the 2nd floor of the library. They are not included with the federal census records.

Historical Background
State censuses were often taken in the years between the federal censuses, such as 1875 or 1892. For some states these exist from about 1825 to 1925. They are found in state archives, and copies of most are on microfilm at the Family History Library. The library's most complete collections of state censuses are for Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin.

They are usually listed in the Locality Search of the Family History Library Catalog under [STATE] - CENSUS RECORDS.

Content

 * Lainhart, Ann S. State Census Records. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1992. (FHL book X2Lai;) State-by-state list of censuses, and selected census substitutes. Describes dates, coverage, content, indexes and availability.
 * Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Family History Library, US/Canada Reference Staff, State Census Register, 3 vols. (Salt Lake City: Family History Library, 2005). FHL Ref. book 973 X23us.

Value
State census records may help fill in the gaps in the years between the federal censuses. State census records may have asked different or unusual questions which may give additional information on the family.

Indexes
Indexes for state census records vary. You may find the following types of indexes:
 * No index                       Surname index                        Heads of house and strays index                        Every name index                        Soundex or Miracode index                        Reconstructed index                        Town, county, or state index                        Multi-volume or multi-year indexes

Bibliographic Citation

 * Szucs, Loretto Dennis and Wright, Matthew. Finding Answers in U.S. Census Records. (Orem, Utah: 2001 Ancestry) FHL Book 973 X27s.