Several US Federal census records from 1790-1890 are missing or damaged due to fires and war. The 1790 Virginia census was reconstructed and some Pennsylvania counties are missing. Kentucky records are found in Virginia censuses from 1790-1792. Separate slave schedules were recorded in 1850-1860 without names. Most 1890 records were destroyed by a fire. The Alderman Library has microfilm records and indexes that can help access remaining census information.

1. Census Tips
1790: No Federal census schedules are known
to exist for Delaware, Georgia, Kentucky,
New Jersey, Tennessee, and Virginia;
apparently they were destroyed during the
British attack on Washington during the War
of 1812. The 1790 schedules for Virginia that
appear on the National Archives and Records
Administration microfilms were reconstructed
from state enumerations. Some counties in
Pennsylvania are also missing.
1790 through 1860: Kentucky became a state
in 1792, so its 1790 census information is
included in Virginia’s census. West Virginia
did not separate from Virginia until after the
1860 census. You will find records for West
Virginia locations in the Virginia census
through 1860.
1800: Virginia census schedules for 1800
cannot be located, and are presumed
destroyed.
1850 & 1860: Separate censuses of the slave
population were taken in these years, although
the names of enslaved individuals were not
generally recorded.
1890: Most of the 1890 population schedules
were badly damaged by a fire in the
Commerce Department Building in January
1921. Only a very few records survive.
For more information, contact the Alderman
Library Information Desk, 434-924-3516 or
434-924-3021.
Version 2007b- 10/9/2008 (jlc)
Census Bibliography
Dollarhide, William. The census book: a
genealogist's guide to federal census facts,
schedules and indexes: with master extraction
forms for federal census schedules, 17901930. Bountiful, Utah : Heritage Quest,
c2000. (Alderman Library HA214 .D65 2000)
Federal Population and Mortality Census
Schedules, 1790-1910, in the National
Archives and the States: Outline of a Lecture
on Their Availability, Content and Use.
Special List 24. National Archives and
Records Service, rev. 1986. (Alderman
Government Information Reading Room Reference AE 1.115:24)
Greene, Evarts B. & Virginia D. Harrington.
American Population Before the Federal
Census of 1790. Baltimore: Genealogical
Publishing Co., Inc., reprint 1993. (Alderman
Library Reference Room HB3505 .G7 1932)
Greenwood, Val D. The Researcher's Guide
to American Genealogy. 2d ed. Baltimore:
Genealogical Publishing Company, Inc.,
1990. (Alderman Library Reference Room
CS47 .G73 1990)
Hinckley, Kathleen W. Your Guide to The
Federal Census: For Genealogists,
Researchers and Family Historians.
Betterway Books, 2002. (Alderman Library
HA37 .U6 H556 2002)
Lainhart, Ann S. State Census Records.
Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing
Company, Inc., 1992. (Alderman Library
Reference Room HA215 .L25 1992)
U.S. CENSUS RESOURCES
A GUIDE FOR GENEALOGISTS AND
LOCAL HISTORIANS

2. What is the Federal
Census?
The United States Constitution mandates that a
census of all people in the U.S. be taken at least
every ten years. The specific purpose of the
census is to provide information to allocate
seats in the U.S. House of Representatives as
the population of the country moves and
changes. However, the census gathers much
more information than numbers alone, and that
makes it invaluable for genealogical and local
history research.
A U.S. Federal Population Census has been
performed every ten years starting in 1790.
Each time the census was taken, different
questions were asked, so some censuses have
more valuable genealogical information than
others.
From 1790 through 1840, the census only
required the name of the head of household,
plus the number of individuals in specific age,
gender, and race categories. From 1850 through
1930, the names, ages, sex, and race of each
individual in the household were collected,
along with a variety of other information. This
includes, for example, the birth state of each
individual as well as parents, marital status and
age at first marriage, whether the individual
could read or speak English, and much more.
The questions asked in each census are detailed
in Jason G. Gautier’s Measuring America: The
Decennial Censuses from 1790 to 2000. U.S.
Dept. of Commerce, 2002. (Alderman
Government Information C 3.2:M 46)
This work is also available electronically at:
www.census.gov/prod/2002pubs/
pol02-ma.pdf
Access to the Census
Records at the University of
Virginia Library
The University Library provides electronic
access to the census schedules and indexes
via Heritage Quest Online, an online
database that is accessible On-Grounds and
from off-Grounds through a proxy server or
UVA Anywhere. (Heritage Quest Online is
also available to Jefferson-Madison
Regional Library cardholders through a
separate program.) Although not all of the
schedules are fully indexed in Heritage
Quest, all schedules are available for
browsing.
The library has all federal census schedules
for Virginia from 1790 to 1930 (except
indexes after 1870), plus selected reels from
other states. These microfilms are located
in the cabinets in the 3rd floor Microfilm
Room in Alderman Library. Detailed
holdings can be found at:
www.lib.virginia.edu/govdocs/fact/
censusname.htm
Other Indexes to the Census
Indexes for Virginia Federal censuses from
1790 through 1870, and additional indexes
for various states from 1790 through 1850
are held in print format. These indexes are
located in the Government Documents
Reference Room. Individual indexes can be
found in the online catalog with the subject
heading “State--Census, date--Indexes,” i.e.,
“Virginia--Census, 1870--Indexes.”
What Censuses are
Available?
By law, the actual census schedules (records)
cannot be released to the public until 72 years
after the year of the census. This is to protect
the privacy of the individuals who gave the
information. The census data for 1940 will be
available in 2012, 1950 in 2022, etc.
The National Archives has provided a guide
to the Federal census online:
www.archives.gov/publications/microfilmcatalogs/census/1790-1890/index.html
Virginia Census Records
There are several early partial censuses for
Virginia, primarily based on tax records.
Augusta Fothergill’s Virginia taxpayers,
1782-1787 (Alderman Library F225 .F6
1978), collects much of this information for
the researcher.
Maps
Maps are also useful in using the U.S. Census.
The following map resources can help you
track your location through the censuses.
Thorndale, William. Map Guide to the U.S.
Federal Census, 1790-1920. Baltimore,
1987. (Alderman Government Information
Reference Room, G1201.F7 T45 1987)
Doran, Michael F. Atlas of county boundary
changes in Virginia, 1634-1895. 1987.
(Alderman Maps Room, G1291.F7 D6
1987)