Genealogy Tips & Tricks
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COUNTY BOUNDARY CHANGES for CENSUS RECORDS
POPULATION and COUNTIES in U.S. CENSUS, 1790 - 2000
MAP GUIDE to the U.S. FEDERAL CENSUS, 1790 - 1920
U.S. STATE CENSUS RECORDS (as opposed to Federal)
County Boundary Changes
for Census Records
By: William Dollarhide and GPC
All censuses taken since 1790 are tabulated and organized by
the counties within each state or territory. By federal precedence, the
county is the basic unit of jurisdiction for census demographics. Alaska
is the only state without counties; therefore, judicial districts are used
as jurisdictions for the censuses taken there. In Louisiana, the term
"parish" is used in the same way as "county" in other states. Even in the
New England states, where a town may have more importance than a county as a
genealogical resource, censuses are organized by county.
Interestingly, Connecticut abolished county government in 1960. All county
functions were taken over by the towns or by the state, except that the county
boundaries were retained expressly for the purpose of taking a census and
certain other statistical studies based on a county, rather than town
boundaries.
Between 1790 and 2000, 138 counties reported in the censuses have been renamed
or abolished and subsequently absorbed into other counties. Through 1920, 44
cities in Virginia were independent of any county.
Genealogists learn early the importance of the county as a jurisdiction when
using the U.S. federal censuses because one needs to know the county before one
can find a resident in a certain locale. Finding the right county is a big step
in genealogical research, not only because of census records but also because of
the many other records specific to a certain county or locality.
County Boundary Changes:
When using census records for genealogical research, researchers need to
understand how county boundaries have changed over the years. Understanding the
genealogy of counties is part of locating the place where an ancestor lived.
For example, if a genealogist knows that an ancestor lived in Allegheny County,
Pennsylvania, in 1790, that county's courthouse is a resource for old deeds,
marriages, and other court records. By 1800, nine new counties had been created
from old Allegheny County, covering the same area: Allegheny, Beaver, Butler,
Crawford, Erie, Mercer, and parts of Armstrong, Venango, and Warren counties.
Another example of county boundary changes occurred in Oregon. In 1850,
marriages in the little town of Linkville in Linn County were recorded in
Albany, the county seat. By 1860, due to the formation of new counties,
marriages performed in Linkville, now in Wasco County, were recorded in The
Dalles; in 1870, marriages performed in Linkville were recorded in
Jacksonville, the county seat of Jackson County (but later the county seat was
moved to Medford); in 1880, marriages performed in Linkville were recorded in
Lakeview, the county seat of Lake County; and in 1890 marriages performed in
Linkville were recorded there because Linkville had become the county seat of
Klamath County--but then the name Linkville was changed to Klamath Falls.
The boundaries of Klamath County have not changed since 1890.
Of course, the town of Linkville never moved. As the settlement of Oregon
took place, new counties were created, and earlier county boundaries were
changed, placing the town of Linkville-Klamath Falls in five different counties
from 1850 through 1890. Therefore, all county records such as deeds,
probates, marriages, etc., for a family that lived in Linkville, Oregon, are
spread across the state and stored today in five different county courthouses.
These examples can be repeated in virtually every state. The list below
shows that the number of counties in the U.S. increased from 292 in 1790 to
3,076 by 1920. Genealogists attempting to identify the places their
ancestors lived must first face the reality of changing county boundaries over
the years.
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Counties in the U.S. Censuses, 1790 - 2000
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1790 - population: 3,929,214 - 14 states - 292 counties - includes Southwest Territory |
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1800 - population: 5,308,483 - 16 states - 419 counties - includes Northwest, IN, and MI territories |
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1810 - population: 7,239,881 - 17 states - 574 counties - includes IL, IN, MI, MS, LA (MO), and Orleans territories |
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1820 - population: 9,638,453 - 22 states - 759 counties - includes AR, MI, and MO territories |
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1830 - population: 12,860,702 - 24 states - 988 counties - includes AR, FL, and MI territories |
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1840 - population: 17,063,353 - 26 states - 1,279 counties - includes IA, FL, and WI territories |
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1850 - population: 23,191,876 - 30 states - 1,623 counties - includes MN, NM, OR, and UT territories/1851 |
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1860 - population: 31,443,321 - 33 states - 2,080 counties - includes KS, NM, NE, UT, WA, Indian territories, and Unorganized Dakota Territory |
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1870 - population: 38,558,371 - 37 states - 2,295 counties - includes AZ, CO, ID, NM, MT, UT, WA, WY, Dakota, and Indiana territories |
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1880 - population: 50,189,209 - 38 states - 2,570 counties - includes AK, AZ, ID, NM, MT, UT, WA, WY, Dakota, and Indiana territories |
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1890 - population: 62,979,766 - 44 states - 2,813 counties - includes AK, AZ, NM, OK, UT, and Indiana territories |
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1900 - population: 76,212,168 - 45 states - 2,862 counties - includes AK, AZ, HI, NM, OK, and Indiana territories |
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1910 - population: 92,228,496 - 46 states - 2,962 counties - includes AK, AZ, NM, HI, and Puerto Rico |
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1920 - population: 106,021,537 - 48 states - 3,076 counties * |
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1930 - population: 123,202,624 - 48 states - 3,110 counties * |
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1940 - population: 132,164,569 - 48 states - 3,108 counties * |
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1950 - population: 151,325,798 - 48 states - 3,111 counties * |
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1960 - population: 179,323,175 - 50 states - 3,133 counties ** |
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1970 - population: 203,211,926 - 50 states - 3,142 counties ** |
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1980 - population: 226,545,805 - 50 states - 3,137 counties ** |
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1990 - population: 248,709,873 - 50 states - 3,141 counties ** |
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2000 - population: 274,952,000 - 50 states - 3,139 counties (estimates) *** |
* Includes AK, HI, Guam, Midway, Canal Zone, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Virgin Islands, and Wake Island.
** Includes Guam, Midway, Canal Zone, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Virgin Islands, and Wake Island.
*** 2000 population based on monthly estimates published by the Census Bureau as of 26 May, 2000. Since 1990, there have been county boundary changes in four states (Alaska Judicial Districts, Maryland, Montana, and Virginia). Most of the changes were due to annexations of areas by cities, reducing areas dependent of a county or district.
A source that can be used to visualize the county
boundaries for every county in the U.S. and for each census year is the book by
William Thorndale and William Dollarhide, Map Guide to
the U.S. Federal Censuses, 1790-1920 (Genealogical Publishing Co.,
Inc., 1987). This book has 393 maps showing each applicable census year
and all county boundary changes from 1790 to 1920. Each map shows both the
old boundaries and the modern boundaries for each state and census year, so a
comparison can be made. A more detailed description of this important book
for serious genealogists appears in the article below.
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MAP
GUIDE to the U.S. FEDERAL CENSUS,
1790 - 1920
As the Dollarhide article above illustrates, Mr.
Dollarhide knows a thing or two about county boundaries and census records.
He is co-author with William Thorndale of
MAP GUIDE TO THE U.S. FEDERAL CENSUSES, 1790-1920, one of the
most respected books in all of American genealogy. More recently, Mr.
Dollarhide has compiled a directory of censuses and census substitute lists for
New York. This new book, NEW YORK STATE CENSUSES
& SUBSTITUTES identifies every census or similar population list
compiled by New York or its various counties from the colonial period on.
Here is a brief descriptions of the Map Guide:
MAP GUIDE to the U.S. Federal Censuses, 1790-1920
The author of
Genealogy Pointers, by the Genealogical
Publishing Company once studied the population of Baltimore from the vantage
point of the 1850, 1860, and 1870 federal censuses. Throughout the period,
Baltimore was divided into 20 wards (political subdivisions); however, as his
research revealed, the ward boundaries changed with each census. Had he
failed to consider these boundary changes, his conclusions concerning the ethnic
and racial makeup of Baltimore's 19th-century neighborhoods would have been
incorrect.
Whether because of political gerrymandering, annexation, or some other reason,
county boundaries, like ward boundaries were subject to frequent change.
For example, the boundaries of both Somerset and Worcester counties on
Maryland's Eastern Shore changed between 1860 and 1870 to make room for the new
county of Wicomico. Between 1850 and 1860, the eastern part of Yalobusha
County, Mississippi, became part of Calhoun County. Ten years later, the
southern part of Yalobusha could be found in Grenada County.
The fact is that throughout U.S. history, county boundaries changed from one
decennial census to the next, especially before 1900. The best way to know
if you're looking in the right county as you crank or scroll through the census
is to consult the
MAP GUIDE by William Thorndale and William Dollarhide.
State by state, this highly acclaimed reference work maps out county boundaries
for every census from 1790 through 1920 and superimposes modern county
boundaries overtop of them. Don't be lost in the census without it!
You can purchase the MAP GUIDE to the U.S. Federal Censuses, 1790-1920, by Thorndale and Dollarhide via GPC using the following link:
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STATE (As Opposed to Federal) CENSUS RECORDS
State census records, unlike federal censuses, are among the most under-used
(yet extremely valuable) of all genealogical records. When genealogists
think of census records, what usually comes to mind are the federal censuses
that have been conducted by the U.S. government every 10 years since the
formation of the country. It's a fact, however, that state governments
have also carried out censuses randomly throughout their history to satisfy a
variety of purposes. Michigan, for example, took a special Civil War
veterans census in 1888. There are also surviving territorial censuses
that were taken to demonstrate readiness for statehood.
These state censuses are invaluable to genealogists because they fill in gaps
left by missing federal censuses. For example, 12 states conducted
censuses between 1885 and 1895, any one of which can substitute for that state's
missing 1890 federal census. State censuses tend to be opened to the
public faster than federal ones; some state censuses taken as recently as
1945 are already available. Many state censuses contain information not
found in federal censuses because the census takers asked different questions.
For all of these reasons, state censuses can give you a more complete picture of
your ancestors and solve genealogical problems. To find out what state
censuses exist, what kinds of information they contain, and where they can be
found, read
STATE CENSUS RECORDS, by Ann S. Lainhart, the definitive guide to this
major, though vastly under-used, genealogical resource.
You can purchase the
State Census Records, by Lainhart via GPC using the following
link:
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