State Census Records
In addition to using data gathered from the US Census Bureau, states have, at times throughout history, conducted their own population censuses. Before the federal census was mandated by the Constitution, many states and territories administered their own. State census records from the time offer less detailed information than the federal census, but are of special interest to those researching their ancestry and historians.
State census records are available for some states as far back as the 1800s. Most states today, however, do not conduct their own population and housing censuses. That information is readily available to them through the federal census data. Similar to the actions of the federal government, states use the collected data to determine how to distribute state money. Some of the areas that use state money to administer their programs include:
- Social services
- Schools
- Roads and Public Works
- Other community and state services
States do conduct their own census when they are in need of specific information or in the years between federal censuses. The data they garner helps state governments decide about state laws, county boundaries, where new roads should be built, where more money should be sent, where less money is needed, and a host of other issues. Data from each census is publicly available, but state census records themselves are only made public if they were conducted over 72 years ago.
Because the 1890 federal census was lost in a fire, state census records are invaluable tools for historians and genealogists searching for records of the time. Most state census surveys were not as detailed as the federal census, but they often asked different types of questions, providing further information about the time.
Each state keeps archives of its census records. While state census records generally do not have the scope of information federal census records offer, they furnish important supplemental information about the country's past.
