1910 U.S. Census
This article originally appeared in "Census Records" by Loretto Dennis Szucs and Matthew Wright in The Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy
The 1910 census began on 15 April 1910. The enumeration was to be completed within thirty days, or within two weeks for communities with populations of more than 5,000. The official census population count was 92,228,496.
Contents
Questions Asked in the 1910 Census
The 1910 census schedules record number of the dwelling house and family, in order of visitation; the street address; each person's name and relationship to the head of household; sex; color or race; age at last birthday; marital status; and length of present marriage. If the person was a mother, it records the number of her children and number of living children, as well as each person's birthplace and his or her parents' birthplaces. If the individual was foreign-born, it shows the year of immigration and his or her citizenship status; spoken language; occupation; type of employment; and whether he or she was an employer, employee, or was self-employed; the number of weeks he or she was unemployed in 1909, if applicable; and whether he or she was out of work on 15 April 1910. The schedules also show if the individual was able to read and write; if he or she attended daytime school since 1 September 1909; if the home was rented or owned, and if owned, whether it was free or mortgaged, and a house or a farm. Finally, it shows if each person was a veteran of the Union or Confederate army or navy; whether he or she was blind in both eyes; or deaf and dumb. The Indian schedule also recorded the tribe and/or band.
Research Tips for the 1910 Census
The quality of the microfilming of the 1910 census was especially poor when compared to other census schedules. Overexposure in microfilming schedules for Mississippi, for example, rendered hundreds of pages illegible. Additionally, the omission rate in the 1910 Miracode/Soundex appears to be greater than in most other indexes. In many cases, individuals not indexed are present in the census schedules, so it is especially advisable for researchers to continue a search in the actual schedules, even though a name might not show up in an index.
The 1910 census, while not providing as much precise information as the 1900 census (such as exact birth month), does ask years married, and number of children born to the mother, and is a good tool for determining approximate dates and places to search for marriage records, birth and death records of children, and the marriages of children not listed. The 1910 census sometimes makes it possible to verify family traditions, identify unknown family members, and link what is known to other sources, such as earlier censuses, naturalization records (especially declarations of intent to become citizens), school attendance rolls, property holdings, and employment and occupational records. These records will also verify Civil War service, trace and document ethnic origins, and locate military and naval personnel in hospitals, ships, and stations, and those stationed in the Philippines, Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico.
For additional information on the 1910 census, see The 1910 Federal Population Census: A Catalog of Microfilm Copies of the Schedules at the National Archives. For boundary changes and identification of missing census schedules, see Thorndale's and Dollarhide's Map Guide to the U.S. Federal Censuses, 1790'1920.
Comparison of Census Information, 1790-1940
Personal Info on Census | 1790 | 1800 | 1810 | 1820 | 1830 | 1840 | 1850 | 1860 | 1870 | 1880 | 1900 | 1910 | 1920 | 1930 | 1940 |
Name of family head only | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||
Headcount by age, gender, ... | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||
Standard census form | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |||
Names of all individuals | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ||||||
Age | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ||||||
Sex | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ||||||
Color | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ||||||
Profession or occupation | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ||||||
Place of birth | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||
Attended school that year | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ||||||
Highest grade completed | ✔ | ||||||||||||||
Married that year | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ||||||||||
Read or write | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||
Deaf, blind, insane, idiotic, ... | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ||||||||||
Real estate value | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||||
Personal estate value | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||||||
Separate slave schedule | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||||||
Father of foreign birth | ✔ | ||||||||||||||
Mother of foreign birth | ✔ | ||||||||||||||
Month of birth | ✔ | ||||||||||||||
Month of birth that year | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||||||
Male citizen over 21 years | ✔ | ||||||||||||||
Male over 21 denied vote | ✔ | ||||||||||||||
Visitation number of dwelling | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ||||||
Visitation number of family | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ||||||
Street name in city | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||
House number in city | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||
Relationship to family head | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||
Marital status | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||
Month of marriage that year | ✔ | ||||||||||||||
No. of months unemployed | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||||||
Father's birthplace | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | sup | |||||||||
Mother's birthplace | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | sup | |||||||||
Sickness on census day | ✔ | ||||||||||||||
Year of birth | ✔ | ||||||||||||||
No. of years present marriage | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||||||
Mother how many children | ✔ | ✔ | sup | ||||||||||||
Number of children living | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||||||
Year of immigration to US | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||||
No. of years in US | ✔ | ||||||||||||||
Naturalization status | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |||||||||||
Months attended school | ✔ |