The Online Catalog allows searching and browsing of information about the Florida State Archives’ holdings of over 48,000 cubic feet of state and local government records and historical manuscripts. The catalog provides descriptions of over 3,400 collections and lists the contents of containers and folders in many of those collections. For assistance with accessing and using State Archives collections, call our Reference Staff at 850.245.6719 or email us at archives@dos.myflorida.com.
********** D E A C C E S S I O N E D ********** A census is a count of persons and their property, usually for taxation purposes. Beginning in 1790, the federal government conducted a census every ten years in all of the states. Territorial censuses were conducted in areas not yet admitted to the Union. They contain the same information as the state censuses. Federal census records after 1920 have not yet been released for public examination. Census data varies from decade to decade. Federal censuses from 1790 to 1810 typically include the full name of the head of the household; the number and age of free white males and females in the household; and the number and sex of slaves or free colored persons. Census records from 1820 to 1840 include the above information as well as the occupation of the head of the household. They also give categories for the deaf, dumb, blind, insane, aliens, and illiterate persons over twenty. The 1850 and 1860 censuses list the names, ages, sex, color and birthplace of all members of the household; the professions of males over 15; the value of real estate owned; deaf, dumb, blind, insane persons; convicts; those who married or attended school within the year; and illiterates over twenty. The 1870 census contains all of the above information. In addition, it lists parents of foreign birth, and immigrants who were naturalized and eligible to vote. The 1880 census records the address of the household; illness or disability on the day of the census; marital status; number of months employed on day of census; and the place of birth of the mother and father. The 1880 census also states relationships to the head of household. An even more specific census was conducted in 1890. Virtually all 1890 census records, however, were destroyed by fire in 1921. The 1900 census contains the following information: name of each person in the household; relationship to head of household; color or race; sex; place of birth of individual and parents; month and year of birth; age; marital status; number of years the wife had been married; total number of children from marriage and number still living; citizenship; occupation; number of illiterate persons; whether the house was owned or rented; and whether mortgaged. The 1910 census contains the same information as well as the year of immigration if an immigrant; language spoken; number of weeks employed since 1909; whether the home was a house or farm; and if persons were veterans of the Union or Confederate army or navy. The 1920 census dropped the questions concerning service in Union or Confederate armies and employment on the day of the census. Also omitted were questions about the number of children born and the years a couple had been married. New questions were asked in the 1920 census concerning the year of naturalization and native language. The rest of the questions remained the same as the 1910 census. The soundex or miracode coding systems were developed in the 1930's as a means of indexing large collections of historical records. In these systems, phonetic or variant spellings are grouped with the standard spellings of surnames. These groupings help researchers locate surnames which may have been spelled several ways but sound the same. The groupings are given a code beginning with a consonant and ending with three numbers which represent the sounds in the surname. To find information in a census, look first for the soundex number of a particular surname and then alphabetically by a given name.
Summary:
********** D E A C C E S S I O N E D ********** This series contains a microfilm copy of the federal census records of Alabama from 1830 to 1920 and the soundex index for 1880, 1900, 1910 and 1920. Virtually all records of the 1890 census were destroyed by fire. Censuses were conducted on a county wide basis and arranged by county name. Some microfilm rolls are missing from the series. In 1900, rolls 19, 44, 122 and 123-180 are on order.
Finding Aids:
Published indexes to census records on microfilm are available at the Archives.
Additional Physical Form:
Reproduction Note:
Microfilm.
Location of Originals/Duplicates:
Originals in custody of National Archives, Washington D.C.
for detailed listing.