There is probably no other single group of records in existence which contain more information about persons and families who lived during the 1800s than do the population schedules of the United States Federal and New York State censuses.  Though these population censuses are still largely unindexed, their value is great.  A census search can be laborious and very time consuming as you must read name by name and page by page.  But no genealogical research is complete until all pertinent census schedules have been searched.
 

• Availiability
• Bibliography
• Federal Censuses
• LDS Film Numbers for Federal Censuses
• Soundex Code
• Steps to Soundex Census Research
• State Censuses
• Census Records on the Internet

• Rensselaer County, New York.  Excerpts From:  Historical Collections of the State of New York.  By John W. Barber and Henry Howe, 1844
• Reminiscences of Troy (New York).  Reprinted by Heritage Books Inc., 2000, from Reminiscences of Troy from Its Settlement in 1790 to 1807 with Remarks on its Commerce, Enterprise, Improvements, State of Political Parties, Second Edition with Notes, by John Woolworth 1853.
• Hudson Mohawk Gateway, An Illustrated History. By Thomas Felon, 1985.
• Troy and Lansingburgh, W. Troy & G. Island, Choose and Water ford Directory, 1893.  Samson, Burdock & Co., Compilers and Publishers, 1893.
• The Researcher's Guide to American Genealogy, 3rd Edition.  By Val D. Greenwood, 2000.
• The American Census Handbook.  By Thomas Jay Kemp, 2001.
• Availability of Census Records About Individuals. By US Census Bureau, 1997.
• LDS FamilySearch.org.  Research Guidance series.
• National Archive and Record Administration. Various publications.
• New York State Library.  Genealogy website.

The US population census records contain a wealth of information about people.  They are useful in learning about one's family and local social and economic conditions at various times in history.  For more recent years especially, they are official documents for persons who need to prove their age (in the absence of a birth certificate), relationship, citizenship, residence, and other facts in order to qualify for pensions; get jobs, naturalization papers, passports, or insurance policies; establish an inheritance; or trace ancestry.  There was a population census taken in 1790 and every 10th year after that. U.S. Census Bureau, Factfinder for the Nation, 1997

Name of family head; free white males of 16 years and up; free white males under 16; free white females; slaves; other persons

Transcript, book Call # 974.741 X2 
Rens. Co. Fed. Census Transcript, 1800
by CNYGS

Name of family head; age; sex; race; foreigners not naturalized; slaves; industry

Name of family head; age; sex; race; slaves; deaf and dumb; blind; foreigners not naturalized

Name of family head; age; sex; race; slaves; number of deaf and dumb; number of blind; number of insane and idiotic and whether in public or private charge; number of person in each family employed in each of six classes of industry and one of occupation; literacy; pensiorers for Revolutionary or miltary service

Name; age; sex; race; value of real estate; value of personal estate; occupation; birthplace; whether married within the year; school attendance; literacy; whether deaf and dumb, blind, insane, idiotic, pauper or convict. 

Name; age; sex; race; value of real estate; value of personal estate; occupation; birthplace; whether married within the year; school attendance; literacy; whether deaf and dumb, blind, insane, idiotic, pauper or convict; number of slave houses

Name; age; race; occupation; value of real estate; value of personal estate; birthplace; whether parents were foreign born; month of birth if born within the year; month of marriage if married within the year; school attendance; literacy; whether deaf and dumb, blind, insane or idiotic; male citizens 21 and over, and number of such person denied the right to vote for other than rebellion.

Address; name; relationship to family head; sex; race; age; marital status; month of birth if born within the census year; occupation; months unemployed during the year; sickness or temporary disability; whether blind, deaf and dumb, idiotic, insane, maimed, crippled, bedridden or otherwise disabled; school attendance; literacy; birthplace of person and parents

Soundexed

County Index

General schedules-destroy by fire.
Supplement schedules for Union veterans of Civil War and their widows.

Address; name; relationship to family head; sex; race; age; marital status; number of years married; for women, number of children born and number now living; birthplace of person and parents; if foreign born, year of immigration and whether naturalized; occupation; months not employed; school attendance; literacy; ability to speak English; whether on a farm; home owned or rented and if owned, whether mortgaged

Troy wds 10-13
T623-1153

Soundexed

Troy wds 1, rest towns/villages
#1241151

Troy wds 1-5, 7-10
#1241152
Troy wds 10-13
#1241153

Address; name; relationship to family head; sex; race; age; marital status; number of years of present marriage; for women, number of children born and number now living; birthplace and mother tongue of person and parents; if foreign born, year of immigration, whether naturalized, and whether able to speak English, or if not, language spoken; occupation, industry and class of worker; if an employee, whether out of work during year; literacy; school attendance; home owned or rented; if owned, whether mortgaged; whether farm or house; whether a survivor of Union or Confederate Army or Navy; whether blind or deaf and dumb.

Enumeration Districts for specific streets can be located at: http://stevemorse.org/census/index.html

Address; name; relationship to family head; sex; race; age; marital status; if foreign born, year of immigration to the U.S., whether naturalized, and year of naturalization; school attendance; literacy; birthplace of person and parents; mother tongue of foreign born; ability of speak English; occupation, industry, and class of worker; home owned or rented, whether free or mortgaged

Enumeration Districts for specific streets can be located at: http://stevemorse.org/census/index.html

Soundexed

Address; name; relationship to family head; home owned or rented; value or monthly rental; radio set; whether on a farm; sex; race; age; marital status; age at first marriage; school attendance; literacy; birthplace of person and parents; if foreign born, language spoken in home before coming to U.S., year of immigration, whether naturalized, and ability to speak English; occupation, industry, and class of worker, whether at work previous day, (or last regular working day); veteran status; for Indians, whether of full or mixed blood, and tribal affiliation.

Enumeration Districts for specific streets can be located at: http://stevemorse.org/census/index.html

T626-1637
Eds 42-1 to 42-22, 42-42, 42-23 to 42-25

T626-1638
Eds 42-26 to 42-41, 42-43 to 42-69, 42-85 to 42-89

T626-1639
Eds 42-70 to 42-84, 42-92 to 42-97, 42-90 to 42-91, 42-98 to 42-111
 

New York State
Not Soundexed

[NARA, T626 roll 1638] - #2341372 

[NARA, T626 roll 1639] - #2341373 

To use the census soundex to locate information about a person, you must know his or her full name and the state or territory in which he or she lived at the time of the census. It is also helpful to know the full name of the head of the household in which the person lived because census takers recorded information under that name. 

The soundex is a coded surname (last name) index based on the way a surname sounds rather than the way it is spelled. Surnames that sound the same, but are spelled differently, like SMITH and SMYTH, have the same code and are filed together. The soundex coding system was developed so that you can find a surname even though it may have been recorded under various spellings. 

To search for a particular surname, you must first work out its code.   Here is a site where you can change your surname into a soundex code:  Rootweb's Soundex Converter

Once you have your soundex code, follow the steps below to search the federal censuses for your ancestors.

Step 1:  Obtain the following information in order to find your ancestor's name in a census index:  surname and first name of ancestor, state or territory where your ancestor lived at the time of the census

Step 2:  Identify the Soundex code of your ancestor's surname.

Step 3:  Obtain the Soundex film (by state/territory, alphabetically by soundex code)

Step 4:  Look through the soundex cards to find your ancestor listed under his/her soundex code.  The code represents the ancestor's last name and is usually written in the upper left corner of the card.  Then look for the card with your ancestor's first name.  Within each code, the cards are listed alphabetically by first names. 

Step 5:  Copy the information from the index.  When you find the right family, record names of the family members; names of the county, city, town, township or ward; enumeration district (E.D.) number; sheet (page) number; line number.

Step 6:  Obtain the original census on film for the county and town, township or ward where your ancestor lived. See film numbers above.

The New York State censuses were taken about every ten years beginning in 1795.  All of the state census schedules in the custody of the State Library were destroyed in the 1911 fire.

State censuses have survived for some counties for 1825, 1835, 1845 and 1855 and for most counties for 1865, 1875, 1892, 1905, 1915 and 1925.  Most censuses are in the possession of county clerks and are on microfilm at the LDS Family History Library.  There are few indexes, but some 1855 schedules are being indexed.  

Microfilm copies of all surviving New York state censuses are at the state library and the New York Genealogical Society.  Manuscript copies for 1915 and 1925 are at the state archives.  All state censuses, except those for 1865 Suffolk county are available on microfilm at the LDS Family History Library.  The original records for the State's pre-1915 census are kept at the county level and are not available at the NYS Library.  Original manuscripts of the 1915 and 1925 census are maintained by the State Archives and Records Administration.

Dwelling number; material of which dwelling is built; value; family number; name; age, sex and color (black or mulatto); relation to head of family; place of birth (county of NYS, other state or foreign country); married; widowed; years resident in this city or town; profession, trade or occupation; native and naturalized voters; aliens; colored not taxed; over 21 who cannot read and write; owners of land; deaf, dumb, blind, insane or idiotic.

Dwelling number, material of which dwelling is built; value; family number; name (including that of anyone absent in army or navy); age, sex and color (white, black or mulatto); relation to head of family; place of birth (county of NYS, other state or foreign country); parent of how many children; number of times married; whether now married, widowed or single; profession, trade or occupation; usual place of employment; native and naturalized voters; aliens; colored not taxed; owners of land; over 21 who cannot read and write; deaf and dumb, blind, insane or idiotic; servicemen (lists those now or formerly in the army or navy of the United States).

County
#549892
#549893

Dwelling number; material of which dwelling is build; value; family number; name; age, sex and color (white, black, mulatto or Indian); relation to head of family; place of birth (county of NYS, other state or foreign country); whether now married, widowed or single; profession, trade or occupation; usual place of employment (those in military service list former home); native and naturalized voters; aliens; owners of land; over 21 who cannot read and write; deaf and dumb, blind, insane or idiotic.

Brunswick, Berlin, Greenbush, 
E. Greenbush, N. Greenbush, Grafton,
Pittstown, Sand Lake, Stephentown, Schaghticoke, Schodack
#549898

Hoosick, Lansingburg, Nassau, 
Poestenkill, Petersburg
#549899

Address; name; relation to head of family; color, sex and age; place of birth (U.S. or foreign country); number of years in United States; citizen or alien; occupation; inmates of institutions (residence at time of admission).

Address; name; relation to head of family; color, sex and age; place of birth (U.S. or foreign country); number of years in United States; citizen or alien; occupation, inmates of institutions (residence at time of admission); infants under one year.

Address; name; relation to head of family; color, sex and age; place of birth (U.S. or foreign country); number of years in United States; citizen or alien; if naturalized, when and where; occupation, inmates of institutions (residence at time of admission); infants under one year.