Tag Archives: census

Enumerated Twice in a Census?

Depending on their family and work situation, there is a chance that an ancestor is enumerated more than once in a census. The census was not necessarily always taken “on just one day,” so individuals who moved around the time of the census may have been listed by two enumerators. Individuals who were living in one household and working as domestic help in another may show up in twice–once in each household.

Look at ALL the Fields in a Census

Being focused when doing genealogy research is a good thing — except when that focus costs finding an important clue.

When looking at a census record, we tend to focus on one person or one family & do not look at the other families on the page. In assisting someone (from out-of-state, btw) in Nichols Library Thursday, we found when we looked at the WHOLE page that the person in question owned a sawmill.

SHE, yes–a woman, employed one person from her household. As head of the family, it also suggests she was widowed.

But,

A Date is a Date is a Date

Some documents have several dates associated with them. Make certain that you clearly indicate what each date is.

A deed may have a date of signing, a date of acknowledgement, and a date of recording.

A will may have a date of signing and a date that it was proven in court.

There is the official census date and the date on which the actual census was taken.

Record the dates as specifically as you can. This can reduce confusion.

Flip Flop Those Names

When searching first and last names in a database, consider interchanging the first and last names. It can easily happen in the creation of a database or in the taking of the census. The chance is slightly higher if the first and last names are ones that could “go either way.”

If your ancestor was named Johnson Gibson, is there a chance he is listed somewhere as Gibson Johnson?