'Censuses' in between the censuses

This column previously addressed the importance of the 1870 U. S. census in African-American research. As noted in that article, this was the first federal census after the end of the Civil War, and therefore the first record group to record personal information about former slaves nationwide. It was not, however, the earliest record group to do so in many localities. Many similar record groups were created that provide information about former slaves between 1865 and 1870.

 

For example,

·         Many states held their own state censuses during this time period.  The information collected here may vary from what was collected in the federal censuses.

·         By Act of Congress, former Confederate states created voters’ registration lists between 1867 and 1869. These represent the earliest records of former slaves as legal voters. Information includes the length of time living in the state, county, and precinct, among other data. Not all counties for all states are still extant. Most records are available on microfilm from the Family History Library.

·         States continued to collect taxes throughout this period. Tax assessment records may contain information about those who were taxed, another resource potentially naming former slaves who now owned property.

 

Many of the state censuses are now available online through various services. Voters’ registration lists and tax lists are generally not accessible online, but may be ordered on microfilm from the Family History Library, or viewed in person at the various state archives.

 

These records will be explored more fully in future columns, but for now, this list shows some of the many state records available.

Many additional county-specific transcripts for various records appear on the USGenWeb sites for the respective counties.

 

Please feel free to add the website addresses for other resources, or your own success stories using these record types, to the comments of this article.