{"id":21737,"date":"2017-05-02T10:55:35","date_gmt":"2017-05-02T14:55:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.genealogybank.com\/?p=21737"},"modified":"2022-05-02T08:04:28","modified_gmt":"2022-05-02T12:04:28","slug":"a-genealogists-delight-oddities-and-curiosities-of-early-censuses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/a-genealogists-delight-oddities-and-curiosities-of-early-censuses.html","title":{"rendered":"A Genealogist\u2019s Delight: Oddities and Curiosities of Early Censuses"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction<\/em><\/strong>: In this article, Mary Harrell-Sesniak shares some of the newspaper articles she\u2019s found that report on interesting facts about our ancestors gleaned from the U.S. Census. Mary is a genealogist, author and editor with a strong technology background.<\/em><\/p>\n

There is no place better than old newspapers to find details about our ancestors\u2019 lives, such as what interested them about census records. The census wasn\u2019t just population numbers to them. More often than not, our ancestors were surprised by the findings \u2013 and not often in ways we imagine today.<\/p>\n

So curiosity seekers, I suggest you browse a collection of old newspapers, such as GenealogyBank\u2019s Historical Newspaper Archives<\/a>, to read what our ancestors observed about the census in their day. It might even dispel some myths, such as this photo does about all census takers going door-to-door. (On the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in South Dakota toward the end of the 19th<\/sup> century, the population went to the agency to be counted, not the other way around.)<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Photo: \u201cTaking the Census at Standing Rock Agency, South Dakota\u201d (c. 1880-1900). Credit: David Francis Barry; Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Here are some of my odd and curious finds!<\/p>\n

Old Occupations<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Photo: \u201cRags\u201d (1942). Credit: Howard Liberman; Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

You\u2019ll find occupations listed in old censuses that have nearly disappeared with the times \u2013 but you\u2019ll also spot humorous entries, such as these interspersed in entries from Massachusetts on the 1860 U.S. Census<\/a>:<\/p>\n