Through census records you can discover the names of everyone who lived in the house you are researching at a given point in time. Federal records came out every ten years beginning in 1790. In an earlier article I described how to use the federal census when researching house history. Have you been unsuccessful in locating your property owners in the federal records? Because the federal census was only taken every ten years (and the 1890 returns are missing altogether) sometimes we lose track of who was living at the home we are researching because the property changed hands during the in-between years. State and territorial records - which are records taken before the area officially became a state - can help you fill in some of the gaps. Like the federal records, the state and territorial censuses often list the names, ages, state or country of birth and occupations of each resident. Likely they will show whether the resident owned or rented the property as well. Unlike those taken by the federal government, which are closed to the public for 72 years from the date the records were recorded, some states census records are released sooner, which can be of great benefit to researchers.
Not all state records are created equal, so what you may find will vary greatly depending on the state. Some states such as Connecticut, Idaho, Kentucky, Montana, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Vermont and West Virginia did not conduct any separate censuses at all. Others include agricultural schedules listing farms and farm products. These schedules can help fill in when tax and other land records cannot be located. Wouldn't it be fun to find out what crops were grown at your property?
If you happen to be researching property in a state that did not have its own census, check and see if the city, town or county where the property is located perhaps conducted any special censuses. These might be found under school censuses, sheriff's censuses, and a variety of ethnic censuses.
So where can you find state and other special census records? There are a number of good genealogical sites online where you can conduct a search of census records looking for your homeowners. Searching for state census records in your favorite search engine will show you the most common sites. Some of the sites require a subscription, but there are a number of free sites available. Larger libraries offer free access to the paid subscription sites as well.
Census records are just one more tool for you to use when trying to establish the previous owners of your home or property.
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