The United States Census is a decennial (occurring every ten years) national survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau. Its primary purpose is to count the entire population of the country and to collect detailed demographic, social, and economic information. The first U.S. Census was conducted in 1790, and it has been conducted every ten years since, as mandated by the U.S. Constitution.
Name of Slave Owner
Age, Sex, and Color
Fugitives from the State
Deaf and Dumb, Blind, Insane, or Idiotic
Number of Slave Houses
Number Manumitted
Schedule 1 was designed to record all free inhabitants, which included both white individuals and free people of color.
Listed by Name: Free people of color were fully documented by name on this schedule, along with details such as age, sex, race (usually marked as “B” for Black or “M” for Mulatto), occupation, place of birth, literacy, and property ownership.
Considered Free Citizens: They were treated similarly to white inhabitants in terms of census documentation, reflecting their legal status as free individuals.
Detailed Information: The census collected detailed information about their lives, including real estate and personal property values in 1860.
Schedule 2 was specifically for documenting the enslaved population.
Not Listed by Name: Unlike free people of color, enslaved individuals were generally not listed by name. Instead, they were recorded under the name of the slave owner.
Demographic Information: The census recorded the age, sex, and race (marked as “B” for Black or “M” for Mulatto) of each enslaved person, along with information such as whether they were fugitives from the state or had any disabilities.
Treated as Property: Enslaved people were considered property under the law, and the census reflected this by listing them anonymously and focusing on demographic details that were relevant to the slave owner’s interests.
The typical practice in both the 1850 and 1860 Slave Schedules was to omit the names of enslaved people.
Names of enslaved individuals were very rarely included in the Slave Schedules. If names were recorded, it might have occurred due to a clerical exception or in specific local contexts, like in a supplementary note.
To find the names of enslaved individuals from these areas, researchers usually need to look into other types of records, such as wills, probate records, bills of sale, or manumission records.
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Click below to view the document and examine the listed error.
Click below to view the document and examine the listed error.
Click below to view the document and examine the listed error.
Starting in 1851, most census records included the names of every resident, their country or province of birth, age and many other details.
Library and Archives Canada holds an extensive collection of Canadian census records from 1640 to 1926, and for Newfoundland from 1671 to 1945. Our holdings are listed in the sections below.
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