Penn State University Libraries - 1880 Census

Objective: To locate a specific person who lived in Pennsylvania in 1880.  In this example we are tracking Jessie Dowlin, who lived in Pennsylvania and should have been counted during the Federal Population Census for Pennsylvania in 1880 Census.  We want to confirm this information and determine any other information about his family collected by the census enumerator in 1880. 

The Internet can be a valuable tool to aid in your Census search.  There are many sites that provide information.  Census Online contains over 44,000 links to US census records, census calculators, and census forms from 1790-1930.  The microfilm information and the internet information can be used together to complete a search for an individual.  Links to Internet sources have been inserted throughout this document that complement and, in some cases, replace the print indexes or the census microfilm.  Please note that the microfilm constitutes the primary source and should be consulted for errors in transcription. 

 Please ASK the staff at the News and Microforms Library Reference Desk at any time for additional help or clarification about how to locate the sources or information.

In indexing 1880 census, the soundex code was used.  The Soundex Code is a phonetic algorithm for indexing names by the way they sound instead of the way they are spelled (Smith, Smithe, and Smyth). Soundex can help find a surname in the census documents even though it may have been recorded under various spellings.

Step 1:    Begin by finding the Soundex Code for the name of the person you are trying to locate.    Visit Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter to have the Soundex code identified.    For information about how Soundex codes are calculated, see the article on Soundex Explained.

To calculate the Soundex Code without access to the internet, locate the book titled, Federal Population Censuses. 1790-1890 (call number HA37.U548 F44 1976) in the Indexes and Guides Section of the News & Microforms Library, and follow the instructions on page 90.  

The Soundex Code for Dowlin is D450

Step 2: Determine which microfilm reel contains the Soundex Index for the person you are researching.  In the News and Microforms Library, the microfilm reels for the Index (Soundex) to the 12^th census, 1900: PA are located at HA216.P4 1880 (Reels 1-168) Go to the reels and find the Soundex Code which is listed on the outside of the boxes.  (Reel 36 contains the Soundex index for D-421 thru D-514)      

This information can also be found in the Indexes and Guides Section of the News &

Microforms Library, use the reference index Federal Population Censuses 1790-1890 HA37.U548 F44 1976 which contains the 1880 Soundex Index.  (On page 82 it shows that D450 would be found on reel 36.) 

Alternatively, a list of the Soundex Index for Pennsylvania in 1880 can be accessed online at the National Archives site. This information for Pennsylvania has also been transcribed into a printable Soundex Code Table listing reel numbers and contents.

Scrolling through the list will indicate 36. D-421--D-514

At this point you will need to use a microfilm reader/printer/scanner in the News and Microforms Library to locate and read the Soundex Index for Jessie Dowlin. Please ASK the staff at the Reference Desk for help if you are unfamiliar with the machines. You can view the Soundex on line at the Internet Archive.

Step 3:  Locate the person you are researching in the Soundex Index.  For our example, scroll through roll 36 until you get to section D450.  Continue through the cards until you get to Dowlin, Jessie.  There may be more than one person with the same name, at which point you will need to review the information presented until you confirm that you have the person that you are looking for.  For our example, Jessie Dowlin, was a 50 year old male who lived in Greene County and was married to Eliza.  See example 1.

From the Soundex Index we know the following:  Jessie Dowlin was a 50 year old white male who lived in Greene County, PA.  There were 3 people in his household including:  his wife, Eliza A Dowlin (46 year old female), and his niece Liza A Huston (4 year old female.)  All three people were born in PA. 

Visit US GenWeb Census Project (http://www.us-census.org/inventory/) to determine if any census information is recorded online for Jessie Dowlin in 1880.  This is an ongoing project with new data continuously being added [Note:  for this example, as of 5/14/08, the census records for 1880 for Greene County are partially available online.  See links below:]

View the transcribed index. View the transcribed entry. (According to the transcribed information, Jessie Dowlin is the head of the household.  He is a 50 year old white male who lives with his wife Eliza A. Dowlin a 46 year old white female and his niece Liza A. Huston a 4 year old white female.  Jessie is a farmer, and Eliza keeps house.)  Since this is a transcription of the original documentation, it is subject to human error.  To view the original document via the microfilm, continue with step 4.

Step 4: In cases where the original information is not available online, the original document can be viewed through the microfilm at the News & Microforms Library at Penn State.  Write down the following information from the index:

• Head of Family:  Dowlin, Jessie
• County: Greene
• Volume: 7
• E.D. (Enumeration District): 68
• Sheet (page number): 9
• Line:  45

If you need any help locating this call number in the News and Microforms Library microfilm cabinets, please ASK the staff at the Reference Desk.

Step 5:  Locate the 1880 Census: Pennsylvania on microfilm in the News and Microforms Library in the microfilm cabinets under the call number HA217.U5PA 1880 (reels 1085 – 1208). The reels are arranged by call number in alphabetical order by county.  Reel #1133 contains all of Greene County which is the resident county for Jessie Dowlin. 

Many counties take up more than one roll of microfilm, in these cases it is necessary to have the E.D. (Enumeration District) information so you can determine which roll has the person you are researching.  The National Archives website lists the contents, including enumeration district, for the 1880 Federal Population Census Microfilm Reels. This information has also been transcribed into a chart at the end.

At this point you will need to use a microfilm reader/printer/scanner machine in the News and Microforms Library to locate and read the entry for Jessie Dowlin. Please ASK the staff at the Reference Desk for help if you are unfamiliar with the machines.

Step 6: Now, using our example, Jessie Dowlin, you will need to find Greene County, and then scroll through to Enumeration District 68.  Jessie Dowlin is listed on page 9, line 45.  See example 2.

Then, you will need to locate Jessie Dowlin’s name on the ledger page.

Names of individuals are not in alphabetical order on the ledger page. Read the page carefully to locate Jessie Dowlin’s name.  The 19^th Century script and the microfilm quality can sometimes present interesting challenges for the researcher!

Step 7:  Review the information collection for Jessie Dowlin in the 1880 census.  See example 3.

A blank 1880 census form can be viewed and printed to assist your collection of data from the microfilm. A blank form has been provided at the end.

In 1880, the following 26 columns of information were collected:

1. Dwelling – houses numbered in the order of visitation
2. Families – numbered in order of visitation
3. The name of every person whose usual place of abode on the first day of June 1880 was in this family
4. Color
5. Sex
6. Age
7. If born within the census year, give the month
8. Relationship of each person to the head of this family
9. Single
10. Married
11. Widowed/Divorced
12. Married within the census year
13. Profession, occupation, or trade of each person, male or female
14. Number of months this person has been unemployed during the census year
15. Is the person (on the day of the Enumerator’s visit) sick or temporarily disabled so as to be unable to attend to ordinary business or duties?  If so, what is the sickness or disability?
16. Blind
17. Deaf and dumb
18. Idiotic
19. Insane
20. Maimed, crippled, bedridden, or otherwise disabled
21. Attended school within census year
22. Cannot read
23. Cannot write
24. Place of birth of this person, naming State or Territory of the United States, or the Country if foreign born.
25. Place of birth of the Father of this person, naming State or Territory of the United States, or the Country if foreign born.
26. Place of birth of the Mother of this person, naming State or Territory of the United States, or the Country if foreign born.

Referencing the original ledger page we now get additional information including occupations for Jessie (Farmer) and Eliza (Keeping House) and that all three members of the family were born in PA and that their parents were also born in PA.