Why are Census Records So Important to a Genealogist?
Census records, in particular, can form the basic foundation of your initial research. They are commonly used, relatively easy to read, and available in a variety of locations. Census records, or their equivalents, are also available in many other countries besides the United States. We will however, focus on United States records in this lesson. In addition to the obvious clues of providing the names of siblings, dates of birth, years of marriage, relationship, and nativity, census records provide other clues. A village name, post office, river way, or township is usually listed on a census page. These location aids could lead you to a county history where knowing an ancestor’s post office or township might bring you within pages of information on your direct family, even when the county history is not indexed by surname. Since people traveled in groups, neighbors could be followed if your own family line disappeared, so census records are good for finding others who might lead you to
