The decennial census has always required a large workforce to visit and collect data from households. Between 1790 to 1870, the duty of collecting census data fell upon the U.S. Marshals. A March 3, 1879 act replaced the U.S. Marshals with specially hired and trained census-takers to conduct the 1880 and subsequent censuses.
During the early censuses, U.S. Marshalls received little training or instruction on how to collect census data. In fact, it was not until 1830 that marshals even received printed shedules on which to record households' responses. The marshals often received limited instruction from the census acts passed prior to each census.
Beginning with the 1880 census, specially hired and trained census-takers replaced the U.S. marshals. Door-to-door census by temporary census-takers was the primary method of conducting the census until the U.S. Census Bureau began mailing questionnaires to households in 1960.
As more and more households received and returned their questionnaires by mail, the role of census-taker changed. Today, the majority of households are counted by mailed questionnaires. Census-takers visit places frequented by transient households (shelters and soup kitchens, campsites, etc.) and households that do not return their mailed questionnaires (during the "Nonresponse Follow-Up" phase of the census). As a result, the "Instructions to Enumerators" provided here include the congressional acts U.S. marshalls reviewed during the early census, specially-published instructions for door-to-door census, and lastly, guides used for the limited number of personal interviews conducted during nonresponse follow-up operations.
The steady advancement of Ft. Wayne among the cities of the central states is indicated in facts and figures throughout this book. In addition to the official statements concerning the growth of postal business, and of the great increase in the volume of banking business, the following figures help to show many interesting evidences of a healthy growth of the city:
Ft. Wayne'a Population (1825-1913) — The growth of Ft. Wayne is well illustrated in the following figures from the United States census reports, except where estimates liave been noted:
1825 (estimated) 200 1870 17,718
1830 (estimated) 300 1880 26,880
1840 2,080 1890 35,393
1850 4,882 1900 45,115
1860 10,388 1910 63,933
1913 estimated) 78,000
Following are interesting figures, giving, in detail some of the facts concerning the 1910 population census of Ft. Wayne:
Of the entire population, 63,933, there were 31,433 males and 32,500 females.
Native whites of native parentage, 36,772. Native whites of foreign or mixed parentage, 19,414. Foreign-born whites, 7,204. Negroes, 572. Indians and Chinese, 21.
Of the foreign born whites 95 are natives of Austria, 295 of Canada, 337 of England, 173 of France, 4,051 of Germany. 39 of Holland, 385 of Ireland, 83 of Italy. 391 of Russia, 74 of Scotland, 54 of Sweden, 207 of Switzerland, 62 of Turkey In Asia, 331 of Turkey in Europe, and 177 of other foreign countries
Males of voting- age, 19,678. By wards: First, 1,951. Second, 1,554. Third, 1,644. Fourth, 1,711. Fifth, 1,788. Sixth, 2.458. Seventh, 1.831. Eighth, 2.075. Ninth, 2,368. Tenth. 2,298. Of the total, 9,702 were native whites of native parentage; 5.964 were native whites of foreign or mixed parentage; 3,785 were foreign born whites; 2,459 wore naturalized, and 215 were negroes, (see "Voters of Ft. Wayne").
#TBT A census enumerator interviews a Kentucky family for the 1910 Census. Kentucky's population grew from 2,289,905 in 1910 to 4,425,092 on July 1, 2015.
#TBT A census enumerator interviews a Kentucky family for the 1910 Census. Kentucky's population grew from 2,289,905 in 1910 to 4,425,092 on July 1, 2015.
#OnThisDay in 1911, Census Bureau director Dana Durand announced that following the 1910 Census, the center of the U.S....
#OnThisDay in 1911, Census Bureau director Dana Durand announced that following the 1910 Census, the center of the U.S. #population was located in Bloomington, Indiana.
The center of population is the point at which an imaginary, weightless, rigid, and flat surface representation of the 50 states (or 48 conterminous states for calculations made prior to 1960) and the District of Columbia would balance if weights of identical size were placed on it so that each weight represented the location of one person.
Following the 2010, Plato, MO, celebrated its designation as the newest center of the U.S. population.
#FlashbackFriday: We are going back in time to check out the 1910 #CenterOfPopulation marker in Bloomington,...
