>Hi all - There is a website with Enumerator Instructions for the various >federal census. For 1860, the enumerator was "supposed" to enter the >"specific age of each person at his or her last birth day previous to the >1st day of June." >Of course, that doesn't mean that they followed these instructions. >See http://www.ipums.umn.edu/usa or >Sometimes the neighbors answered the questions if the family was not >available. Having worked with census records for years it began to dawn on me that perhaps some people just didn't know exactly how old they were. In fact, some time ago I did a study of the ages of people in several of the Cazenovia censuses and found that there were extraordinary lumps of people who were aged in five year groupings - 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55. I figured they said to the enumerator "Uh, gosh, I think I'm about 45" and that is what was written. If they were to be asked the same question 2 years later they would most likely respond with the same "Uh, gosh, I think I'm about 45" Then there are the people who just don't pay attention to how old their kids, parents or siblings are. They goof up plenty of records. I'm sure some people pulled out the family bible and looked it up, but why go the trouble for some gov'ment busy body? Then there are people like me who have to think, calculate, or hesitate before I respond because I am busy remembering other things more important than my age (besides it changes all the time!). My wife keeps track of my age for me! Dan W.
Thanks to Daniel H Weiskotten for the link to census questions: http://www.ipums.umn.edu/usa There are a lot of good links at that site. Going there, I worked my way down to the page that has links for each census year from 1850 to 2000: If you just want to see the census questions without seeing the many links that you can reach by starting at the home page, you can go directly to: http://www.ipums.umn.edu/usa/voliii/tQuestions.html Thanks, Dan! Very interesting. I plan to print out the questions for each census year and post them at the Orange County (NY) Genealogical Society along with the blank forms we have for each census year. Marty Irons k2mi@frontiernet.net All e-mail scanned by Norton anti-virus, updated online daily. May all your ancestors YELL at you, telling you how and where to find them. PS: John F Irons (1811 - 1854 Cazenovia NY)...... please stand up on that brick wall and yell out the names I've sought for 11 years......louder! Who were your parents? Where were you born? Who were your siblings?