THE 1880 CENSUS SCHEDULE WAS THE FIRST TO USE SOUNDEX CODING (answer to question #5). Until this time, the "indexes" for the census were printed by privately for most states or territories for the period 1790 through 1870 as well as the 1890 special schedule. The Soundex is a coded surname (last name) index based on the way a surname SOUNDS rather than the way it is spelled. Surnames that sound the same, but are spelled differently, like Smith and Smyth, have the same code and are filed together. The Soundex coding system was developed to find a surname even though it may have been recorded under various spellings. This then leads you to the actual census record for that family. Every Soundex code consists of a letter and 3 numbers, such as W252. The letter is always the first letter of the surname whether it is a consonant or a vowel. The numbers are assigned to the remaining consonants of the surname according to the Soundex guide. For more information about the Soundex, check the Archives Files of Crawford Co. for several wonderful articles already written on this subject. As wonderful as this new Soundex system was, it is important to remember that in 1880 - it had one unique difference from that used in 1900, 1910 and 1920. THE SOUNDEX ONLY INDEXED FAMILIES THAT HAD CHILDREN AGE 10 YEARS OF AGE OR YOUNGER (answer to question #6). If you were looking for "grandma and grandpa", you will still need to look in the State, then county, then township/city/village to find them. On the other hand a husband and wife children ages 5, 8, 12 and 14 can be found on the Soundex. Those states with Soundex are: AL, AZ, AK, CA, CO, CT, DK, DE, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN,, IO, KS, KY, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MS, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, OH, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, UT, VT, VA, WA, WVA, WI, WY. More to come.... Barb