Several people have expressed interest in trying to determine where in Rockingham County their ancestors lived in 1850. While I will not be able to answer that question for anyone, here are some details on the 1850 census. The census was taken in three groups or districts. The first portion of the census takes up pages 1B - 46B (page 1A was left blank). The dwelling and family numbering scheme started with 1 and continued to 607/610. The assistant marshal who conducted the census was Tyre Maupin. It should be noted that the blank labelled "Free inhabitants in" was labelled "Town of Harrisonburg" on pages 1B - 9B, and was left blank on pages 10A - 46B. The second portion of the census takes up pages 47A - 172B, and is labelled "56th District." The house and family numbering scheme was started at 1 on page 47A and continued to 2418/2423 on page 172B. Tyre Maupin was also the assistant marshal for this portion of the census. Mr. Maupin started the first part in Harrisonburg on July 13, and concluded the second part on December 15. The third and last portion of the census starts on page 173A and continue through page 216A. Again the dwelling and family numbering scheme was started at 1 on page 173A and continued to 628/641 on the last page. The assistant marshal was Thomas A. Gilmer. He started on October 15 and finished on November 30. The total number of dwellings was 3653, with 17% being in the first group, 66% being in the 56th district, and the remaining 17% being in the 56-1/2 district. Since Mr. Maupin started on July 15 and didn't conclude until mid December, and since Mr. Gilmer did not start until mid October, it is my guess that originally Mr. Maupin intended to do the entire county. By October it became apparent that he could not finish by the end of the year and Mr. Gilmer was retained to do a small part of the of the county. Based on my knowledge of where some families lived in the county (most of whom were in the 56-1/2 district), it appears the census in the 56-1/2 district ended in the Port Republic area, and the district was comprised of the SE corner of the county. Exactly how far it extended to the NW toward WV, and to the NE along the Blue Ridge Mountain toward Page County, is hard to say. Based on names I saw while looking though the census, I believe it included the McGaheysville, Pineville and Goods Mill areas, and may have extended to the NE to almost the Cross Keys area. Jim Messersmith Rockville, VA