1890 United States census

11th US national census March 2019 May 2024 1890 United States census DeptInterior1882seal.png Seal of the Department of the Interior 1890 U.S. Census form.jpg 1890 census form United States 1890 06 02 62,979,766 25.5% state New York6,003,174 Nevada47,335 Census Office 1880 United States census 1880 1900 United States census 1900 The 1890 United States census was taken beginning June 2, 1890. The census determined the resident population of the United States to be 62,979,766, an increase of 25.5 percent over the 50,189,209 persons enumerated during the 1880 census. The data reported that the distribution of the population had resulted in the disappearance of the American frontier. This was the first census in which a majority of states recorded populations of over one million and the first in which three cities, New York City, Chicago, and Philadelphia, recorded populations of over one million. The census also saw Chicago rise in rank to the nation's second-most populous city, a position it would hold until Los Angeles, the 57th-most populous city as of 1890, supplanted it in 1990. This was the first U.S. census to use machines to tabulate the collected data. Most of the 1890 census materials were destroyed on January 10, 1921, when the Commerce Department building caught fire, and in the subsequent disposal of the remaining damaged records. Census questions The 1890 census collected the following information:http://purl.org/net/nysl/nysdocs/9643270 Library Bibliography Bulletin 88, New York State Census Records, 1790–1925 44 (p. 50 of PDF) New York State Library December 15, 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20090130004637/http://purl.org/net/nysl/nysdocs/9643270 January 30, 2009 live October 1981 30em address number of families in house number of persons in house names whether a soldier, sailor or Marine (Union or Confederate) during the American Civil War, or a widow of such person relationship to head of family race, described as white, black, mulatto, quadroon, octoroon, Chinese, Japanese, or Indian sex age marital status married within the year mother of how many children, and number now living place of birth of person, and their father and mother if foreign-born, number of years in U.S. whether naturalized whether naturalization papers have been taken out profession, trade or occupation months unemployed during census year ability to read and write ability to speak English, and, if unable, language or dialect spoken whether suffering from acute or chronic disease, with name of disease and length of time afflicted whether defective in mind, sight, hearing or speech, or whether crippled, maimed or deformed, with name of defect whether a prisoner, convict, homeless child, or pauper home rented, or owned by head or member of family, and, if owned, whether free from mortgage if farmer, whether farm is rented, or owned by head or member of family; if owned, whether free from mortgage; if rented, post office box of owner Methodology thumb|right|A Hollerith tabulator that has been modified for the first 1890 census tabulation; the punched-card reader was removed, replaced by a simple keyboard.61 The 1890 census was the first to be compiled using methods invented by Herman Hollerith and was overseen by Superintendents Robert P. Porter (1889–1893) and Carroll D. Wright (1893–1897). Data was entered on a machine readable medium (punched cards) and tabulated by machine. Truesdell Leon E. Leon E. Truesdell The Development of Punch Card Tabulation in the Bureau of the Census: 1890–1940 US GPO 1965 Changes from the 1880 census included the larger population, the number of data items to be collected from individuals, the Census Bureau headcount, the volume of scheduled publications, and the use of Hollerith's electromechanical tabulators. The net effect of these changes was to reduce the time required to process the census from eight years for the 1880 census to six years for the 1890 census.Report of the Commissioner of Labor In Charge of The Eleventh Census to the Secretary of the Interior for the Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 1895 Washington, DC United States Government Publishing Office July 29, 1895 867910652 2027/osu.32435067619882 p. 9: "You may confidently look for the rapid reduction of the force of this office after the 1st of October, and the entire cessation of clerical work during the present calendar year. ... The condition of the work of the Census Division and the condition of the final reports show clearly that the work of the Eleventh Census will be completed at least two years earlier than was the work of the Tenth Census." — Carroll D. Wright, Commissioner of Labor in Charge The total population of 62,947,714, the family, or rough, count, was announced after only six weeks of processing (punched cards were not used for this tabulation).http://www2.census.gov/prod2/statcomp/documents/1991-02.pdf Population and Area (Historical Censuses) United States Census Bureau June 20, 2008 https://web.archive.org/web/20080624185938/http://www2.census.gov/prod2/statcomp/documents/1991-02.pdf June 24, 2008 live 61 The public reaction to this tabulation was disbelief, as it was widely believed that the "right answer" was at least 75,000,000.Austrian Geoffrey D. 1982 Herman Hollerith: Forgotten Giant of Information Processing New York Columbia University Press 0-231-05146-8 85–86 Significant findings The United States census of 1890 showed a total of 248,253 Native Americans living in the United States, down from 400,764 Native Americans identified in the census of 1850.Dippie Brian W. The Vanishing American: White Attitudes and U.S. Indian Policy https://archive.org/details/vanishingamerica00bria registration Middleton, CT Wesleyan University Press 1982 ?? 0-8195-5056-6 The data yielded by this census provided strong evidence that the United States' policies towards Native Americans had had a significant impact on the enumeration of the census in the second half of the 19th century. US domestic policy combined with wars, genocide, famine, disease, a declining birthrate, and exogamy (with the children of biracial families declaring themselves to be white rather than Indian) accounted for the decrease in the enumeration of the census. Chalk Frank Kurt Jonassohn The History and Sociology of Genocide: Analyses and Case Studies New Haven Yale University Press 1990 0-300-04446-1 registration https://archive.org/details/historysociology00chal The 1890 census announced that the frontier region of the United States no longer existed, Porter Robert Gannett Henry Hunt William "Progress of the Nation", in "Report on Population of the United States at the Eleventh Census: 1890, Part 1" xviii–xxxiv Bureau of the Census 1895 and that the Census Bureau would no longer track the westward migration of the U.S. population. In practice, however, said migration can still be tracked by plotting each succeeding census' mean center of United States population. By 1890, settlement in the American West had reached sufficient population density that the frontier line had disappeared. For the 1890 census, the Census Bureau released a bulletin declaring the closing of the frontier, stating: "Up to and including 1880 the country had a frontier of settlement, but at present the unsettled area has been so broken into by isolated bodies of settlement that there can hardly be said to be a frontier line. In the discussion of its extent, its westward movement, etc., it can not, therefore, any longer have a place in the census reports."Turner, Frederick Jackson The Frontier in American History 1 The Significance of the Frontier in American History 1920 https://www.gutenberg.org/files/22994/22994-h/22994-h.htm#Page_1 Statisticians at the time argued that the results of the 1890 census was most likely an undercount of the total population in the United States from anywhere between one million to several millions, and that African Americans, working-class people, and young children were most likely to be undercounted.Gannett Henry 1894 Was the Count of Population in 1890 Reasonably Correct? https://www.jstor.org/stable/2276233 Publications of the American Statistical Association 4 28/29 99–102 10.2307/2276233 2276233 1522-5437 subscription Data availability thumb|right|Aftermath of the 1921 fire which destroyed almost the entirety of the 1890 census records The original data for the 1890 census is mostly unavailable. The population schedules were damaged in a fire in the basement of the U.S. Department of Commerce building in Washington, D.C. in 1921. Some 25% of the materials were presumed destroyed and another 50% damaged by smoke and water, although the actual damage may have been closer to 15–25%. The damage to the records led to an outcry for a permanent National Archives.https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1996/spring/1890-census-1.html First in the Path of the Firemen: The Fate of the 1890 Population Census, Part 1 Kellee Blake Spring 1996 28 1 Prologue Magazine Washington, DC National Archives and Records Administration 0033-1031 321015582 April 13, 2013https://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1996/spring/1890-census-3.html First in the Path of the Firemen: The Fate of the 1890 Population Census, Part 3 Kellee Blake Spring 1996 28 1 Prologue Magazine Washington, DC National Archives and Records Administration 0033-1031 321015582 April 13, 2013 In December 1932, following standard federal record-keeping procedures, the Chief Clerk of the Bureau of the Census sent the Librarian of Congress a list of papers to be destroyed, including the original 1890 census schedules. The Librarian was asked by the Bureau to identify any records which should be retained for historical purposes, but the Librarian did not accept the census records. Congress authorized destruction of that list of records on February 21, 1933, and the surviving original 1890 census records were destroyed by government order by 1934 or 1935. Few sets of microdata from the 1890 census survive.https://www.census.gov/history/www/genealogy/decennial_census_records/availability_of_1890_census.html Availability of 1890 Census – History U.S. Census Bureau EN-US March 28, 2017 Aggregate data for small areas, together with compatible cartographic boundary files, can be downloaded from the National Historical Geographic Information System. A directory of the 1890 US Census results for Northampton County, Pennsylvania (explicitly listing all of its 1890 inhabitants along with their names, professions, and ages) published by Joseph H. Werner in 1891 has survived up to the present day.Lindberg Jimmy Assessing the Reliability of U.S. Records in Supercentenarian Age Validation LongeviQuest 2023-12-17 https://longeviquest.com/2023/12/assessing-the-reliability-of-u-s-records-in-supercentenarian-age-validation/ 2026-09-16Lindberg Jimmy Why Age Claims Require Validation LongeviQuest 2025-02-21 https://longeviquest.com/2025/02/why-age-claims-require-validation/ 2026-09-16One can find the full text copy of the 1890 US Census Directory for Northampton County at the Marx Room (see https://eastonpl.org/marx-room-home/ Henry F. Marx Local History Room for access) at the Easton Area Public Library. This directory's existence has further solidified the evidence in favor of all-time validated American longevity recordholder Sarah Knauss's (1880-1999) age of 119 years, 97 days at the time of her death, for she is listed as a 10-year-old child (her 10th birthday wasn't until September 1890, several months after the official date of the 1890 US Census, but the 1890 census enumerator instructions explicitly said to round people's ages upwards) together with her family in this directory (they all lived in Northampton County, Pennsylvania back in 1890, specifically in South Bethlehem, Pennsylvania). State rankings Rank State Population 01 New York (state) 1778 6,003,174 02 Pennsylvania State Flag 1863 pubdomain.jpg 23px Pennsylvania 5,258,113 03 Illinois 1915 3,826,352 04 Ohio 3,672,329 05 Missouri 2,679,185 06 Massachusetts 1908 2,238,947 07 Texas 2,235,527 08 Indiana 2,192,404 09 Michigan 2,093,890 10 Iowa 1,912,297 11 Kentucky 1,858,635 12 Georgia (U.S. state) 1879 Georgia 23px 1,837,353 13 Tennessee 1897 1,767,518 14 Wisconsin 1866 1,693,330 15 Virginia 1861 1,655,980 16 North Carolina 1885 1,617,949 17 Alabama 1,513,401 18 New Jersey 1896 1,444,933 19 Kansas 1927 1,428,108 20 Minnesota 1893 1,310,283 21 Mississippi 1894 1,289,600 22 California 1846 1,213,398 23 South Carolina 1,151,149 24 Arkansas 1913 1,128,211 25 Louisiana 1861 1,118,588 26 Nebraska 1,062,656 27 Flag of Maryland (pre-1904).svg Maryland 1,042,390 28 West Virginia 1905 762,794 29 Connecticut 746,258 30 Maine 1900 661,086 31 Colorado 1907 413,249 32 Florida 1900 391,422 33 New Hampshire 1909 376,530 34 Washington (state) 1923 357,232 35 South Dakota 1909 348,600 36 Rhode Island 1882 345,506 37 Vermont 1837 332,422 38 Oregon 317,704 X Oklahoma 1911Including Indian Territory, which was yet to be combined with Oklahoma Territory to form the state of Oklahoma. 258,657 X District of ColumbiaThe District of Columbia is not a state but was created with the passage of the Residence Act of 1790. 230,392 X Utah 1903 23px Utah 210,779 39 North Dakota 190,983 40 Delaware 168,493 X New Mexico 1915 New Mexico 160,282 41 Montana 1905 142,924 42 Idaho 88,548 X Arizona Arizona 88,243 43 Wyoming 62,555 44 Nevada 1905 47,355 X Alaska Alaska 32,052 City rankings Rank City State PopulationPopulation of the 100 Largest Cities and Other Urban Places in the United States: 1790 to 1990 1998 https://www.census.gov/library/working-papers/1998/demo/POP-twps0027.html U.S. Census Bureau Region (2016)https://www.census.gov/econ/census/help/geography/regions_and_divisions.html Regions and Divisions U.S. Census Bureau September 9, 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20161203020637/http://www.census.gov/econ/census/help/geography/regions_and_divisions.html December 3, 2016 dead 01 New York New York 1,515,301 Northeast 02 Chicago Illinois 1,099,850 Midwest 03 Philadelphia Pennsylvania 1,046,964 Northeast 04 Brooklyn New York 806,343 Northeast 05 St. Louis Missouri 451,770 Midwest 06 Boston Massachusetts 448,477 Northeast 07 Baltimore Maryland 434,439 South 08 San Francisco California 298,997 West 09 Cincinnati Ohio 296,908 Midwest 10 Cleveland Ohio 261,353 Midwest 11 Buffalo New York 255,664 Northeast 12 New Orleans Louisiana 242,039 South 13 Pittsburgh Pennsylvania 238,617 Northeast 14 Washington District of Columbia 230,392 South 15 Detroit Michigan 205,876 Midwest 16 Milwaukee Wisconsin 204,468 Midwest 17 Newark New Jersey 181,830 Northeast 18 Minneapolis Minnesota 164,738 Midwest 19 Jersey City New Jersey 163,003 Northeast 20 Louisville Kentucky 161,129 South 21 Omaha Nebraska 140,452 Midwest 22 Rochester New York 133,896 Northeast 23 Saint Paul Minnesota 133,156 Midwest 24 Kansas City Missouri 132,716 Midwest 25 Providence Rhode Island 132,146 Northeast 26 Denver Colorado 106,713 West 27 Indianapolis Indiana 105,436 Midwest 28 Allegheny Pennsylvania 105,287 Northeast 29 Albany New York 94,923 Northeast 30 Columbus Ohio 88,150 Midwest 31 Syracuse New York 88,143 Northeast 32 New Haven Connecticut 86,045 Northeast 33 Worcester Massachusetts 84,655 Northeast 34 Toledo Ohio 81,434 Midwest 35 Richmond Virginia 81,388 South 36 Paterson New Jersey 78,347 Northeast 37 Lowell Massachusetts 77,696 Northeast 38 Nashville Tennessee 76,168 South 39 Scranton Pennsylvania 75,215 Northeast 40 Fall River Massachusetts 74,398 Northeast 41 Cambridge Massachusetts 70,028 Northeast 42 Atlanta Georgia 65,533 South 43 Memphis Tennessee 64,495 South 44 Wilmington Delaware 61,431 South 45 Dayton Ohio 61,220 Midwest 46 Troy New York 60,956 Northeast 47 Grand Rapids Michigan 60,278 Midwest 48 Reading Pennsylvania 58,661 Northeast 49 Camden New Jersey 58,313 Northeast 50 Trenton New Jersey 57,458 Northeast 51 Lynn Massachusetts 55,727 Northeast 52 Lincoln Nebraska 55,154 Midwest 53 Charleston South Carolina 54,955 South 54 Hartford Connecticut 53,230 Northeast 55 St. Joseph Missouri 52,324 Midwest 56 Evansville Indiana 50,756 Midwest 57 Los Angeles California 50,395 West 58 Des Moines Iowa 50,093 Midwest 59 Bridgeport Connecticut 48,866 Northeast 60 Oakland California 48,682 West 61 Portland Oregon 46,385 West 62 Saginaw Michigan 46,322 Midwest 63 Salt Lake City Utah 44,843 West 64 Lawrence Massachusetts 44,654 Northeast 65 Springfield Massachusetts 44,179 Northeast 66 Manchester New Hampshire 44,126 Northeast 67 Utica New York 44,007 Northeast 68 Hoboken New Jersey 43,648 Northeast 69 Savannah Georgia 43,189 South 70 Seattle Washington 42,837 West 71 Peoria Illinois 41,024 Midwest 72 New Bedford Massachusetts 40,733 Northeast 73 Erie Pennsylvania 40,634 Northeast 74 Somerville Massachusetts 40,152 Northeast 75 Harrisburg Pennsylvania 39,385 Northeast 76 Kansas City Kansas 38,316 Midwest 77 Dallas Texas 38,067 South 78 Sioux City Iowa 37,806 Midwest 79 Elizabeth New Jersey 37,764 Northeast 80 Wilkes-Barre Pennsylvania 37,718 Northeast 81 San Antonio Texas 37,673 South 82 Covington Kentucky 37,371 South 83 Portland Maine 36,425 Northeast 84 Tacoma Washington 36,006 West 85 Holyoke Massachusetts 35,637 Northeast 86 Fort Wayne Indiana 35,393 Midwest 87 Binghamton New York 35,005 Northeast 88 Norfolk Virginia 34,871 South 89 Wheeling West Virginia 34,522 South 90 Augusta Georgia 33,300 South 91 Youngstown Ohio 33,220 Midwest 92 Duluth Minnesota 33,115 Midwest 93 Yonkers New York 32,033 Northeast 94 Lancaster Pennsylvania 32,011 Northeast 95 Springfield Ohio 31,895 Midwest 96 Quincy Illinois 31,494 Midwest 97 Mobile Alabama 31,076 South 98 Topeka Kansas 31,007 Midwest 99 Elmira New York 30,893 Northeast 100 Salem Massachusetts 30,801 Northeast Notes References External links Mayo-Smith, Richmond (1891), "The Eleventh Census of the United States". In: The Economic Journal (EJ), Vol. 1, pp. 43–58 (in 16x16px Wikisource) Walker, Francis A. (1888). "The Eleventh Census of the United States". The Quarterly Journal of Economics. 2 (2): 135–161. 1891 U.S Census Report Contains 1890 census results Historical US Census data from the U.S. Census Bureau website Hollerith 1890 Census Tabulator by Columbia University "The Fate of the 1890 Population Census" from the National Archives website United States Census, 1890 United States Category:United States census Category:Lost documents