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1870 United States Census Questions
Answers to the 1870 census records questions were to be based on the status of households on June 1, 1870.
| Column | Question |
|---|---|
| 1 | dwelling house numbered in order of visitation |
| 2 | family numbered in order of visitation |
| 3 | name of every person whose usual place of abode on June 1, 1870 was in this family |
| 4 | age at last birthday. If under 1 year, give months in fraction e.g., 8/12 |
| 5 | sex (male(M), female(F)) |
| 6 | color (white (W), black (B), mulatto (M), Chinese (C), or Indian (I)) |
| 7 | profession, occupation, or trade of each person, male or female |
| 8 | value of real estate owned |
| 9 | value of personal estate |
| 10 | place of birth, naming the state, territory, or country |
| 11 | if foreign-born, is father foreign-born |
| 12 | if foreign-born, is mother foreign-born |
| 13 | if born within the year, state month (Jan, etc.) |
| 14 | if married within the year, state month (Jan, etc.) |
| 15 | attended school within the year |
| 16 | cannot read |
| 17 | cannot write |
| 18 | whether deaf and dumb, blind, insane, idiotic, pauper, or convict |
| 19 | male citizen of the United States of 21 years of age or older |
| 20 | male citizen of the United States of 21 years of age or older where right to vote is denied or abridged on grounds other than rebellion or crime |
Instructions for enumerators:
- Numbers 7, 16, and 17 are not to be asked for infants.
- Numbers 11, 12, 15, 16, 17, 19, and 20 are to be recorded (if answered positively) merely by an affirmative mark as /.
To save an Adobe Acrobat copy of the 1870 census questions click here.
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