The U.S. Census is a study, performed every 10 years, whose 
goal is to obtain information about every member of the United 
States population.  The census is performed by the US Census 
Bureau and census records are used for different purposes such 
as allocating congressional seats, business marketing, and 
planning.

  Old census records can be a valuable research tool as they 
provide a wealth of information for genealogists.  For example, 
the names of the heads of households have been listed on the 
census along with that person's birthplace and the names of 
his/her parents.  This can be an invaluable tool for tracing 
the location of persons in previous censuses in other locations.

  CensusFind.com was designed to help you find free census 
records online.  Some records found may require a fee.  Please 
click on the census year of your choice for more information.

  The United States Census is mandated by the United States 
Constitution. The population is enumerated every 10 years and 
the results are used to allocate Congressional seats 
("congressional apportionment"), electoral votes, and govern-
ment program funding. (Some states also conduct statewide 
censuses as the need arises; these are called state censuses.)
The census is performed by the United States Census Bureau. The 
first census after the American Revolution was taken in 1790; 
there have been 21 federal censuses since that time. The next 
census will be taken in 2010."

  For the first five censuses (1790-1840) enumerators recorded 
only the names of the heads of household and did a general 
demographic accounting of the remaining members of the household. 
Beginning in 1850, all members of the household were named by 
the enumerator. The first slave schedules were done in 1850, with 
the second (and last) in 1860. Censuses of the late 19th century 
also included agricultural and industrial schedules to gauge the 
productivity of the nation's economy. Mortality schedules (taken 
between 1850 and 1880) captured a snapshot of life-spans and 
causes of death throughout the country.

   Although the Constitution, ratified in 1787, called for a 
census every ten years, there was no special government agency 
to conduct and tabulate the results of this massive survey. Until 
1840, federal marshals managed the process as best they could. In 
1850, the first Census Office was opened in Washington, D.C. How-
ever, it was disbanded after the 1850 census and only reestablished 
in time to take the census and tally the results in 1860, 1870, 
1880, 1890, and 1900.

   Not until 1902 was the Bureau of the Census established as a 
permanent bureau in the Department of the Interior. In 1903 the 
bureau was transferred to the Department of Commerce.  The Bureau 
of the Census is responsible for providing statistics about the 
population and economy of the nation and collecting, tabulating, 
and publishing a wide variety of statistical data for government 
and private users...

[SOURCES: The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy; Wikipedia.org

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