Massachusetts State Census, 1855 - FamilySearch Historical Records

This wiki article describes a collection that is available for free online at FamilySearch Record Search – Pilot Site. To access the collection, see Massachusetts State Census, 1855



Collection Time Period
This census was taken beginning June 1, 1855.

Collection History
In 1855 the legislature directed that a census be taken on June 1 of that year and every 10 years thereafter. The census schedules were delivered to the State Secretary and eventually sent to the State Archives for safe keeping. The census schedules are well preserved at the Massachusetts State Archives and they have been microfilmed.

Why this Collection Was Created
The state census of Massachusetts was taken in order to enumerate the population for representation purposes.

Collection Reliability
Censuses are usually reliable, depending on the knowledge of the informant and the care of the census enumerator. Information may have been given to a census taker by any member of the family or by a neighbor.

Collection Description
The census schedules consisted of large sheets with rows and columns. The schedules were arranged by street in order of visitation. The census schedules are well preserved at the Massachusetts State Archives and they have been microfilmed.

Collection Content
Genealogical information in the census:

• Name    • Age     • Birthplace     • Sex     • Color     • Condition     • Occupation

How to Use the Collection
Census records are the best source to quickly identify a family group and residence. Use the place of residence and the birthplace for each person along with his or her age to search for other record types. The census identifies other persons in the household. The census may identify persons for whom other records do not exist.

Related Articles
Other wiki articles that relate to this topic:

Massachussetts Census

Bibliographical Information
Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth. 1855 Census. Digital images of originals housed at the Massachusetts State Archives, Boston, Massachusetts.