New York, State Census, 1855 - FamilySearch Historical Records

Collection Time Period
The census includes individuals living in New York in 1855.

Record Description
The population schedule for the 1855 New York state census records still in existence. Most counties are covered, but some records were destroyed. View the wiki or browse the collection to determine coverage.

Record Content


Key genealogical facts found in the population schedules of the 1865 New York State Census are:


 * Name of every person whose usual place of abode was in the family on the 1st day of June, 1865
 * Age
 * Gender
 * Color
 * Relation to the head of the family
 * In what county of New York, or in what state or country born
 * Married
 * Widowed
 * Length of residence in this town
 * Occupation
 * Citizenship (native, naturalized, or alien)
 * Person of color, not taxed
 * Could read and write
 * Owned land
 * If deaf, dumb, or blind

How to Use the Records
A census can provide you with names and ages of family members, which can then be used to calculate birth or marriage dates. It can provide the county and town where your ancestor lived, people living with (or gone from) the family, and relatives that may have lived nearby. The census may identify persons for whom other records do not exist.

To begin your search, it is helpful to know:


 * Name
 * Residence or address

Search the Collection
Fill in the requested information in the initial search page. Look at the list of entries created by your search. Compare the information about the ancestors in the list to what you already know about your ancestors to determine if this is the correct family or person. You may need to compare the information about more than one person to find your ancestor.

Using the Information
When you have located your ancestor’s record, carefully evaluate each piece of information given. Make a photocopy of the record, or extract the genealogical information needed. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details. Add this new information to your records of each family. The information may also lead you to other records about your ancestors.

The following examples show ways you can use the information:


 * Use the age listed to determine an approximate birth date. This date along with the place of birth can help you find a birth record. Birth records often list biographical and marital details about the parents and close relatives other than the immediate family.
 * Birth places can tell you former residences and can help to establish a migration pattern for the family.
 * Use the race information to find records related to that ethnicity such as records of the Freedman’s Bureau or Indian censuses.
 * Use the naturalization information to find their naturalization papers in the county court records. It can also help you locate immigration records such as a passenger list which would usually be kept records at the port of entry into the United States.
 * Occupations listed can lead you to employment records or other types of records such as school records; children’s occupations are often listed as “at school.”

Tips to Keep in Mind

 * You may need to compare the information of more than one family or person to make this determination.
 * Married family members may have lived nearby but in a separate household so you may want to search an entire town, neighboring towns, or even a county.
 * You may be able to identify an earlier generation if elderly parents were living with or close by a married child.
 * You may be able to identify a younger generation if a young married couple still lived with one of their sets of parents.
 * Additional searches may be needed to locate all members of a particular family in the census.
 * The census may identify persons for whom other records do not exist.
 * It is often helpful to extract the information on all families with the same surname in the same general area. If the surname is uncommon, it is likely that those living in the same area were related.
 * Be sure to extract all families before you look at other records. The relationships given will help you to organize family groups. The family groupings will help you identify related families when you discover additional information in other records.

If you are unable to find the ancestors you are looking for, try the following:


 * Check for variant spellings of the surnames.
 * Check for an index. Check online or with local historical and genealogical societies.
 * Search the indexes and records of nearby counties.

For a summary of this information, see the wiki article: United States, How to Use the Records Summary (FamilySearch Historical Records).

Record History
State censuses were created by the state of New York and were taken about every ten years, beginning in 1795.

Why the Record Was Created
The census was compiled to obtain a count and description of the population of the state of New York.

Record Reliability
Use the information with some caution, since the information may have been given to a census taker by any member of the family or by a neighbor. Some information may have been incorrect or deliberately falsified.

Related Websites
1855 New York State Census

Related Wiki Articles
New York Census State Censuses

Citing FamilySearch Historical Collections
When you copy information from a record, you should list where you found the information. This will help you or others to find the record again. It is also good to keep track of records where you did not find information, including the names of the people you looked for in the records.

A suggested format for keeping track of records that you have searched is found in the Wiki Article: How to Cite FamilySearch Collections.

Examples of Source Citations for a Record in This Collection

 * “Delaware Marriage Records,” index and images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org: accessed 4 March 2011), entry for William Anderson and Elizabeth Baynard Henry, married 23 November 1913; citing marriage certificate no. 859; FHL microfilm 2,025,063; Delaware Bureau of Archives and Records Management, Dover.
 * “El Salvador Civil Registration,” index and images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org: accessed 21 March 2011), entry for Jose Maria Antonio del Carmen, born 9 April 1880; citing La Libertad, San Juan Opico, Nacimientos 1879-1893, image 50; Ministerio Archivo Civil de la Alcaldia Municipal de San Salvador.

Sources of information for This Collection
"New York State Census, 1855." FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org). Various County Clerk's throughout New York. FHL microfilm, 106 reels. Family History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah.