Alabama State Census, 1855 - FamilySearch Historical Records

Collection Time Period
These records cover individuals living in Alabama in 1855.

Record Description
This is an index to the census taken in Alabama in 1855.

Record Content
The index contains the following information:


 * Names of individuals or heads of families
 * County
 * Page number

The census contains the following information:


 * Names of individuals or heads of families
 * Number of white males under 21 in the family
 * Number of white males over 21 in the family
 * Number of white females under 21 in the family
 * Number of white females over 21 in the family
 * Total whites in the family
 * Insane within each county
 * Insane sent abroad
 * Slaves
 * Free persons of color
 * Total inhabitants

How to Use the Record
Begin your search by finding your ancestors in the census index. Use the locator information in the index (such as page number or family number) to locate your ancestors in the census. Compare the information in the census 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 of more than one family or person to make this determination. Be aware that as with any index, transcription errors may occur.

When you have located your ancestor in the census, carefully evaluate each piece of information about the family. These pieces of information may give you new details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors.

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 family details will help you identify related families when you discover additional information in other records.

Some other helpful tips to keep in mind are:


 * 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.

Record History
The State of Alabama conducted state censuses in the following years: 1818 (partial), 1820 (partial), 1821 (partial), 1823, 1850, 1855, 1866, and 1907.

Why the Record Was Created
The census was compiled to obtain a count of the population of the state to determine how many representatives the state would send to Congress.

Record Reliability
The information is generally reliable. However, 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

 * Chattahoochee Valley Libraries
 * Columbus Public Library
 * Alabama Genealogy
 * New Horizons Genealogy

Related Wiki Articles
Alabama Censuses, Existing and Lost

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 citing FamilySearch Historical Collections, including how to cite individual archives is found in the following link: How to Cite FamilySearch Collections.

Examples of Source Citations for a Record in This Collection

 * United States. Bureau of the Census. 12th census, 1900, digital images, From FamilySearch Internet (www.familysearch.org: September 29, 2006), Arizona Territory, Maricopa, Township 1, East Gila, Salt River Base and Meridian; sheet 9B, line 71


 * Mexico, Distrito Federal, Catholic Church Records, 1886-1933, digital images, from FamilySearch Internet (www.familysearch.org: April 22, 2010), Baptism of Adolfo Fernandez Jimenez, 1 Feb. 1910, San Pedro Apóstol, Cuahimalpa, Distrito Federal, Mexico, film number 0227023

Sources of Information for This Collection
Alabama. State Census, 1855. Department Of Archives and History. Montgomery, Alabama.