Colorado State Census, 1885 - FamilySearch Historical Records

Collection Time Period
These records cover the inhabitants of Colorado in 1885.

Record Description
The records are handwritten on pre-printed pages with rows and columns.

Record Content


The following information is listed in the population schedule: 


 * Street name
 * House number
 * Full name of each member of household
 * Race
 * Gender
 * Age
 * Relationship to the head of household
 * Marital Status
 * Occupation or number of months unemployed in the previous year
 * Disabilities
 * If attended school within the past year
 * If they can read, write, and speak English
 * Place of birth
 * Father's birth place
 * Mother's birth place

How to Use the Records
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 them. These pieces of information may give you new biographical details that can lead you to other records about your ancestors. For example:


 * 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.
 * If they are subject to military service they may have military files in the State or National Archives.
 * 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.”

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.

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.

You should also be aware that the census may identify persons for whom other records do not exist.

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

Record History
On June 1, 1885 a special federal census of Colorado was taken. The 1885 census included four general schedules: population, agriculture, manufactures, and mortality. These schedules are organized alphabetically by county and thereunder by the number assigned to each type of schedule. Within each type of schedule the records are arranged by enumeration district.

Population Schedule
The 1885 population schedule resembles a typical census schedule and can provide valuable information that can be used to fill the gap caused by the loss of the 1890 federal census in the 1921 Department of Commerce fire.

Mortality Schedule
The 1885 mortality schedule enumerated all individuals who died between June 1, 1884, and May 31, 1885. This schedule was to include individuals who died within the district, even if they had no family in the district, and individuals who died outside the district but had family within the district.

The following counties are included in this census:
Araphoe, Archuleta, Bent Boulder, Chaffee, Clear Creek, Conejos, Costilla, Custer, Delta, Dolores, Eagle, Elbert, El Paso, Gilpin, Grand, Gunnison, Hinsdale, Huerfano, Jefferson, Lake, La Plata, Larimer, Las Amimas, Mesa, Montrose, Ouray, Park, Pitkin, Pueblo, Rio Grande, Routt, Saguache, San Juan, San Miguel, Summit, Weld

Why This Collection 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 Web Sites
1885 Colorado State Census: Arapahoe County

1885 Delta County Colorado Census Index

Colorado and Indian Census Records at the Colorado State Archives

Colorado State Census, 1885

Related Wiki Articles
Colorado Census

Colorado Censuses Existing and Lost

Citing FamilySearch Historical Collections
When you copy information from a record, you should also 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
"Colorado Census, 1885." index and images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org): accessed March 18, 2011. entry for George Lewis, age 28; citing Census Records Mesa, 1, Populated, Image 7; National Archives and Records Administration, District of Columbia.

Sources of Information for This Collection:
Colorado State Census, 1885, images, FamilySearch; (http://familysearch.org); from National Archives and Records Administration, District of Columbia. FHL microfilm, 8 rolls. Family History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah.