Census Records
If you would like to transcribe census records for USGenWeb, please visit the Census Transcription Project. Folks with a free account can search and view these census records at FamilySearch.org.Since Deaf Smith County was created in 1876, the first surviving census is from 1880 with 38 people. Before that, the citizens of this area were enumerated in Bexar County for 1850 to 1870.
Our sister-site in the Archives has transcriptions of 1880, 1900 and 1910 census records.
The 1850 Federal Census gives names, ages, places of birth, values of real estate, Color (White, black or mulatto) and occupations but also has columns for married within the year, attended school within the year, person over 20 who cannot read or write and "Whether deaf and dumb, blind, insane, idiotic, pauper or convict"; which can make interesting notes.
In addition to the 1850 columns, the 1860 census asked for value of personal property.
The 1870 census added columns for born within the year (asking for the month), whether parents were foreign-born and two questions about men over 20 (voting information).
For 1880, we have the first census to ask for marital status and relationships within a household.
The 1890 Federal Population Schedule burned before it could be copied; there are no existing records for this county.
The 1900 Federal Census is the first census to ask for years married and asks women how many children they've borne and how many are living. It also asked for the month and year that each person was born, the year they immigrated and whether they own or rent their homes. There are also colums for street addresses but they were not generally used in rural areas. The index to this census is available to everyone with a free account at the LDS on-line library.
1910 - This is the second census that asked for number of years married, number of children borne by females and number of living children. The index to this census is available to everyone with a free account at the LDS on-line library.
The 1920 census was enumerated in January and many families were missed, likely due to weather. It offers very little in the way of extra information except for the names of the roads on which the people lived. The index to this census is available to everyone with a free account at the LDS on-line library.
The 1930 offers addresses for folks in town, age at first marriage and veteran status. The index to this census is available to everyone with a free account at the LDS on-line library.
The 1940 offers addresses for folks in town, education level, residence in 1935, employment status and total income for 1939. The index to this census is available to everyone with a free account at the LDS on-line library.
The 1950 Federal Census desn't offer as much information as in prev years.