The following article by my friend Bill Dollarhide is a comprehensive listing of data and links relating to the 1880 United States Federal Census Short Forms:
Prologue: In 1880, for the first time, the all new Census Office in Washington, DC, was given full power to hire its own census takers and take full control of the job of taking the census across the country. The federal court system was no longer involved, and the secretaries of state were bypassed as well. The new, improved Census Office did a marvelous job of it. Five times the number of enumerators were used in conducting the 1880 census compared with the 1870.
Census Copies. In the 1850-1870 census years, the originals had remained in the county courthouses, while copies were made and transmitted to Washington, DC. In 1880 only, an original and one Short Form copy of the census schedules were made. The original schedules were the ones transmitted to the Census Office in Washington, DC, while the Short Form copies were kept at each county courthouse. 1880 was the last census year in which any copy at all was made of the census schedules. From 1900 forward, there was only one original copy made, and in fact, after the originals were microfilmed by the Census Bureau during the World War II years, the originals from 1900-1940 were destroyed.
1880 Short Form: The county copy, or Short Form, was an abbreviated copy of the census name lists, designed to be on public display at a courthouse after the census was completed. The enabling law for the 1880 census called for a census day of June 1, 1880, with 30 days to complete the enumeration. The Short Forms were prepared by the census supervisor for every U.S. county, consisted of a list of residents in loose alphabetical order, with each person’s name, age, sex, and color. Pages labeled “A” would have surnames beginning with the letter A, but not alphabetized after the first letter. Also, there was no retention of complete family groups, i.e., persons within a family with different surnames; nor were there relationships given for family members. However, the Short Form name lists did provided a complete index to the names of all persons enumerated in a county – the first census index ever done.
What happened to the 1880 Short Forms? There were 2,570 counties in the U.S. in 1880, and each of them retained a copy of their 1880 Short Forms as an index to their county residents. By law, they were put on public display for one month at each county courthouse. After the month of August 1880, the counties could do what they wanted with the Short Forms. For a few years after the 1880 census they were an item of great interest in the communities. Since the Short Forms provided an every-name index to the inhabitants of a county, it was a unique directory, mailing list, voter list, and in some cases, the only means by which local politicians could learn the names of their constituents. In fact, they were too popular to remain in one place. They were often borrowed by businesses, politicians, or government officials.
However, it is ironic that the great interest in the 1880 Short Forms is what led to their disappearance. Soon after the 1880 Short Forms were made public, an array of every-name City Directories began appearing in print for virtually every city of the United States. City directories before 1880 were mainly business/trade directories, and those with the names of every head of house in a town/city/county were actually quite rare. The success of the 1880 Short Forms revealed to the directory publishers that there was a demand for more detailed name lists, and began producing them in great numbers. As a result of annual directories being published with updated name lists, the 1880 Short Forms soon became obsolete.
How to find an old 1880 County Short Form today. A county-by-county search in the state archives inventories, FHL catalog, and local repositories, reveals that there are only 48 counties of the U.S. with surviving 1880 Short Forms. Most are on microfilm, and a few of them have been digitally captured by the Genealogical Society of Utah (all FHL microfilm will eventually be converted into digital images). However, a few have never been microfilmed and have been sitting in a clerk’s office for over 138 years. Over half of the counties are New York counties – most likely a result of the language of the 1825 law in New York for the first state census taken there. The law required the county clerk in each New York county to “carefully save and preserve” the state census originals. Many of the clerks probably decided that meant all censuses, and “carefully saved and preserved” their federal census originals as well. There are more surviving county copies of federal censuses in New York than any other state, by far.
Source of the List: Each of the countywide resource lists for 3,146 U.S. counties were visited between January 2017 and July 2018. Using state/local archival inventories or the FHL catalog, the discovery of any county’s surviving 1880 Short Forms was part of the research for Dollarhide’s 52-book series Censuses & Substitute Name Lists. That research is how the following list was made possible:
The List. Here are the States and Territories in place at the time of the 1880 census. The list shows any state/territory with counties having an original county copy of their 1880 Federal Census (Short Form) and where the originals are located today. If on microfilm at the FHL in Salt Lake City, FHL film numbers are included, with a link to the online FHL catalog page. Any of the rolls with digital images are highlighted.
Alabama. None found.
Alaska Department. None taken. Alaska Purchase/Department, 1867; District, 1883; First census, 1900; Territory, 1912.
Arizona Territory. None found.
Arkansas. None found.
California. None found.
Colorado. None found.
Connecticut. None found.
Dakota Territory. None found. Dakota Territory was divided into the states of North Dakota and South Dakota in 1889.
Delaware. None found.
District of Columbia. None found.
Florida. None found.
Georgia. 2 counties found, both filmed under the title, Lists of Persons Enumerated in the 1880 Federal Census for Georgia:
1) Crawford County, originals at the Georgia Archives: FHL film #7013, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/196827
2) Franklin County, originals at the Georgia Archives, FHL film #7016, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/196827
Hawaii. None taken. Republic of Hawaii annexed to the U.S., 1898, territory/first census, 1900.
Idaho Territory. None found.
Illinois. None found.
Indiana. None found.
Iowa. 2 counties found:
1) Floyd County, originals at the courthouse, Charles City, IA, 2-vols.,1 roll, FHL film #1481693, for access to the digital images, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/429005.
2) Hardin County, originals at the courthouse, Eldora, IA, 2-vols., 2 rolls, FHL film #1547838. The first of the two rolls (Ackley, et al) is the only one digitized to date, for the microfilm and digital images, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/619407.
Kansas. 1 county found:
1) Brown County, originals at the courthouse, Hiawatha, KS, 1 roll, FHL film #1871055, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/673870.
Kentucky. None found.
Louisiana. None found.
Maine. 3 counties found:
1) Androscoggin County, originals at the courthouse, Auburn, ME, 1 roll, FHL film #10521, see
www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/124189.
2) Kennebec County, originals at the courthouse, Augusta, ME, 2 rolls, FHL film #11316 (Surnames A-R) and film #11317 (Surnames S-Z), see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/233154.
3) Waldo County, originals at the courthouse, Belfast, ME, 1 roll, FHL film #12414, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/90941.
Maryland. None found.
Massachusetts. 1 county found:
1) Hampden County, originals at the courthouse, Springfield, MA, 4 vols., 2 rolls, FHL film #1451427, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/484045.
Michigan. 11 counties found, originals located at the State Archives, Lansing, MI, except as noted below:
1) Barry County, 1 roll, FHL film #915282, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/328102.
2) Eaton County, 1 roll, FHL film #915304, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/328104.
3) Ionia County, 1 roll, FHL film #915310, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/328159.
4) Kalamazoo County, 1 roll, FHL film #915313, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/328173.
5) Kent County, 1 roll, FHL film #984115, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/156549.
6) Keweenaw County, 1 roll, FHL film #915274, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/328142.
7) Lapeer County, 1 roll, FHL film #915317, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/328144.
8) Mecosta County, 1 roll, FHL film #915321, for access to the digital images, see
www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/53820.
9) Oceana County, 1 roll, FHL film #915328, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/328205.
10) Ottawa County, 1 roll, FHL film #915330, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/328210.
11) Washtenaw County, 1 roll, FHL film #955815, originals at the Bentley Library, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/291357.
Minnesota. None found.
Mississippi. 1 county found:
1) Harrison County, originals at one of two courthouses, Biloxi or Gulfport, MS, 1 roll, FHL film #2230573, for access to the digital images, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/1014305.
Missouri. None found.
Montana Territory. None found.
Nebraska. None found.
Nevada. None found.
New Hampshire. None found.
New Jersey. None found.
New Mexico Territory. None found.
New York. 27 counties found:
1) Albany County, originals at the Albany County Hall of Records, Albany, NY, 4 vols., 4 rolls, FHL film #521940-521943, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/444255.
2) Allegany County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Belmont, NY, 1 roll, FHL film #506765, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/762110.
3) Broome County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Binghamton, NY, 2 rolls, FHL film #808832-808833, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/171023.
4) Cattaraugus County, originals at the courthouse, Little Valley, NY, 2 rolls, FHL film #584493-584494. for the digital images, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/761645.
5) Cayuga County, originals at the County Office Building, Auburn, NY, 2 rolls, FHL film #853208-853209, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/225617.
6) Chautauqua County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Mayville, NY, 2 rolls, FHL film #479646-479647, for the digital images, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/242573.
7) Columbia County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Hudson, NY, 2 rolls, FHL film #479103-479104, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/281327.
8) Cortland County, originals at the County Clerk/Historian Office, Cortland, NY. The 1880 Census Short Forms have never been microfilmed, for information, visit the County Historian’s Facebook page, see
www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=office%20of%20the%20cortland%20county%20historian.
9) Fulton County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Johnstown, NY, 1 roll, FHL film #465984, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/187549.
10) Green County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Catskill, NY, 1 roll, FHL film #480080, see
www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/239628.
11) Livingston County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Geneseo, NY, 2 rolls, FHL film #510546 and #510549, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/173775.
12) Madison County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Wampsville, NY, 2 rolls, FHL Film #408499-408500, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/246408.
13) Monroe County, originals at the County Historian’s Office, Rochester City Library, Rochester, NY. The 1880 Census Short Forms have never been microfilmed, for information, see https://roccitylibrary.org/rochester-images/monroe-county-historians-office.
14) Oneida County, originals at the Utica Public Library, Utica, NY, 2 rolls, FHL film #1435185-435186, for the digital images, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/554698.
15) Ontario County, originals at Records, Archives, and Information Management Services (RAIMS), Canandaigua, NY, 6 vols., 2 rolls, FHL film #590812-590813, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/177045.
16) Orange County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Goshen, NY. The 1880 Census Short Forms have never been microfilmed, for information, visit the Orange County Historian’s website, see www.orangecountygov.com/1045/Historian.
17) Orleans County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Albion, NY, 1 roll, FHL film #592750, see
www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/90090.
18) Otsego County, originals located at the Huntington Memorial Library, Oneonta, NY. The 1880 Census Short Forms have never been microfilmed, for information, see http://hmloneonta.org/ny-room/materials.
19) Rensselaer County, original records at the County Clerk’s Office, Troy, NY, 5 rolls, FHL film #549900-549903, & 550436, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/621277.
20) Richmond County, original records at the Municipal Archives, New York City, NY, 1 roll, FHL film #946691, for the digital images, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/262955.
21) Rockland County, originals at the County Archives, Pomona, NY, 2 rolls, FHL film #564817/19, for the digital images, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/295280.
22) Schenectady County, originals at the courthouse, Schenectady, NY, 1 roll, FHL film #513833, see
www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/187545.
23) Schuyler County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Watkins Glen, NY. Microfilm is available at the New York State Archives, for information, see www.archives.nysed.gov/research/res_topics_gen_guide_cen.shtml.
24) Steuben County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Bath, NY, 3 rolls, FHL film #519415-519417, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/239473.
25) Tompkins County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Ithaca, NY, 1 roll, FHL film #853062, see
www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/231403.
26) Washington County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Fort Edwards, NY, 2 rolls, FHL film #512703-512704, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/117598.
27) Wyoming County, originals at the County Clerk’s Office, Warsaw, NY, 1 roll, FHL film #817071, for the digital images, see www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/173168.
North Carolina. None found.
North Dakota. See Dakota Territory. North Dakota became a state in 1889.
Ohio. None found.
Oklahoma. None taken. Oklahoma, territory, 1890; state, 1907.
Oregon. None found.
Pennsylvania. None found.
Rhode Island. None found.
South Carolina. None found.
South Dakota. See Dakota Territory . South Dakota became a state in 1889.
Tennessee. None found.
Texas. None found.
Utah Territory. None found.
Vermont. None found.
Virginia. None found.
Washington Territory. None found.
West Virginia. None found.
Wisconsin. None found.
Wyoming Territory. None found.
Further Reading:
GenealogyBlog article, see Repositories Holding 1880 Federal Census Originals.
The 1880 Federal Census: A Quick Look: A Genealogists’ Insta-Guide.
New York State Censuses & Substitutes. Details for each of New York’s 62 counties.
GenealogyBlog article, see Old City Directories – Before the Internet.
This interesting article reminds me that the Wisconsin Historical Society has the original state copy manuscripts of the 1850, 1860 and 1870 U.S. Censuses. How many of those have survived nationwide?
To Dan Litzer: Thanks for your comment…
I am in the middle of compiling a list of states holding original state copies of the 1850, 1860, 1870 census (the only years in which any state copies were made). So far, I can tell you that certain years exist for Wisconsin (1850,1860, 1870); Michigan (1860 certain counties only), Minnesota (1850, 1860), and Colorado Territory (1870). There may be others, but that is all I have found so far.
Would you believe it… my Census Book was done in 1999, covered details on all censuses through 1930… and here it is 2019 (already?) and a new edition of the Census Book is in work – lists of available state copies of federal censuses is one of the things that will be added to the new edition.
From the new Census Book:
The 1880 Short Form name lists were an instant success. Businessmen, politicians, government people, and others clamored to get their hands on the 1880 Short Form lists, because they were perhaps the only directory/index to the names of the inhabitants of a county at that time.
Before 1880, most commercial directories were primarily related to businesses, not individual households. There were very few countywide directories that named every head of household, let alone the names of spouses, children, boarders, etc. The popularity of the 1880 Short Form gave several directory publishers the incentive to produce their own versions, and some began producing a new publication every year thereafter. The initial popularity of the 1880 Short Form listing waned after a few years because the availability of updated every-name directories made them obsolete. For that reason, there are few of the original 1880 Short Form lists still around today.