Section of the 1850 census form, with printed type and some parts filled in by hand. Race categories are circled in red. In 1870, the census added a “Chinese” category as anxieties over ...

The topic of racial identification on census forms has a long, fascinating history, which has generated fresh debate as the 2010 Census begins. Why, some ask, does the form include the word “Negro,” ...

This 1850 census was the first made after California ... was published in book form in 1929. The census taker went from house to house, listing all the occupants and numbering the houses in ...