There is a debate raging just now whether the 2020 Census enumeration should collect data regarding the citizenship of those who respond. The politics of the debate lie outside the realm of genealogy. As family history researchers, we just want to know. We must know. It keeps us awake at night, not knowing where our GGGGM was born. If it was up to us, every Census would include shoe size and food preferences.
While it is easy to read each Census and see in it responses to the events of the day, the basic reason for the Census is established by the Constitution. Under Article One, Section 2 of the Constitution, the sole and single reason for the Census is to calculate the size of the delegation each State can send to the U.S. House of Representatives. The Constitution directs that the enumeration is to include all persons, "Excepting Indians not taxed." The manner of enumeration was changed by the 14th Amendment in the wake of Emancipation, but it still didn't have anything to do with immigration or citizenship, just the number of people subject to paying taxes. Please feel free to verify this for yourself.
The first Census to pay overt attention to the question of citizenship is the 1820, which aims in general for a surprising level of granularity. This Census has a category for, "Foreigners not Naturalized." This is not a separate category from the various and many age groups, but indicates whether any one of the free persons in the household was foreign born, but not naturalized. Could be anyone among those already categorized in the household. I'm not sure how this was helpful, because it's so very vague.
No Census prior to 1850 asked specifically where anyone was born, and 1850 and 1860 asked only for the place of birth for each enumerated individual. In 1870, the Census asked whether an enumerated individual's parents were foreign born, as a, "Yes/No," question. Beginning in 1880, enumerators asked not only for the place of each enumerated individual's birth, but the specific place of birth for each of their parents.
As you likely know, most of the 1890 Census is lost, so I will move on to 1900, which asked specific and direct questions regarding immigration and naturalization. Not only is each enumerated person asked for their own place of birth and that of their Father and Mother, but those who were foreign born were also asked the year they immigrated, how many years they had been in the US, and whether they were naturalized or retained the legal status of alien, as it was then called.
The next three Censuses asked for similar information, with slight variations. The 1910 Census asks for place of birth, parents' places of birth, and for those foreign born, the year of immigration and whether naturalized. The 1920 Census asks for place of birth for the individual and each parent, and if foreign born, the year of immigration, whether or not naturalized, and if naturalized, what year. In 1930, enumerators asked for places of birth for the enumerated individual and their parents, and if foreign born, the year of immigration, whether naturalized, and whether the individual was able to speak English.
The 1940 Census asked for the place of birth for each enumerated individual, and the citizenship of the foreign born. This Census traded the attention previously paid to immigration for attention paid to work history, for obvious reasons. It is also the only Census to ask for place of residence between it and the previous Census enumeration, also for obvious reasons. If you can't find your folks in a City Directory search during the Depression, the 1940 Census can give you a clue. Only random individuals were asked about the birth place of their parents.
While the full Census data is not available for 1950 Census onward, you can find reports containing aggregate data. Just Google for the year you want and multiple links will be made available to you. The aggregate data will tell you what was asked, but all of this lies outside the realm of genealogy, at least until the 1950 Census is released to the public in 2022.
While it is easy to read each Census and see in it responses to the events of the day, the basic reason for the Census is established by the Constitution. Under Article One, Section 2 of the Constitution, the sole and single reason for the Census is to calculate the size of the delegation each State can send to the U.S. House of Representatives. The Constitution directs that the enumeration is to include all persons, "Excepting Indians not taxed." The manner of enumeration was changed by the 14th Amendment in the wake of Emancipation, but it still didn't have anything to do with immigration or citizenship, just the number of people subject to paying taxes. Please feel free to verify this for yourself.
The first Census to pay overt attention to the question of citizenship is the 1820, which aims in general for a surprising level of granularity. This Census has a category for, "Foreigners not Naturalized." This is not a separate category from the various and many age groups, but indicates whether any one of the free persons in the household was foreign born, but not naturalized. Could be anyone among those already categorized in the household. I'm not sure how this was helpful, because it's so very vague.
No Census prior to 1850 asked specifically where anyone was born, and 1850 and 1860 asked only for the place of birth for each enumerated individual. In 1870, the Census asked whether an enumerated individual's parents were foreign born, as a, "Yes/No," question. Beginning in 1880, enumerators asked not only for the place of each enumerated individual's birth, but the specific place of birth for each of their parents.
As you likely know, most of the 1890 Census is lost, so I will move on to 1900, which asked specific and direct questions regarding immigration and naturalization. Not only is each enumerated person asked for their own place of birth and that of their Father and Mother, but those who were foreign born were also asked the year they immigrated, how many years they had been in the US, and whether they were naturalized or retained the legal status of alien, as it was then called.
The next three Censuses asked for similar information, with slight variations. The 1910 Census asks for place of birth, parents' places of birth, and for those foreign born, the year of immigration and whether naturalized. The 1920 Census asks for place of birth for the individual and each parent, and if foreign born, the year of immigration, whether or not naturalized, and if naturalized, what year. In 1930, enumerators asked for places of birth for the enumerated individual and their parents, and if foreign born, the year of immigration, whether naturalized, and whether the individual was able to speak English.
The 1940 Census asked for the place of birth for each enumerated individual, and the citizenship of the foreign born. This Census traded the attention previously paid to immigration for attention paid to work history, for obvious reasons. It is also the only Census to ask for place of residence between it and the previous Census enumeration, also for obvious reasons. If you can't find your folks in a City Directory search during the Depression, the 1940 Census can give you a clue. Only random individuals were asked about the birth place of their parents.
While the full Census data is not available for 1950 Census onward, you can find reports containing aggregate data. Just Google for the year you want and multiple links will be made available to you. The aggregate data will tell you what was asked, but all of this lies outside the realm of genealogy, at least until the 1950 Census is released to the public in 2022.
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