Guides: URBS 103: Industrial Metropolis Course Guide: Deciphering Census Manuscripts

Census Resources

Ancestry Library Edition
Genealogical collection covering the United States and the United Kingdom, including census, vital, church, court, and immigration records, as well as record collections from Canada and other areas. The Ancestry Library Edition collection has approximately 4,000 databases including key collections such as U.S. Federal Census images and indexes from 1790 to 1930; the Map Center containing more than 1,000 historical maps; American Genealogical Biographical Index (over 200 volumes); Daughters of the American Revolution Lineage (over 150 volumes); The Great Migration Begins: Immigrants to New England, 1620-1630; Social Security Death Index (updated monthly); WWI Draft Registration Cards; Federal Slave Narratives; and a strong Civil War collection.

Social Explorer
Tract-level data, 1940 to the present. For earlier years, data are available by county and state.
Unified Enumeration District Finder
An urban finding aid for the 1880 federal census of Philadelphia
Maps of enumeration districts. In print in the Van Pelt Library Reference Stacks.
IPUMS-USA Variables
Information on which questions were asked in which census years.
Genealogy of Philadelphia County Subdivisions
Maps of Philadelphia wards as they've changed.
Philadelphia Historic Streets Index
Uncover street name changes.
Measuring America
schedules and enumerator instructions by census.
Ward-level census tables

Finding Census Schedules from an Address

Note: Some Ancestry functionality is currently limited for off-campus users. Browsing Census schedules by enumeration district is currently available on-campus only.
For 1940 Census schedules only, see also http://1940census.archives.gov/, an open access project of the National Archives

Ancestry.com is a useful tool for accessing census schedules. Unfortunately for researchers of cities, it was designed primarily for genealogists, and therefore is much easier to search by name of resident rather than location of residence. In order to research your neighborhood of interest:

Find a range of addresses and intersections representative of your neighborhood of interest (use Google Maps, Philadelphia Geohistory Network Map Viewer, etc.). You may want to use the Philadelphia Historic Street Index to make sure that the street hasn't changed names over the decades.
Go to Ancestry Library Edition
Navigate to US Census Records at the bottom of the page, then year of choice.
Navigate to Pennsylvania, Philadelphia County, and note how the city is divided up (wards, enumeration districts, etc.).
For 1880-1940, use Unified Census ED Finder to find correct enumeration district by street intersection. Make sure to select the year of interest at the top. For 1880, you can also use An urban finding aid for the 1880 federal population census of Philadelphia
In the Unified Census ED Finder, enter cross streets for your neighborhood of interest (the house number feature doesn't work so well), then click on "More Details."
Go back to Ancestry and find the ward and enumeration district of interest. You may have to flip through many pages to find your location of interest.