Guides: URBS 210: The Wire and the City : Census Information

What is an enumeration district?

"An enumeration district, as used by the Bureau of the Census, was an area that could be covered by a single enumerator (census taker) in one census period. Enumeration districts varied in size from several city blocks in densely populated urban areas to an entire county in sparsely populated rural areas" (1940 Census website from the National Archives)

Census Resources

Social Explorer
Published tables and mappable variables for Decennial Census / American Community Survey data: census tract, 1940- ; ZIP Codes (well, ...), 1980- ;counties, 1790- .. Choose field 160: Place for city level data. Many more data sources are provided too.
IPUMS USA
US census public-use microdata - individual questionnaire responses - harmonized for crossyear analysis. Provides crosstabulation tools and data extraction for offline analysis. 1% or 5% samples provided for all Decennial Census from 1850, and American Community Survey years + 100% samples for 1850, 1880, 1900 through 1940.
IPUMS-USA Variables
Handy access to Decennial Census and American Community Survey questions, 1850- , as public-use microdata variables. Also see:
• Measuring America : the decennial censuses from 1790 to 2000
The Census Bureau's brief history of the Census, with facsimile questionnaires and operational histories for each decennial census.
Ancestry Library Edition
The library version of Ancestry.com. Searchable access to census schedules, birth records and other administrative records, even high school yearbooks! Includes page images.
1940 Census Records (National Archives)
This website allows you full access to the 1940 census images, in addition to 1940 census maps and descriptions. Note that you cannot search cross-streets, so in some cases it will be more efficient to find an enumeration district number rather than browsing by location.
1940 Census Enumeration District maps : Baltimore City / US National Archives
Maps of enumeration district boundaries for Baltimore City.
Unified Enumeration District Finder
Enumerator Instructions
More enumeration district information / US National Archives
Finding ED geographic definitions and streets.
Baltimore City Directories, 1796-1959
Includes information on tracking street name changes in Baltimore City: house addresses were officially renumbered in Fall 1886.
Genealogy of Baltimore County Subdivisions / Baltimore City Archives
Baltimore City ward boundaries depicted, from 1797-1918 (when the current 28-ward geography was adopted).

Finding current Decennial Census / American Community Survey geography from an address

Social Explorer and PolicyMap will place your address within some census geographies but not all.

Census Geocoder / US Census Bureau
• To learn lat/lon and census geography for single-address lookups, use "Finding Geographies Using ... One Line or Address".
• To learn lat/long and census geography for many addresses (up to 10,000!), use "Finding Geographies Using ... Address Batch".
WARNING. If you are using addresses gathered from confidential sources, you should avoid using 3rd-party geocoders.

Finding Census Schedules from an Address (1940 only)

The National Archives have made 1940 Census records available online through the 1940 Census website. This site is set up for browsing by location. While you can browse by street name, many streets are long and will show you large numbers of results, so in order to find Census schedules for a small area of interest, it is most efficient to find the enumeration district number first.

In order to research your neighborhood of interest:

Find a range of addresses and intersections representative of your neighborhood of interest (use Google Maps, etc.).
Use the Unified Census ED Finder to find correct enumeration district by street intersection. Make sure to select 1940 as the year at the top.
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 to the 1940 Census website and enter the state and enumeration district of interest. You may have to flip through many pages to find your location of interest.

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, etc.).
Go to Ancestry Library Edition
Navigate to US Census Records, then year of choice.
Navigate to Maryland, Baltimore (Independent City), 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.
In the Unified Census ED Finder, enter cross streets for your neighborhood of interest (the house number features 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.

Census Manuscript

Year: 1940; Census Place: Baltimore City, Baltimore, Maryland Enumeration District: 4-495