Search the 1870 U.S. Census

Key facts

  • The count for the 1870 census began on June 1, 1870 and lasted five months.
  • 39,818,449 people were counted.
  • The census included 37 states and the territories of Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Colorado, Idaho, Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Washington, Indiana, and Dakota.
  • There were four new states in the 1870 census: West Virginia, Nebraska, Kansas, and Nevada.
  • The 1870 census was the first census after the Civil War and the end of slavery.
  • The 1870 census was the first census to list everyone individually, including previously enslaved people.

Information listed on the census

  • Name of each person in the household
  • Age
  • Sex
  • Color
  • Birthplace
  • Marital status within the previous year
  • Month of marriage, if married within previous year
  • Deaf, dumb, blind, or insane
  • Occupation
  • Whether they'd attended school in the previous year
  • Ability to read and write
  • Value of home
  • Value of personal estate
  • City, village, town, or borough
  • County

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