As genealogy researchers, the US census records are often some of the first records we search when looking at a family line. Typically, we pay more attention to the male ancestors listed in the pre-1850 census records. We (you can read that as “I”) usually fail to see our female ancestors in these records. I used to dread the point in my census research when my ancestors preceded the 1850 U.S. census.  (The truth is, I still do sometimes!) I especially dreaded those pre-1850 census records when I researched anyone other than the head of household. But then…. I understood my dread of the records stemmed from my lack…

You have been merrily tracking your ancestors back through the census records decade by decade. 1870……1860…..1850……1840…Wait!  What are those tick marks? Where did your ancestor go? How can you determine exactly who is in the household?  How do you even know if you have the correct family? Yes, these pre-1850 census records and those tick marks can provide you with valuable information on your ancestors. How to Make Sense of Those Tick Marks on Pre-1850 Census Records From 1790-1840 only the head of household was named and members of the household were recorded as tick marks in age range categories.  As with the post-1850 census record the type and amount of…