1880 United States census

10th US national census

1880 United States census

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| ← 1870 | June 1, 1880 (1880-06-01) | 1890 →

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Seal of the Department of the Interior

Thomas Edison in the 1880 U.S. census

General information
Country| United States
Authority| Census Office
Results
Total population| 50,189,209 ( 30.2%)
Most populous state| New York
5,082,871
Least populous state| Nevada
62,266

The 1880 United States census, conducted by the Census Office during June 1880, was the tenth United States census.[1] It was the first time that women were permitted to be enumerators.[2] The Superintendent of the Census was Francis Amasa Walker.[3] This was the first census in which a city—New York City—recorded a population of over one million, and the first census in which the 20 most populated cities all recorded over 100,000 residents.

## Data collected

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Five schedules were authorized by the 1880 Census Act, four of which were filled out by the enumerators:[4]

* Schedule 1 (Population), which was similar to that used for the previous census, with a few exceptions.[5]
* Schedule 2 (Mortality), which used the same inquiries as in 1870, and added inquiries to record marital status, birthplace of parents, length of residence in the United States or territory, and name of place where the disease was contracted, if other than place of death.
* Schedule 3 (Agriculture), which greatly expanded inquiries concerning various crops (including acreage for principal crop), and included questions on farm tenure, weeks of hired labor, annual cost for fence building and repair, fertilizer purchases, and the number of livestock.
* Schedule 5 (Manufacturing), which expanded to include information on the greatest number of hands employed at any time during the year, the number of hours in the ordinary work day from May to November and November to May, the average daily wages paid to skilled mechanics and laborers, months of full-and part-time operation, and machinery used.

Schedule 4 (Social statistics) was the responsibility of experts and special agents, rather than the enumerators.[4] The majority of the data came from correspondence with officials of institutions providing care and treatment of certain members of the population. Experts and special agents also were employed to collect data on valuation, taxation, and indebtedness; religion and libraries; colleges, academies, and schools; newspapers and periodicals, and wages.[4]

Special agents were also charged with collecting data on specific industries throughout the country, and included the manufactures of iron and steel; cotton, woolen, and worsted goods; silk and silk goods; chemical products and salt; coke and glass; shipbuilding; and all aspects of fisheries and mining, including the production of coal and petroleum.[4]

Full documentation for the 1880 population census, including census forms and enumerator instructions, is available from the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series, which contains microdata.

## Data availability

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The original census enumeration sheets were microfilmed by the Census Bureau; after which the original sheets were transferred to various state archives, libraries, or universities.[6] The microfilmed census is available in rolls from the National Archives and Records Administration. Several organizations also host images of the microfilmed census online, along which digital indices.

Microdata from the 1880 population census are freely available through the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series. Aggregate data for small areas, together with compatible cartographic boundary files, can be downloaded from the National Historical Geographic Information System.

## Results

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The 1880 census determined the resident population of the United States to be 50,189,209, an increase of 30.2 percent over the 38,555,983 persons enumerated during the 1870 census.[7] The mean center of United States population for 1880 was in Boone County, Kentucky.

The results from the census were used to determine the apportionment for the 48th, 49th, 50th, 51st, and 52nd sessions of the United States Congress.

The processing of the 1880 census data took so long (eight years) that the Census Bureau contracted Herman Hollerith to design and build a tabulating machine to be used for the next census.[8][9] The 1880 census also led to the discovery of the Alabama paradox.

Source: Table I, Population of the United States, by States and Territories[10]

Rank | State | Population

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01 | New York | 5,082,871
02 | Pennsylvania | 4,282,891
03 | Ohio | 3,198,062
04 | Illinois | 3,077,871
05 | Missouri | 2,168,380
06 | Indiana | 1,978,301
07 | Massachusetts | 1,783,085
08 | Kentucky | 1,648,690
09 | Michigan | 1,636,937
10 | Iowa | 1,624,615
11 | Texas | 1,591,749
12 | Tennessee | 1,542,359
13 | Georgia | 1,542,180
14 | Virginia | 1,512,565
15 | North Carolina | 1,399,750
16 | Wisconsin | 1,315,497
17 | Alabama | 1,262,505
18 | Mississippi | 1,131,597
19 | New Jersey | 1,131,116
20 | Kansas | 996,096
21 | South Carolina | 995,577
22 | Louisiana | 939,946
23 | Maryland | 934,943
24 | California | 864,694
25 | Arkansas | 802,525
26 | Minnesota | 780,773
27 | Maine | 648,936
28 | Connecticut | 622,700
29 | West Virginia | 618,457
30 | Nebraska | 452,402
31 | New Hampshire | 346,991
32 | Vermont | 332,286
33 | Rhode Island | 276,531
34 | Florida | 269,493
35 | Colorado | 194,327
X | District of Columbia [11] | 177,624
36 | Oregon | 174,768
37 | Delaware | 146,608
X | Utah | 143,963
X | New Mexico | 119,565
X | South Dakota | 98,268[12]
X | Washington | 75,116
38 | Nevada | 62,266
X | Arizona | 40,440
X | Montana | 39,159
X | North Dakota | 36,909[12]
X | Idaho | 32,610
X | Wyoming | 20,789

## City rankings

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Rank | City | State | Population[13] | Region (2016)[14]

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01 | New York | New York | 1,206,299 | Northeast
02 | Philadelphia | Pennsylvania | 847,170 | Northeast
03 | Brooklyn | New York | 566,663 | Northeast
04 | Chicago | Illinois | 503,185 | Midwest
05 | Boston | Massachusetts | 362,839 | Northeast
06 | St. Louis | Missouri | 350,518 | Midwest
07 | Baltimore | Maryland | 332,313 | South
08 | Cincinnati | Ohio | 255,139 | Midwest
09 | San Francisco | California | 233,959 | West
10 | New Orleans | Louisiana | 216,090 | South
11 | Cleveland | Ohio | 160,146 | Midwest
12 | Pittsburgh | Pennsylvania | 156,389 | Northeast
13 | Buffalo | New York | 155,134 | Northeast
14 | Washington | District of Columbia | 147,293 | South
15 | Newark | New Jersey | 136,508 | Northeast
16 | Louisville | Kentucky | 123,758 | South
17 | Jersey City | New Jersey | 120,722 | Northeast
18 | Detroit | Michigan | 116,340 | Midwest
19 | Milwaukee | Wisconsin | 115,587 | Midwest
20 | Providence | Rhode Island | 104,857 | Northeast
21 | Albany | New York | 90,758 | Northeast
22 | Rochester | New York | 89,366 | Northeast
23 | Allegheny | Pennsylvania | 78,682 | Northeast
24 | Indianapolis | Indiana | 75,056 | Midwest
25 | Richmond | Virginia | 63,600 | South
26 | New Haven | Connecticut | 62,882 | Northeast
27 | Lowell | Massachusetts | 59,475 | Northeast
28 | Worcester | Massachusetts | 58,291 | Northeast
29 | Troy | New York | 56,747 | Northeast
30 | Kansas City | Missouri | 55,785 | Midwest
31 | Cambridge | Massachusetts | 52,669 | Northeast
32 | Syracuse | New York | 51,792 | Northeast
33 | Columbus | Ohio | 51,647 | Midwest
34 | Paterson | New Jersey | 51,031 | Northeast
35 | Toledo | Ohio | 50,137 | Midwest
36 | Charleston | South Carolina | 49,984 | South
37 | Fall River | Massachusetts | 48,961 | Northeast
38 | Minneapolis | Minnesota | 46,887 | Midwest
39 | Scranton | Pennsylvania | 45,850 | Northeast
40 | Nashville | Tennessee | 43,350 | South
41 | Reading | Pennsylvania | 43,278 | Northeast
42 | Wilmington | Delaware | 42,478 | South
43 | Hartford | Connecticut | 42,015 | Northeast
44 | Camden | New Jersey | 41,659 | Northeast
45 | Saint Paul | Minnesota | 41,473 | Midwest
46 | Lawrence | Massachusetts | 39,151 | Northeast
47 | Dayton | Ohio | 38,678 | Midwest
48 | Lynn | Massachusetts | 38,274 | Northeast
49 | Atlanta | Georgia | 37,409 | South
50 | Denver | Colorado | 35,629 | West
51 | Oakland | California | 34,555 | West
52 | Utica | New York | 33,914 | Northeast
53 | Portland | Maine | 33,810 | Northeast
54 | Memphis | Tennessee | 33,592 | South
55 | Springfield | Massachusetts | 33,340 | Northeast
56 | Manchester | New Hampshire | 32,630 | Northeast
57 | St. Joseph | Missouri | 32,431 | Midwest
58 | Grand Rapids | Michigan | 32,016 | Midwest
59 | Hoboken | New Jersey | 30,999 | Northeast
60 | Harrisburg | Pennsylvania | 30,762 | Northeast
61 | Wheeling | West Virginia | 30,737 | South
62 | Savannah | Georgia | 30,709 | South
63 | Omaha | Nebraska | 30,518 | Midwest
64 | Trenton | New Jersey | 29,910 | Northeast
65 | Covington | Kentucky | 29,720 | South
66 | Evansville | Indiana | 29,280 | Midwest
67 | Peoria | Illinois | 29,259 | Midwest
68 | Mobile | Alabama | 29,132 | South
69 | Elizabeth | New Jersey | 28,229 | Northeast
70 | Erie | Pennsylvania | 27,737 | Northeast
71 | Bridgeport | Connecticut | 27,643 | Northeast
72 | Salem | Massachusetts | 27,563 | Northeast
73 | Quincy | Illinois | 27,268 | Midwest
74 | Fort Wayne | Indiana | 26,880 | Midwest
75 | New Bedford | Massachusetts | 26,845 | Northeast
76 | Terre Haute | Indiana | 26,042 | Midwest
77 | Lancaster | Pennsylvania | 25,769 | Northeast
78 | Somerville | Massachusetts | 24,933 | Northeast
79 | Wilkes-Barre | Pennsylvania | 23,339 | Northeast
80 | Des Moines | Iowa | 22,408 | Midwest
81 | Dubuque | Iowa | 22,254 | Midwest
82 | Galveston | Texas | 22,248 | South
83 | Norfolk | Virginia | 21,966 | South
84 | Auburn | New York | 21,924 | Northeast
85 | Holyoke | Massachusetts | 21,915 | Northeast
86 | Augusta | Georgia | 21,891 | South
87 | Davenport | Iowa | 21,831 | Midwest
88 | Chelsea | Massachusetts | 21,782 | Northeast
89 | Petersburg | Virginia | 21,656 | South
90 | Sacramento | California | 21,420 | West
91 | Taunton | Massachusetts | 21,213 | Northeast
92 | Oswego | New York | 21,116 | Northeast
93 | Salt Lake City | Utah | 20,768 | West
94 | Springfield | Ohio | 20,730 | Midwest
95 | Bay City | Michigan | 20,693 | Midwest
96 | San Antonio | Texas | 20,550 | South
97 | Elmira | New York | 20,541 | Northeast
98 | Newport | Kentucky | 20,433 | South
99 | Poughkeepsie | New York | 20,207 | Northeast
100 | Springfield | Illinois | 19,743 | Midwest

## External links

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* Library of Congress research guide for 1880 census \- links to primary documents

## References

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1. ^ 1880 Census: Instructions to Enumerators from IPUMS, a website of the Minnesota Population Center at the University of Minnesota
2. ^ From Inkwell To Internet: 1880 from the U.S. Census Bureau
3. ^ Billings, John S. (1902). "Biographical Memoir of Francis Amasa Walker 1840–1897" (PDF). National Academy Press. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved June 19, 2009.
4. ^ a b c d [1] from the U.S. Census Bureau
5. ^ Scanned images of Schedule 1 (both low-resolution and high-resolution) are available from Historical Forms and Questions: 1880 at the U.S. Census Bureau website
6. ^ Algonquin Area Public Library District. "Census Secrets" (PDF). Retrieved May 17, 2012.[permanent dead link]
7. ^ Resident Population of the United States from a State of Wyoming website
8. ^ Anderson, Margo J. (2015). The American Census, A Social History, 2nd ed. Yale. p. 102. "The final volumes of the 1880 census were published in 1888" thus 1880, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 – eight years at least
9. ^ Tabulating machines [2] from an Early Office Museum website [3]
10. ^ 1880 Census: Volume 1. Statistics of the Population of the United States [4] (PDF)
11. ^ The District of Columbia is not a state but was created with the passage of the Residence Act of 1790.
12. ^ a b In 1880, South Dakota and North Dakota together formed the Dakota Territory, and so the census reported their combined population of 135,177. 1880 Census: Volume 1. Statistics of the Population of the United States [5] (PDF)
13. ^ Population of the 100 Largest Cities and Other Urban Places in the United States: 1790 to 1990, U.S. Census Bureau, 1998
14. ^ "Regions and Divisions". U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on December 3, 2016. Retrieved September 9, 2016.

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