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Interpreting the Carroll Co Census Listings

Sample 1850 Listing

1    John                              Tipton           50 m     Farmer

Sample 1860 Listing

1/1  Marshall M.                     Ferguson           45 m     Hotelkeeper

Sample 1870 Listing

1/1  Morris                              John          35 mw     Farmer

Sample 1880 Listing

2/2  Hiatt                      Anderson     wm   40            m     Farmer
     ''                        Martha F.     wf   34          w m     Keeping House

Explanation

The leading number or pair of numbers is/are the visitation number(s). In 1850 there was only one number, the household number. Beginning with 1860 this was paired with a sequential family number. When two families reside in the same household, the household number was usually replaced with dashes, as in ---/128, but later the household number was often repeated, as in 127/128.
These numbers are followed by the name, age, and gender/race; except for 1880 when the sequence is name, gender/race and age. In 1850 and 1860, the race indicator was usually omitted for whites, while in 1870 and 1880, it was usually entered. I've use a lower case w to indicate whites when that was shown, and in the case of non-whites I've used upper case B for black and M for mulatto.
In 1880 only, the age was followed by an entry indicating the relationship of the individual to the head, and the marital status. The head of household only had the single letter indicating marital status.
The last entry is the occupation, or an indication that one of the special notations was made for the individual, such as month of birth, or whether the individual was idiotic, insane, maimed, blind, deaf, etc.

Marital Status

Relationship codes

Letter abbreviations for the relationship were chosen as simply as possible. I'm sure I've forgotten one ...

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Updated May 23, 2002