Secrets of the Census, Part 7: 1900

Our last post in this series was in January when we reminded our readers of what happened to the 1890 census and why we don't have digital copies of it for most of our ancestors. (Did you miss that post? You can read it here.) We now come to the start of a new century and a world that was in the throes of major changes. It was the year The Wizard of Oz was published, work began on the subway system in New York City, and those new-fangled automobiles scaring horses and humans were labeled "devil wagons." Hawaii became a U.S. territory, McKinley was president, and a new baseball club, the American League, was formed in Chicago. The census takers for the 1900 federal census began their jobs on 1 June and were given just thirty days to complete their tasks, no small feat for a U.S. population that exceeded 76,000.000! This first twentieth-century census gives us new and important information on our ancestors.

Great News for Genealogists Researching New York City Ancestors!

Sometimes genealogical miracles occur. It happened a few years ago, when, after years of severe restrictions, Pennsylvania opened its vital records to the general public, and, this past week, it happened again. This time, it is New York City, which, after staunchly defending its right to deprive the public access to public records, suddenly launched a stunning new website that opened vital records from the New York City Municipal Archives to anyone who wants to see them.