Two points:
First, an easy source for the dates of the various decennial censuses is here
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Census#History
Second, I think the term "federal employee" is a little ambiguous. Yes, the
census marshals and assistant marshals were paid by the federal government but
the marshal's appointment was very much a political plum. It was a source of
patronage as the marshal hired his own assistants and one presumes there were a
lot of phantom assistants on the payroll. A short history
http://usa.ipums.org/usa/voliii/enumproc1.shtml This also gives a hint of the
problematic nature of the 1870 Census
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Amasa_Walker#1870_Census If you're
interested in Walker's views on the efficacy of the Census, up to and including
1870, I'd recommend reading his introduction to the Compendium of the Ninth
Census http://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1870e-01.pdf
________________________________
From: "Tarter, Brent (LVA)" <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Sent: Tue, October 26, 2010 11:28:31 AM
Subject: Re: [VA-HIST] 1860 and 1870 Census
Precision is important when characterizing things, especially things
that the Feds did during the decades before and after the Civil War.
In the first place, Virginia was not under military rule when the census
of 1870 was taken. Congressional, or as it is sometimes called military,
reconstruction ended in Virginia in January 1870.
In the second place, federal government employees always conducted the
census, so what, if anything, does it matter whether a former
Confederate state still had military rule when the census of 1870 was
taken?
Brent Tarter
The Library of Virginia
[log in to unmask]
Please visit the Library of Virginia's Web site at
http://www.lva.virginia.gov
______________________________________
To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe please see the instructions at
http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html
______________________________________
To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe please see the instructions at
http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html
|