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United States Government Information by Subject

Resources for locating information from the federal government

Historical Data

The University Libraries have many Census reports in book and map format. They can be located by using the Libraries' Search tool. The following resources are online compilations of historical Census data.

State and local

The Libraries have the following books with state and local data:

Historical Statistics of the States of the United States : Two Centuries of the Census, 1790-1990 / by Donald B. Dodd (Ref HA 214 D63 1993)
State and large city data, including Albany, N.Y.

County and City Extra : Annual Metro, City, and County Data Book (1992-2021) (Ref HA203 .C68X)
Includes cities of 25,000 or more. 

Demographic Guide to New York : Towns, Cities and Places, 2000 Census Edition (Ref HA 541.5 2000 .D27 2003)
Tables are by county. 

Profiles of New York State (2011-2019) (Ref HA 541 .P65)
Profiles of locality by county, rankings, climate data.

Guides to Locating Historical Data

Not all historical U.S. Census reports are online.  The links below offer places to start your research.

Also, search by year, subject, and "census" in:

State and local 

The following guides in the Libraries may help to find state and local reports:

  • Directory of Federal Statistics for Metropolitan Areas : A Guide to Resources (1961)  [for data prior to 1960] : GovDoc Ref  J 85 Y 3.Ad 9/8:2 M 56
  • Directory of Federal Statistics for States : A Guide to Resources (1967) [for 1960+ data] : GovDoc Ref J 85 C 3.6/2:St 2/3.
  • Directory of Federal Statistics for Local Areas : A Guide to Resources (1966) [expanded version of the 1961 edition]: GovDoc Ref J 85 C 3.6/2:St 2/2
  • Directory of Federal Statistics for Local Areas : A Guide to Resources (1976) [updates the 1966 ed. through 1976]: GovDoc Ref J 85 C 3.6/2:St 2/2/976
  • Directory of Federal Statistics for Local Areas : A guide to Resources. Urban Update, 1977-1978. (1979) [use with the 1976 ed.]: GovDoc Ref J 85 C 3.6/2:St 2/2/977-78

Historical Census Microform Collections In the Libraries

We have the complete reports for the 1790-1960 Decennial Census and the 1820-1967 non-Decennial Census in microform format. The guides listed below are shelved with the microform collection, and a link to HathiTrust is provided for those guides available online.

Decennial Census, 1790-1960 [microfilm] -- This collection is arranged by year and then alphabetically by subject. These guides are available:

Decennial Census, 1790-1920, Population Schedules. New York State. Fulton & Montgomery Counties [microfilm] MIC FLM HA 541.5 [census year] C45x.

Non-Decennial Census, nos. 1311-4061 (1820-1967) [microfiche and microfilm] -- This collection is arranged by subject. These guides are available:

  • For 1820-1945: United States Census Publications, 1790-1945, Part II, pages 129-298. (Commonly referred to as: Dubester's; GovDoc Ref J 85 C 3.2:P 96/8/790-945)
  • For 1946-1967: Cross Reference Index from the Greenwood Microform Collection . . . (GovDoc Ref HA214 .G756 1976)