Unfortunately, these censuses in New Jersey were not saved for posterity. Before the counties were required to submit their census schedules, one supposes that they were locally processed to produce raw statistical output, were otherwise unappreciated, and were destroyed. The only thing that has survived is the 1800 Census for Cumberland County.

1830, 1840

These two enumerations have been preserved in entirety. It was not until 1850 that all residents of the household were named by the enumerator. Before 1850, only the head of the household is named. Residents are quantified by gender, race, and age group. These records can sometimes assist in establishing the location of a family during this period but usually are not very helpful in finding ancestral or descendent lines.

1850

Because this is the earliest census to list detailed information about all residents, this census year should be thoroughly researched in all lines of your family.

Includes for every individual: Name, age, sex, race, occupation, place of birth, value of real estate owned.

1855

This was the first year the state conducted its own census. These enumerations took place every ten years, through 1915. None of these censuses are indexed. The first three are not entirely complete. In most cases, the 1855 census only listed heads of household. Census records are not extant for Burlington, Cape May, Mercer, Middlesex, Ocean and Salem counties.

Includes for each household: Name of household head, # of adults by race and gender, # of children 5 to 16 by race and gender

1860

Includes for every individual: Name, age, sex, race, occupation, place of birth, value of personal estate and real estate owned.

1865

Census records are not extant for Cape May, Mercer, Morris, Ocean, Somerset and Warren counties.

Includes for every individual: Name, sex, whether native-born, race, whether aged 5 to 16

1870

Includes for every individual: Name, age, sex, race, occupation, place of birth, value of personal estate and real estate owned, whether mother and father are foreign born, month of birth or marriage if within the year

1875

Partial records survive for Essex, Hunterdon, and Sussex Counties.

Includes for every individual: Name, age, sex, whether native-born, race, place of birth, birthplace of parents, occupation

1880

Includes for every individual: Name, age, sex, race, occupation, marital status, place of birth, birthplace of parents, relationship to head of household, month of birth if within the year

1885

This state census can be very useful in light of what happened to the 1890 records.

Includes for every individual: Name, age group, sex, whether native-born, color

1890

This very important enumeration was never copied, indexed, or filmed. It was simply stored away. A fire on 10 Jan 1921 destroyed a significant portion of the records and damaged much of the rest. The charred remains were held for several years, were apparently never researched in any significant fashion, and were ultimately destroyed. In New Jersey, there remain only the records of some Civil War veterans and their widows. These can be researched, but they represent a very small fraction of the state's population.

1895

This year may offer the first chance to spot an immigrant family in a census record, in light of the loss of the 1890.

Includes for every individual: Name, age group, sex, whether native-born, color

1900

Includes for every individual: Address, name, relationship to head of household, age, sex, race, occupation, marital status, years married, number of children, number of children alive, month and year of birth, place of birth, birthplace of parents, owning or renting, year of immigration, # of years in US

1905

Includes for every individual: Address, name, age, sex, race, month and year of birth, marital status, place of birth, birthplace of parents, years in US, citizenship status, owning or renting

1910

1910 remains unindexed.

Includes for every individual: Address, name, relationship to head of household, age, sex, race, occupation, marital status, years married, number of children, number of children alive, month and year of birth, place of birth, birthplace of parents, owning or renting, year of immigration, whether naturalized

1915

1915 is the last year of the state census.

Includes for every individual: Address, name, age, sex, race, month and year of birth, marital status, place of birth, birthplace of parents, years in US, citizenship status, owning or renting

1920

Includes for every individual: Address, name, relationship to head of household, age, sex, race, occupation, marital status, place of birth, native language, birthplace and native language of parents, owning or renting, year of immigration, year of naturalization

1930

This enumeration is indexed for every individual in the state.

Includes for every individual: Address, name, relationship to head of household, age, sex, race, occupation, marital status, age when first married, place of birth, native language, birthplace of parents, owning or renting, value of home if owned, year of immigration, year of naturalization, veteran of what war, whether radio set in house

1940

Records for this census will be released in 2012.