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The Census Enumeration Districts of Halifax County, VA 1880

Written by Mark Womack

Many family researchers have had the opportunity to search for their ancestors in the original census schedules. It is always a thrill to find the person you've been looking for, and to get the snapshot of their life and family at the time the census was taken. There is much information that can be gleaned from the original census schedules, but this article will focus on the information about the physical area to which the census taker was assigned, or as it is called the 'enumeration district'.

At the top of each sheet of the census schedules is an enumeration district number, district name, county name, and state in which the census was taken. This is usually enough to give a rough idea of where an ancestor lived. However, few people realize that the recent censuses, 1880 through 1920, have very exact descriptions of the enumeration district boundaries. This information can be used to better pinpoint the location of an ancestor and could be useful when sorting through county deeds and court orders.

Prior to 1880, all that was recorded by the census office was the name of the census taker (enumerator) and the district he recorded (enumerated). For Halifax County, this is fairly boring information since there were just two districts, the Northern and Southern Districts. The author is not sure of the exact boundary between these districts, but believes it ran close to the Banister and Dan Rivers (see Avenues for further research below).

Starting in 1880, not only were the names of the enumerators recorded, but the boundaries of the district to which they were assigned was also recorded. These descriptions become more precise with each census after 1880. The post office address for the district is also recorded.

Enumeration Districts

The enumeration districts for the 1880 and 1900 censuses are listed below. You will notice that the boundaries are described using county landmarks such as creeks, rivers, towns, roads, and railroad tracks. Knowledge of the locations of these landmarks is needed to create the proper context . It helps to have a fairly detailed map of the county.

If you happen to have a copy of the census schedule sheet that your ancestor is recorded on, then find the enumeration district number and name of the enumerator at the top of sheet and match it with the information in the following tables.

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1880 Census
Names of Persons employed as Enumerators for the several Enumeration Districts of the Second Supervisor's District of Virginia with description of their subdivisions (Halifax County Only):