My 2010 census form arrived today. Did our ancestors know about its arrival, or did the enumerator just arrive one afternoon? There must be an answer out there on that query.
I can imagine that most of the questions were answered by the lady of the house. What I have found in my ancestors is that the women were all “keeping house.”
Somehow, that sounds a bit better than “housewife” that term implies (to my ears) that you were married to a house.
As I look back at the question of long ago I wonder if any of our ancestors felt that the questions were invasive? Or did they just answer because it was the thing to do…Seventy two years from now will our descendents be looking forward to the release of the information. To me, it will not be the same looking at some data sheet, as opposed to looking what the enumerator wrote so long ago.
There would have been much information unknown without those old census records for our perusal. I think the census gives us a major stepping stone to search for the majority records that can be found.
Some of the questions seem funny and the wording “politically incorrect” by todays standards. Guess I should go and open it before the census police come and get me for non compliance.
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