1810 United States census

The 1810 United States census was the third census conducted in the United States. It was conducted on August 6, 1810. It showed that 7,239,881 people were living in the United States, of whom 1,191,362 were slaves.^[1]

1810 United States census
← 1800 August 6, 1810 (1810-08-06) 1820 →
Seal of the United States Marshals Service, which administered the census
A page of the 1810 United States census
General information
Country	United States
Authority	Office of the United States Marshal
Results
Total population	7,239,881 ( 36.4%)
Most populous state	Virginia 983,152
Least populous state	Delaware 72,674

The 1810 census included one new state: Ohio. The original census returns for the District of Columbia, Georgia, Mississippi, New Jersey, and Ohio were lost or destroyed over the years.^[2] Most of Tennessee's original forms were also lost, other than Grainger and Rutherford counties.^[3]

This was the first census in which New York was ranked as the most populous state, if excluding West Virginia from Virginia. Otherwise this would be the last census with Virginia ranked as the most populous state.

Census questions

The 1810 census form contained the following information (identical to the 1800 census):

1. City or township
2. Name of the head of family
3. Number of free white males under age 10
4. Number of free white males age 10 to under 16
5. Number of free white males age 16 to under 26
6. Number of free white males age 26 to under 45
7. Number of free white males age 45 and over
8. Number of free white females under age 10
9. Number of free white females age 10 to under 16
10. Number of free white females age 16 to under 26
11. Number of free white females age 26 to under 45
12. Number of free white females age 45 and over
13. Number of all other free persons
14. Number of slaves

Note to researchers

Census taking was not yet an exact science. Before 1830, enumerators lacked pre-printed forms, and some drew up their own, resulting in pages without headings. Some enumerators did not tally their results. As a result, census records for many towns before 1830 are idiosyncratic. This is not to suggest that they are less reliable than subsequent censuses, but that they may require more work on the part of the researcher.

Data availability

No microdata from the 1810 population census are available, but aggregate data for small areas, together with compatible cartographic boundary files, can be downloaded from the National Historical Geographic Information System.

State rankings

Rank	State	Population
01	Virginia [4]	983,152
02	New York	959,049
03	Pennsylvania	810,091
04	Massachusetts [5]	700,745
05	North Carolina	556,526
06	South Carolina	415,115
07	Kentucky	406,511
08	Maryland	380,546
09	Connecticut	262,042
10	Tennessee	261,727
11	Georgia	251,407
12	New Jersey	245,555
13	Ohio	230,760
—	Maine [6]	228,705
14	Vermont	217,713
15	New Hampshire	214,360
–	West Virginia [7]	105,469
16	Rhode Island	76,931
—	Louisiana	76,556
17	Delaware	72,674
—	Mississippi	31,306
—	Indiana	24,520
—	Missouri	19,783
—	District of Columbia [8]	15,471
—	Illinois	12,282
—	Alabama	9,046
—	Michigan	4,762
—	Arkansas	1,062

City rankings

Rank	City	State	Population[9][10]	Region (2016)[11]
01	New York	New York	96,373	Northeast
02	Philadelphia	Pennsylvania	53,722	Northeast
03	Baltimore	Maryland	46,555	South
04	Boston	Massachusetts	33,787	Northeast
05	Charleston	South Carolina	24,711	South
06	Northern Liberties	Pennsylvania	19,874	Northeast
07	New Orleans	Territory of Orleans[12]	17,242	South
08	Southwark	Pennsylvania	13,707	Northeast
09	Salem	Massachusetts	12,613	Northeast
10	Albany	New York	10,762	Northeast
11	Providence	Rhode Island	10,071	Northeast
12	Richmond	Virginia	9,735	South
13	Norfolk	Virginia	9,193	South
14	Washington	District of Columbia	8,208	South
15	Newark	New Jersey	8,008	Northeast
16	Newport	Rhode Island	7,907	Northeast
17	Newburyport	Massachusetts	7,634	Northeast
18	Alexandria	District of Columbia	7,227	South
19	Portland	Massachusetts[13]	7,169	Northeast
20	Portsmouth	New Hampshire	6,934	Northeast
21	Nantucket	Massachusetts	6,807	Northeast
22	Gloucester	Massachusetts	5,943	Northeast
23	Schenectady	New York	5,903	Northeast
24	Marblehead	Massachusetts	5,900	Northeast
25	New Haven	Connecticut	5,772	Northeast
26	Petersburg	Virginia	5,668	South
27	New Bedford	Massachusetts	5,651	Northeast
28	Lancaster	Pennsylvania	5,405	Northeast
29	Savannah	Georgia	5,215	South
30	Charlestown	Massachusetts	4,959	Northeast
31	Georgetown	District of Columbia	4,948	South
32	Pittsburgh	Pennsylvania	4,768	Northeast
33	Beverly	Massachusetts	4,608	Northeast
34	Groton	Connecticut	4,451	Northeast
35	Brooklyn	New York	4,402	Northeast
36	Middleborough	Massachusetts	4,400	Northeast
37	Gilmanton	New Hampshire	4,338	Northeast
38	Lexington	Kentucky	4,326	South
39	Woodbridge	New Jersey	4,247	Northeast
40	Plymouth	Massachusetts	4,228	Northeast
41	Lynn	Massachusetts	4,087	Northeast
42	Hudson	New York	4,048	Northeast
43	Hartford	Connecticut	3,955	Northeast
44	Taunton	Massachusetts	3,907	Northeast
45	Middletown	New Jersey	3,849	Northeast
46	Smithfield	Rhode Island	3,828	Northeast
47	Danbury	Connecticut	3,606	Northeast
48	South Kingstown	Rhode Island	3,560	Northeast
49	Greenwich	Connecticut	3,533	Northeast
50	Reading	Pennsylvania	3,462	Northeast
51	Evesham	New Jersey	3,445	Northeast
52	New London	Connecticut	3,238	Northeast
53	Andover	Massachusetts	3,164	Northeast
54	South Amboy	New Jersey	3,071	Northeast
55	Trenton	New Jersey	3,002	Northeast
56	Norwalk	Connecticut	2,983	Northeast
57	Elizabeth	New Jersey	2,977	Northeast
58	Norwich	Connecticut	2,976	Northeast
59	North Kingstown	Rhode Island	2,957	Northeast
60	Coventry	Rhode Island	2,928	Northeast
61	York	Pennsylvania	2,847	Northeast
62	Hackensack	New Jersey	2,835	Northeast
63	Berlin	Connecticut	2,798	Northeast
64	Springfield	Massachusetts	2,767	Northeast
65	Londonderry	New Hampshire	2,766	Northeast
66	Farmington	Connecticut	2,748	Northeast
67	Bristol	Rhode Island	2,698	Northeast
68	Haverhill	Massachusetts	2,682	Northeast
69	Pittsfield	Massachusetts	2,665	Northeast
70	Worcester	Massachusetts	2,577	Northeast
71	Cincinnati	Ohio	2,540	Midwest
72	Nashville	Tennessee	2,490	South