HUSCO is copyright protected all rights reserved. No part of The Historical United States County Boundary Files 1790 - 1999 may be reproduced, in any form by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher. SOURCE DATA

The Historical United States County Boundary Files 1790 - 1999 on CD-ROM contains revised and updated versions of two previously produced HUSCO volumes. The Historical United States Boundary Files, 1850-1970 (Volume I) consists of U.S. counties (excluding Alaska and Hawaii) for the decennial years between 1850 and 1970. The source for the HUSCO files (Volume I) is the series of county outline maps contained in The Historical U.S. County Map Collection (1840- 1970) (Baltimore: University of Maryland Baltimore County, Department of Geography, n.d.). The projection is Albers Equal Area, with two standard parallels (29.5 N and 45.5 N) and a central meridian at 94 W. Boundary resolution varies inversely with map scale: resolution is excellent at national scales, good at regional scales, and adequate at state and county scales. Maps overlay well from year to year except in the vicinity of Florida in 1830 and 1840, which are aberrations tied to the original digitizing process.

NTIS Notes (from the NTIS readme file):

Sources of Population Data

The populations in this publication essentially are those reported in each census, except that misprints and other errors made in the original census publications have been corrected. Such errors were fairly frequent in the early censuses, often resulting from mistakes made in adding up the various categories of population for a given county, or in totaling the counties of a State. Most such errors were corrected at the time of the 1870 census, when the earlier published tables were reviewed and their addition rechecked (Census Office, 9th Census, 1870, Vol. I, The Statistics of the Population... (Washington, 1872), pp. xliv-xlvii). Generally the State populations that now appear for 1790-1860 in official publications are those settled upon in 1870. Some exceptions and unusual situations are mentioned in footnotes. Tables showing county populations back to 1790 appeared in the decennial census publications for 1830 and for 1870 through 1900. The 1910 census, however, showed county populations only back to 1890. In 1920 a table gave county populations back to 1850. The 1930 report, in separate State tables, carried the data back to 1890; 1940 and 1950 each gave only two previous censuses, and 1960 and 1970 each gave one. In 1980, a county table for each State gave populations from 1930 on. In 1990, besides a county table for each State with populations from 1940 on, a single U.S. table (1990 CPH-2-1, table 20) likewise presented 1940-1990 county populations.
In this publication, nearly all populations for counties from 1790 through 1900 agree with those published in the 1900 census (Census Office, 12th Census, 1900, Census reports..., Vol. I, pt. I (Washington, 1901), table 4). In a few cases, decennial numbers for counties and States have been changed from those shown in earlier publications on the basis of new information or to enhance consistency of treatment across all States. Generally such changes are mentioned in footnotes.
For a bibliography of all U.S. census publications through 1945, see U.S. Bureau of the Census, Catalog of United States Census Publications 1790-1945, by Henry J. Dubester (Washington, 1950). This was reprinted as part of Bureau of the Census Catalog of Publications 1790-1972 (Washington, June 1974), which also included publications of the 1950, 1960, and 1970 censuses. Publications of the 1980 and 1990 censuses are included in Census Catalog and Guide, issued annually with cumulations for 1980-84 in the 1984 catalog, and for 1990-94 in the 1994 catalog.

American Indian Population

American Indians generally were not counted in the censuses prior to 1890, unless they were considered to be part of the broader non-Indian society, as evidenced by their paying local taxes and living in settled communities, often alongside non-Indians. The censuses from 1850 through 1880 included estimates of American Indians "retaining their tribal character," sometimes by State or Territory.
In 1890, most Indians were enumerated, but were reported separately from the general population, usually by reservation rather than by county. A volume of the 1890 reports dealt exclusively with Indians and included a historical review of earlier estimates (Census Office, 11th Census, 1890, Report on Indians... [Vol. X] (Washington, 1894). Beginning with the 1910 census reports, the 1890 Indian population has been included in the appropriate State totals. In Part III of this publication, the tables report the 1890 Indian population by county when that is possible, and by reservation in Oklahoma and South Dakota; notes explain cases where Indians are included in State totals but not in any State subdivision.
The inclusion of most American Indians in the census beginning in 1890 naturally has some effect on comparisons for the relevant States and counties with censuses before that date. However, even if earlier censuses had enumerated all of the Indian population, much of it would not have been found at its 1890 location at the earlier dates, because of extensive forced removal, migration, and resettling as the settlement frontier advanced and Indian reservations were established.