1830 United States census


The 1830 United States census, the fifth census undertaken in the United States, was conducted on June 1, 1830. The only loss of census records for 1830 involved some countywide losses in Massachusetts, Maryland, and Mississippi.
It determined the population of the 24 states to be 12,866,020, of which 2,009,043 were slaves. The center of population was about 170 miles west of Washington, D.C. in present-day Grant County, West Virginia.
This was the first census in which a cityNew Yorkrecorded a population of over 200,000.

Census questions

The 1830 census asked these questions:
  • Name of head of family
  • Address
  • Number of free white males and females
  • * in five-year age groups to age 20
  • * in 10-year age groups from 20 to 100
  • * 100 years and older
  • number of slaves and free colored persons in six age groups
  • number of deaf and dumb
  • * under 14 years old
  • * 14 to 24 years old
  • * 25 years and older
  • number of blind
  • foreigners not naturalized

    Data availability

No microdata from the 1830 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

RankStatePopulation
01New York1,918,608
02Pennsylvania1,348,233
03Virginia1,220,978
04Ohio937,903
05North Carolina737,987
06Kentucky687,917
07Tennessee681,904
08Massachusetts610,408
09South Carolina581,185
10Georgia516,823
11Maryland447,040
12Maine399,455
13Indiana343,031
14New Jersey320,823
15Alabama309,527
16Connecticut297,675
17Vermont280,652
18New Hampshire269,328
19Louisiana215,739
XWest Virginia176,924
20Illinois157,445
21Missouri140,455
22Mississippi136,621
23Rhode Island97,199
24Delaware76,748
XFlorida34,730
XArkansas30,388
XDistrict of Columbia30,261
XMichigan28,004
XWisconsin3,635

Apportionment Populations
In the U.S. Constitution, Article 1, Section 2, Clause 3 states:
In order to correctly apportion Representatives pursuant to this Census, it was necessary for the Census to compute not only the total population of each state, but the number of free persons and slaves, and then to compute the apportionment population, or Federal number, for each state by adding three-fifths of the slave population to the free population.
StateTotalFreeSlaveFederal
Maine3994373994316399434
New Hampshire2693282693235269326
Massachusetts6104086104044610406
Rhode Island97199971851497193
Connecticut29767529765025297665
Vermont280657280657280657
New York19186081918532761918577
New Jersey3208233185692254319922
Pennsylvania134823313478304031348072
Delaware7674873456329275431
Maryland447040344046102994405842
Virginia12114057416484697571023502
North Carolina737987492386245601639747
South Carolina581185265784315401455025
Georgia516823299292217531429810
Kentucky687917522704165213621832
Tennessee681903540300141603625263
Ohio9358849358786935882
Louisiana215739106151109588171904
Indiana3430313430283343030
Mississippi1366217096265659110358
Illinois157445156698747157147
Alabama309527191978117549262508
Missouri14045511536425091130419
Territory of Michigan31639316073231625
Territory of Arkansas3038825812457628557
Territory of Florida34730192291550128529
District of Columbia3983433715611937389

City rankings