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1870 United States Federal Census

Original Images

This database contains images of original records.

Sample Forms
Download blank Census forms
You can fill out the form with information on your ancestor, or just use it to better read the column headings.

Handwriting Help
View a sampling of handwriting examples
The examples should help you read the text on the original images more easily.

Please choose a county in Iowa:

Adair Floyd Monona
Adams Franklin Monroe
Allamakee Fremont Montgomery
Appanoose Greene Muscatine
Audubon Grundy O'Brien
Benton Guthrie Page
Black Hawk Hamilton Palo Alto
Boone Hancock Plymouth
Bremer Hardin Pocahontas
Buchanan Harrison Polk
Buena Vista Henry Pottawattamie
Butler Howard Poweshiek
Calhoun Humboldt Ringgold
Carroll Ida Sac
Cass Iowa Scott
Cedar Jackson Shelby
Cerro Gordo Jasper Sioux
Cherokee Jefferson Story
Chickasaw Johnson Tama
Clarke Jones Taylor
Clay Keokuk Union
Clayton Kossuth Van Buren
Clinton Lee Wapello
Crawford Linn Warren
Dallas Louisa Washington
Davis Lucas Wayne
Decatur Lyon and Osceola Webster
Delaware Madison Winnebago
Des Moines Mahaska Winneshiek
Dickinson Marion Woodbury
Dubuque Marshall Worth
Emmet Mills Wright
Fayette Mitchell

Census Records - Counties

After separating the census records into groups by state, the federal government subdivided these records into county groups. Searching for an ancestor on the county level provides a smaller region for research if you remain uncertain about the specific township where your ancestor resided. Researchers should also be aware of boundary line or jurisdictional changes through time. These changes may affect where an ancestor was enumerated on the census, so it remains important to search the counties surrounding the area where your ancestor lived.