State marshals compiled results of the 1790 census, posted them in public places, and submitted them to the president of the United States. This page of the published report shows the figures for each demographic category in Kentucky counties and towns. In some counties, slaves outnumbered white adult males.
Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress
Kentucky census, 1st census 1790, Leaf inserted in census report, printed in Philadelphia, 1791
The First Census
The United States Constitution requires the federal government to count the inhabitants of each state every ten years as the basis for taxation and congressional representation. Congress authorized the first census in 1790—it counted every free person and all indentured servants, but excluded Indians who were not taxed and tallied only three-fifths of enslaved persons, who were not considered citizens. After the Civil War, the Fourteenth Amendment recognized formerly enslaved persons as citizens to be fully counted.
State marshals compiled results of the 1790 census, posted them in public places, and submitted them to the president of the United States. This page of the published report shows the figures for each demographic category in Kentucky counties and towns. In some counties, slaves outnumbered white adult males.
Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress
