1925 State Census of Iowa: INSTRUCTIONS TO THE ENUMMERATOR


Transcribed by Stephen David Williams
for the IAGenWeb State Census Project http://iagenweb.org/census/

Copyright (c) 2005 by Stephen David Williams. All Rights Reserved.

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Transcriber's Notes:
  The following text was taken from the title pages of a 1925 census schedule book.  When
  "See instructions on schedule" is stated, see the accompanying "Legend" file containing
  the column header information on the census schedule form.


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          POPULATION CENSUS
               OF IOWA

          JANUARY 1, 1925


Chapter 226, Acts of the 40th General Assembly


  Section 7.  Duty of Assessor.  Each Assessor shall, in each census year, take such
census in his district by making accurate entries on such blanks of all matters of
information thereon required, and shall return the same to the County Auditor on or
before June first of the Census year.

  Section 9. False returns.  Any assessor, enumerator or clerk who makes any false return
shall forfeit the right to all compensation accrued and be immediately discharged.

  Section 10.  Refusal to give information.  Any person who shall refuse to make answers
to any question appearing on the blank, and who persists in such refusal after being
informed that the law requires such answer, shall be arrested on information filed by the
Assessor or enumerator.

  Assessor's and Enumerators' rights:  You have the right of admission to every dwelling
and to all establishments or places where persons reside, with the exception of
institutions under the Jurisdiction of the ??? of Control.  You have the right to ask
every question which appears in this schedule and to require an ??? ?r to each and all of
them.  If such information is refused, enter the name and address of said person, ???
make the notation "information refused".

  Supplementary Crop and Live Stock Report will be used for reporting crops raised, and
domestic animals kept in cities and villages or elsewhere in places not covered by farm
schedules.

  Population Schedule must be filled out for every man, woman and child whose place of
abode on January ?, 1925 was in your district.  Include every person living on January 1,
1925.  Omit children born since January 1, 1925.

  Who shall be enumerated:  You will enumerate persons engaged in international
transportation, express men, railway men, etc., if they habitually return to their home
in the interval of their occupation.

  Enumerate soldiers, sailors, marines or civilian employes [sic] in the service of the
United States at a station, at home or abroad.

  Enumerate any person absent at the time of your visit but a resident of your district
upon the census day, December 31, 1924.  Obtain your information from other members of
the family.

  Enumerate any member of a family in your district who is temporarily away from home, on
business, traveling for pleasure, attending school or college or sick in a hospital.
Specifically ask the question as to whether there are any such absent members.

  Boarders or lodgers should be enumerated at the place where they are rooming or
lodging, if they are there permanently or for reasons of a permanent nature.  Members of
railroad construction camps, road camps or other places which have a shifting population
composed of persons with no fixed place of abode should be enumerated where found, except
in so far as certain members may have some other permanent place of abode where they will
be enumerated or have already been enumerated.

  Who shall NOT be enumerated:  Persons visiting with this family; transient boarders or
lodgers who have another permanent place of abode; students or children living or
boarding with a family for educational purposes; persons who take their meals with a
family but lodge or sleep elsewhere; servants or other persons employed by a family and
working on the premises but not sleeping there.

  Do not enumerate any member of a family who is an inmate of a Reformatory, Hospital for
Insane, School for Feeble Minded, School for the Deaf, Industrial School, Soldiers' Home,
Tuberculosis Sanitarium, School for the Blind or County Poor Farm.  The enumeration of
such persons will be made direct, from this office with the Superintendent of such
Institutions.

  The state Census Law requires returns from your district to be in the hands of the
Director of the Census not later than July 1, 1925.  You are urged to start your work
immediately after the first of January 1925, and work diligently and faithfully so that
you will completely cover your township, city, or town in the shortest possible period of
time.  It is important, upon the completion of your district, that you complete the
certificate which appears on the last page of both the Population and Crop and Live Stock
Schedule, and forward them immediately to the County Auditor who will give you a receipt
for the same and will, in turn, forward them to the Director of the Census.  Forward each
book to the Auditor when completely filled, regardless of whether you have completed your
district or not.

  All entries should be made in ink or indelible pencil.  Take pains to write in a
legible manner and make plain figures.

  Assessors or enumerators will not total columns or pages.


                              SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS

1  PLACE OF ABODE:  In cities or towns where the streets are named and numbered,
enumerate on block or square at a time.  Write the name of the street lengthwise in
column 1 of the schedule.  Insert the house number, if any, in column 2.  Draw a line
through column 1 when a street is complete.

2  NAME OF OCCUPANT:  See instructions on schedule.

3  RELATIONSHIP:  Designate the head of the family, whether husband or father, widow or
unmarried person of either sex by the word "head".  For other members of the family write
wife, father, mother, son, daughter, grandson, daughter-in-law, uncle, aunt, nephew,
niece, boarder, lodger, servant, etc., according to the particular relationship which the
person bears to the head of the family.

4  PERSONAL DESCRIPTION:
   a--Sex:  Write "M" for male, "F" for female.
   b--Color or race:  Write "W" for white, "B" for black, "Ind" for Indian.  For all
persons not falling within one of these classes, write "O" for other.
   c--Age at last birthday:  This question calls for the age in completed years at last
birthday.
   d--Conjugal relation:  Write "S" for single, "M" for married, "W" for widow or widower
and "D" for divorced.

5  TENURE:
   A--Home owned or rented:  This question is to be answered only opposite the name of
the head of each family and only relates to the home or dwelling in which they are living
on the date of the enumeration.  If the home is owned write "O"; if the home is rented
write "R".  Make no entries in this column for the other members of the family.
   b--Mortgaged or free:  Write "M" for mortgaged and "F" for free.
   c--Value of this home, including land and improvements.  The interpretation "home"
under this heading means town or city property or acreages under three acres, not
classified as farm land.  Extreme caution must be used so that no duplication will be
made to conflict with the value of farm lands as described on the farm schedule.
   d--Amount of mortgage:  Answer as asked.
   e--Rent paid:  Answer as asked.
   f--Insurance:  Include total amount paid for fire, hail, wind storm, tornado
insurance, etc.

6  CITIZENSHIP:
   a--Answer "yes" or "no".
   b--Answer as asked.
   c--Answer as asked.

7  EDUCATION AND LITERACY:
   1  Highest school attended:
      a--If you attended rural school only, check under rural.
      b--If you attended rural and grade school only, check under grade.
      c--If you attended rural, grade and high school, check under high school only.
      d--If you attended rural, grade, high school and college, check under college only.

   2  Highest grade reached:
      a--Rural:  Answer as asked.
      b--Grade or grammar:  Answer as asked.
      c--High School:  Answer as asked.
      d--College or University:  Answer one year or more.

   3  How many months of school attended in year 1924:  Include actual number of months
from January 1, 1924 to January 1, 1925.

   4  Whether able to read:  Answer "yes" or "no".

   5  Whether able to write:  Answer "yes" or "no".

8  NATIVITY.
   a--Place of birth of person enumerated.  If in U. S. give State.  If foreign born,
give country.
   b--Name of father of person enumerated.  Enter surname first, then the given name and
middle initial, if any.
   c--Place of birth of father of person enumerated.  If born in U. S. give State.  If
foreign born give country.
   d--Age at last birthday.  Insert age of father at last birthday, if living.  If
deceased leave blank.
   e--Maiden name of mother of person enumerated.  Enter surname first, then given name
and middle initial, if any.
   f--Place of birth of mother of person enumerated.  If born in U. S. give State.  If
foreign born give country.
   g--Age at last birthday.  If living insert age of mother last birthday [sic].  If
deceased leave blank.
   h--Place of marriage of parents of person enumerated.  If married in U. S. Give City
or Town and State.  If married in a foreign country give city or country, if possible.

9  MILITARY SERVICE.  Questions asked applicable to Civil War, Spanish American War and
World War Veterans are identical.
   a--Are you a veteran.  If you are a veteran answer "yes".  If not leave space blank.
   b--Branch of service in which you served.  Write in full the classification which
applies; namely, Army, Navy or Marine Corps.  Do not use initials.
   c--What State enlisted or drafted from.  Answer as asked.

10  OCCUPATION.  Answer "a", "b", "c", "d", "e" and "f" as asked.  Insert answer under
classification which covers the occupation of the person enumerated.  These questions to
be answered by all persons 14 years of age or over.
g--Number of months unemployed because of communicable diseases.  The following are
communicable diseases: Typhoid fever, pneumonia, small pox, measles, scarlet fever,
diphtheria and whooping cough.  Do not include other diseases.  This question applies to
all persons 14 years of age and over, and must be answered accurately.
h--Salary or income lost.  Record amount of salary or income, only, lost.  Do not record
hospital or doctor bills.
i--Months idle or unemployed.  Include months idle because of labor conditions, accidents
and other illnesses not defined as communicable.  (See "G").

11  CHURCH AFFILIATION.  Answer as asked.