Access to Restricted IPUMS Ancestry Full Count Census Data

IPUMS USA disseminates historical full count census enumerations from 1850 to 1950 — cleaned, coded, and harmonized — free of charge for research and educational purposes.

Researchers who require character string variables for valid research purposes may apply for restricted access to the IPUMS Ancestry Full Count Census Data. These variables include names, sub-county geography (e.g., addresses), identification of the original enumeration form, and string versions of the public variables in the IPUMS full count data. These data are available through a data use agreement between IPUMS and Ancestry.com that allows IPUMS to disseminate the data to the research community under specific conditions.

These data are restricted-access but do not pose confidentiality concerns. The census forms were publicly released under the 72-year embargo rule by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The application process differs substantially if you are applying for a new license, a new project, or for access to the data through an existing license and/or project. Review the eligibility criteria, license, and application details prior to submitting your request to the IPUMS Restricted Data Team.

Citation

Steven Ruggles, Matt A. Nelson, Matthew Sobek, Catherine A. Fitch, Ronald Goeken, J. David Hacker, Evan Roberts, and J. Robert Warren. IPUMS Ancestry Full Count Data: Version 4.0 [dataset]. Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2024. doi:10.18128/D014.V4.0R

Eligibility Criteria

Researchers who are affiliated with an educational or research organization and require the restricted variables for their research may apply for access to the IPUMS Ancestry Full Count Census Data.

Students (undergraduate and graduate) applying for access to the data for their own research must be supervised by a faculty/research advisor. The advisor must be listed as the principal investigator on the project. Students must indicate that the research is for their thesis or dissertation within the application.

All researchers, whether they are applying for a new license, a new project, or to be added as a researcher to an existing license or project, must be approved by the IPUMS Restricted Data Team prior to gaining access to the data.

Which License to Apply For

A license agreement is required to access the restricted IPUMS Ancestry Full Count Census Data. We offer three license options in accordance with our user agreement with Ancestry.com:

100% Institutional License: This license provides researchers with access to 100% of the full count census records through an institution. We can offer only a limited number of new 100% licenses per year; these licenses are intended to support multiple projects hosted at one university or organization. An institution may have only one 100% license. Researchers affiliated with an institution that already maintains a 100% Institutional License may apply for access through that institution.
20% License: This license is suited for researchers seeking a data sample that is less than 20% of the national population in any census year. The 20% sample selection threshold applies to each census year requested, not the total across all years. Researchers seeking access through a 20% License should use the publicly available full count data to define their samples and confirm whether they qualify for this license.
Virtual Enclave License: This license provides researchers with access to 100% of the full count data through a virtual enclave managed by IPUMS. This license is suited to those seeking access to 100% of the full count census data but who are not affiliated with an institution that maintains or is likely to obtain a 100% license.

All licenses require a data agreement. All data agreements are with an institution and require additional approval from an Authorized Institutional Representative at the requesting institution. An Authorized Institutional Representative is a person authorized to enter into contractual agreements on behalf of your institution.

License Fees

There is a fee associated with each type of license. The fees help offset the costs of managing the licenses, data preparation, responding to queries, and continued improvement to the data. Licenses may be renewed upon expiration, pending review.

Ready to Apply?