Historical census record linkage for dispersal analysis

Knowledge graph centered on Historical census record linkage for dispersal analysis with 10 nodes and 23 connections. Top connected: Gothic, East River, birds and mammals, Copper Creek, Long-distance dispersal to the mining frontier in .

Method synopsis

Method for linking individuals in a historical cohort to their childhood census records using multiple matching criteria including name, birth date, birthplace, and parental information. Employs probabilistic matching with manual verification and bias assessment.

Synthesized from method descriptions across 1 paper using this protocol.

Procedure from a recent peer-reviewed implementation

Steps below were extracted from the most recent peer-reviewed implementation of this protocol in the corpus — Long-distance dispersal to the mining frontier in late 19th century Colorado (2009), Behaviour. Implementations in other papers (listed below) may differ.

1. Identify Gothic cohort
   Used 1880 US Census records to identify all unmarried, US-born prospectors (232 individuals) residing in the Gothic area, including town and nearby mining camps. Cohort members were 28.9 years old on average (range 16-56), with 61% coming from Pennsylvania, Ohio, Missouri, or Illinois.
   Quantities: 232 unmarried US-born prospectors identifiedDuration: Not specifiedConditions: 1880 census enumeration period
   Equipment: 1880 US Census records
2. Search historical records for childhood information
   Searched ancestry.com database using multiple input fields including name, birth date, birth place, and parents' birthplaces. Matches were considered 'good' when most fields matched and had to survive additional record verification. Parental birthplaces and birth date (±5 years) were the most flexible matching categories.
   Quantities: Found at least one piece of information for 76 (33%) cohort membersDuration: Not specifiedConditions: Historical records primarily from 1860 US Census, with 1850 and 1870 census providing additional tracking information
   Equipment: ancestry.com database, historical census records, family history records, genealogies
3. Extract family wealth and occupation data
   Collected data on family wealth, farm values, father's occupation, and family composition from 1860 US Census records. For brother pairs in the cohort (7 pairs), used father information only once in analysis to avoid double-counting families.
   Quantities: Information about father's occupation found for 67 families, wealth data for 48 families, farm value data for 28 familiesDuration: Not specified

Typical Equipment

• 1880 US Census records
• ancestry.com database
• historical census records
• 1860 US Census records

Output Measurements

• family wealth
• father occupation
• sibling composition
• family size

Papers Using This Protocol (1)

Species Studied With This Protocol

Places Where Used