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Census & Demographic Data

Use this guide to identify appropriate sources for population and census data.

Census of Population & Housing / American Community Survey

Social Explorer (library subscription)
Provide thousands of interactive data maps and tables going back to 1790. Social Explorer includes:

data.census.gov
U.S. Census Bureau’s access tool to population, housing, economic, and geographic data from the Census of Population and Housing, Economic Census, American Community Survey, and more.  

SimplyAnalytics (library subscription)
A web-based mapping application for the U.S. including demographic data, census data (back to 1980), crime, business & marketing data, employment, consumer spending, housing, health and more. 

Census Reporter
Generates data visualizations based on census data for a location of interest. You can generate reports and download data too.

National Neighborhood Data Archive (NaNDA)
The National Neighborhood Data Archive (NaNDA) is a publicly available data archive containing measures of the physical, economic, demographic, and social environment at multiple levels of spatial scale (eg, census tract, ZIP code tabulation area, county). Each NaNDA dataset covers all or most of the entire nation (including both rural and urban areas) and represents a set of measures on a single topic of interest, including socioeconomic disadvantage, healthcare, housing, partisanship, and public transit, with temporal coverage dating back to 2000.

Specialized Census Data Tools

Microdata and Individual Responses
Microdata are the individual responses to census questionnaires. Individual response data will allow you to analyze data at the household or person unit and create customized tables. They are limited to locations of 100,000 persons or more.

Normalized Census Tract Boundaries

Longitudinal Tract Database (Brown University) The continual change in geography between successive censuses is a major barrier for longitudinal analysis. Census tracts are fundamental enumeration units for the U.S. decennial censuses and their boundaries very often change over time. In every new census many tracts are split, consolidated, or changed in other ways from the previous boundaries to reflect population growth or decline. The LTDB tracks and normalizes tract boundary changes back to 1970.

SimplyAnalytics contains normalized census tract boundaries from 1980 to present.
Social Explorer U.S. Census Comparability Data for 2000 to 2010.

Virginia & DC Metro Area Data

Data about the local region is included in the data sources described above (Social Explorer, data.census.gov, etc.). Local jurisdictions compile their own specialized reports based off of data from the Census and ACS and other major data collection programs. Below are links to major sources for the metro area.
Virginia
DC Region

City of Alexandria
Arlington County

NOVA Region Dashboard
(Northern Virginia Regional Commission)
Fairfax County - Maps & Data
Fairfax County Demographics Archives - archive of
demographic reports published by the county.

DC Data (Department of Planning)
Loudon County

Maryland State Data Center
Prince William County Center for Regional Analysis (PDF reports)

Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service

Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments
Virginia Employment Commission  

 

Historical Census Data

Historical Censuses
  • Social Explorer (above) provides historical census data back to 1790. It's a great place to start, but it is not complete. Use the following to supplement Social Explorer or to determine what year data for your area of interest was collected.
     
  • Historical Census Publications (Census Bureau) PDF versions of historical census publications, back to 1790. The following two resources will help you determine which PDF to use:
    • Consult the Index of Census Questions (1790 - 2010) to find out what questions were asked when. Questions asked in each decennial census vary, especially if you are researching 1980 and earlier.
    • Use Dubester's Census Bibliography to find out in what census volume and table the data you need is reported.
       
  • Historical Census Data for Large US Cities 
     
  • HathiTrust has digitized Census of Population and Housing volumes. When searching HathiTrust, search the catalog to locate what you need. We are a member institution.
     

  • National Historic GIS (NHGIS) The National Historical Geographic Information System (NHGIS) provides, free of charge, aggregate census data and GIS-compatible boundary files for the United States between 1790 and 2015.

  • Integrated Public Use Microdata Series (IPUMS-USA)
    For use with statistical analysis software, IPUMS has Census of Population and Housing microdata for social and economic research back to 1790. Can select variables and customize dataset before downloading.

Specialized Sources
  • American Religious Ecologies is a project of the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media that is creating new datasets, maps and visualizations for the history of American religion. With the generous support of the National Endowment for the Humanities, we are currently digitizing the 1926 U.S. Census of Religious Bodies, which has individual schedules for approximately 232,000 congregations.
     
  • Visualization of the Evolution of the American Census (The Pudding)
    Visualization of what census questions changed and what have stayed the same.

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