An official website of the United States government                

----

end of header

# History

###### You are here: Census.gov ›  History ›  Home Page Archive › 2017 › March 2017

Skip top of page navigation

                - History Main
                - Agency History                    - Director Biographies
                  - Census Facilities
                  - Suitland, MD
                  - Notable Alumni
                - Innovations                    - Data Collection
                  - Technology
                - Programs                    - Agriculture
                  - Demographic
                  - Housing
                  - Economic
                  - Geography
                  - Governments
                - Through the Decades                    - Fast Facts
                  - Overview
                  - Index of Questions
                  - Questionnaires
                  - Census Instructions
                - Genealogy                    - Decennial Census Records
                  - Other Resources
                - Reference                    - Data@Museums
                  - Artifacts
                  - Lesson Plans
                  - Legislation
                  - Maps
                  - Oral Histories
                  - Privacy & Confidentiality
                  - Apportionment
                  - Publications 
                - Home Page Archive                    - 2024
                  - 2023
                  - 2022
                  - 2021
                  - 2020
                  - 2019
                  - 2018
                  - 2017
                  - 2016
                  - 2015
                  - 2014 
                - FAQs                    - Genealogy
                  - Agency History
                  - Demographic
                  - Economic
                  - Governments
                  - Agriculture
                  - Geography
                  - Innovations
                  - Miscellaneous

### 2017

### Also in this Section:

                          - December 2017
                          - November 2017
                          - October 2017
                          - September 2017
                          - August 2017
                          - July 2017
                          - June 2017
                          - May 2017
                          - April 2017
                          - March 2017
                          - February 2017
                          - January 2017

## March 2017

----

### Visit *https://www.census.gov/history* every month for the latest Census History Home Page!

----

### U.S. Census Bureau History: Establishment of a Permanent U.S. Census Bureau

William Rush Merriam was director of of the U.S. Census Bureauwhen it became a permanent agency in 1902.

On March 6, 1902, the U.S. Census Bureau became a permanent agency within the U.S. Department of the Interior.  Prior to 1902, U.S. Marshals or enumerators conducted the census and a temporary census office tabulated the data.  By the late 19th century, the growing volume of data and possible tabulations—thanks to Herman Hollerith's electronic tabulating machine—made retention of skilled census clerks and supervisors a necessity.  In response to the recommendations of census officials, statisticians, and academicians, the U.S. Congress passed the Act of March 6, 1902, Providing for the Establishment of a Permanent Census Office  

Under the leadership of William Rush Merriam, the act directed that in addition to the decennial population census, the agency would also conduct a census of manufactures in 1905 and every 5 years thereafter; an annual survey of cotton production; and other economic surveys.  The permanent agency—initially within the U.S. Department of the Interior—officially "opened its doors" at the Emery Building, located at the corner of 1st and B Streets, NW Washington, DC—on July 1, 1902.  Following its establishment by President Theodore Roosevelt, the Census Bureau moved to the U.S. Department of Commerce and Labor on February 14, 1903.  It remained in the Department of Commerce after the agency split into two on March 4, 1913.

Today, the Census Bureau is an international authority on the collection, tabulation, and publication of statistical data.  It leads the world in the fields of demographic, economic, and statistical research.  Browse this Web site to learn more about the Census Bureau's history, its employees, and the agency's remarkable record of invention and innovation.  For example:
                        - Article 1, Section 2 of the  U.S. Constitution  requires the taking of a census of population every 10 years, beginning in  1790 .  In  1810 , U.S. Marshals conducting the census made the first  economic inquiries .  Data collection on the nation's  agriculture  began in  1820 , and inquiries of the nation's  government entities  began in  1840 .  Today, the Census Bureau conducts quinquenniel economic and government censuses, a decennial census of population, and more than  130 demographic, economic, and government surveys  annually.
                        - New York City, NY , and  Philadelphia, PA , were home to temporary census offices before it moved to  Washington, DC , in 1800.  Census operations remained in Washington, DC, until 1942, when the agency moved to "Federal Office Building #3" in  Suitland, MD .  The agency moved into its  new headquarters  (adjacent to the site on which  Federal Office Building #3  stood) in 2006.
                        - After working for the Census Bureau during the 1880 Census,  Herman Hollerith  invented an electrically-powered mechanical tabulator to speed the sorting and tabulation of 1890 Census data.  Hollerith's tabulating equipment company became  International Business Machines (IBM) Corporation    in 1924.
                        - William Rush Merriam was director of the Census Bureau when it became a permanent agency within the Department of the Interior in 1902.  Prior to being selected to oversee the  1900 Census  by President  William McKinley , Merriam served in the Minnesota House of Representatives and as the state's 11th governor.  He retired from the Census Bureau in 1903, and lived in Port Sewall ( Stuart County ), FL, until his death in February 1931.
                        - The Census Bureau began replacing mechanical tabulation and punch cards with computers and magnetic computer tape in 1951, with the purchase of  UNIVAC I —the first computer produced for civilian use.  A second UNIVAC followed in the mid-1950s, followed by UNIVAC 1105s for the 1960 Census.  The Census Bureau retired the first UNIVAC I in 1963 and donated it to the Smithsonian Institute's Museum of American History.
                        - Most of the data collected by the censuses and surveys conducted by the Census Bureau are processed at the agency's  National Processing Center  in  Jeffersonville, IN .  Depending upon work requirements, the facility can employ from 1,200 to 6,000 employees at its 75-acre campus located across the Ohio River from  Louisville, KY .
                        - The Census Bureau relies on regional offices throughout the United States to provide local support to conduct its censuses and surveys.  After consolidating its field structure on  January 1, 2013 , the Census Bureau now operates regional offices in  Atlanta, GA ;  Chicago, IL ;  Denver, CO ;  Los Angeles, CA ;  New York, NY ; and  Philadelphia, PA .
                        - Many Census Bureau employees have found fame and fortune in business, entertainment, and academics.  Some of these notable alumni include: inventor of electronic tabulation  Herman Hollerith , authors  Thelma Strabel  and  Bernard Malamud , National Library of Medicine founder  John Shaw Billings , National Geographic Society founder  Henry Gannett , survey methodology pioneer  Morris H. Hansen , and  Lafayette Parker "Pick" Temple , host of the 1948–1961  Pick Temple Giant Ranch  television show.

Employees of the U.S. Census Bureau pose in front of the Emery Building located at the corner of 1st and B Streets, NW, Washington, DC.This was the Census Bureau's headquarters during the 1900 and 1910 Censuses.

----

View larger image

### This Month in Census History

Inventor of the telephone Alexander Graham Bell was born on March 3, 1847.Bell's research into hearing and speech and interest in developing the telephone grew out of his work with the hearing impaired.During the 1900 Census, the Census Bureau hired him as a special agent to write a report on the deaf and blind.The 1900 Census found that the population of the United States was 76,212,168.  You can learn more about Bell's work as a special agent for the 1900 Census here.Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

----

View larger image

### Census Bureau Seal

Congress legislated the permanent Census Bureau in 1902, but the agency's official seal was authorized on March 3, 1899, when it was part of the U.S. Department of the Interior. The seal contains a shield upon which are an open book and the lamp of knowledge emitting rays above two crossed quills.  A wreath of single leaves surrounds the shield.  Stars in an  outer band separate the words "U.S. Department of Commerce" and "Bureau of the Census."The seal is used on all certificates and attestations required from the Census Bureau.

----

### Did You Know?

During the 1990 Census, a printing error instructed Spanish-speaking callers in need of assistance completing their questionnaires to call an auto parts store in Kansas.The Census Bureau provided the store with a Spanish-speaking operator who redirected the calls until the error could be corrected.

----

**Visit *https://www.census.gov/history* every month for the latest Census History Home Page!**
~~~~

  This symbol  indicates a link to a non-government web site.  Our linking to these sites does not constitute an endorsement of any products, services or the information found on them. Once you link to another site you are subject to the policies of the new site.

CONNECT WITH US**********

                            - Information Quality
                            - Data Linkage Infrastructure
                            - Data Protection and Privacy Policy
                            - Accessibility
                            - FOIA
                            - Inspector General
                            - No FEAR Act
                            - U.S. Department of Commerce
                            - USA.gov

----

Measuring America's People, Places, and Economy

Is this page helpful?
YesNo

NO THANKS

255 characters maximum255 characters maximum reached

Thank you for your feedback.Comments or suggestions?