William Sharp family: not there or not counted? 1860 U.S. census, Pope Co., IL - Part 2

In the last posting on this topic, it was proposed that the 1860 federal census population for Pope County was under-counted. In this installment, the township populations are compared between 1860 and 1870 to provide additional support for this theory.

Township Comparison

The census enumerations in 1850 and 1855 did not distinguish township or precinct boundaries, so it isn't possible to make sub-divisional comparisons. The 1865 state census divided the county by precincts while the 1860 and 1870 federal censuses divided the county by township and range according to the Public Land Survey System. That leaves the 1860 and 1870 censuses, as the only candidates for township-by-township comparison.

The township population counts for 1860 [2] and 1870 [6] are tabulated below along with the percentage increase between those years for each township. On the map [1], each township is painted with a color from a gradient of 35 tints. Each tint in the range represents a 25% increase, from 0 to 875%. A deeper red tint correlates with a larger percentage increase.

Township	1860 Population	1870 Population	Percentage Increase	1860 Enumerator	Map Tint
T.11 S.-R.5 E.	567	945	67%	J.E.Y. Hanna
T.12 S.-R.5 E.	692	781	13%	J.E.Y. Hanna
T.13 S.-R.5 E.	1098	1198	9%	J.E.Y. Hanna
T.14 S.-R.5 E.	152 [3]	762	401%	James Roper
T.11 S.-R.6 E.	446	580	30%	J.E.Y. Hanna
T.12 S.-R.6 E.	790	1037	31%	J.E.Y. Hanna
T.13 S.-R.6 E.	1131	1233	9%	J.E.Y. Hanna
T.14 S.-R.6 E.	119	1111	834%	James Roper
T.15 S.-R.6 E. T.15 S.-R.7 E.	521 [4]	922 [7]	77%	James Roper
T.11 S.-R.7 E.	202	480	138%	James Roper
T.12 S.-R.7 E.	200	632	216%	James Roper
T.13 S.-R.7 E.	616 [5]	994	61%	James Roper
T.16 S.-R.7 E.	208	762	266%	James Roper

The numbers show that every township increased in population, as one might expect. However, some townships appear to experience much greater change than others. The most dramatic difference appears in T. 14 S., R. 6 E., where the population is multiplied by a factor of 8.3 in the intervening decade. This is also the township in which William Sharp lived.

In part 1, it was hypothesized that a linear population increase for the county, would put the 1860 population at about 9000. Using that value, the total population increase for the county between 1860 and 1870, is 27% (where the 1870 population is 11437). If we use the actual reported 1860 population of 6742, the percentage increase would be 69%. So, the townships with increases of 401%, 834%, 216%, and 266% are a little hard to swallow.

Another interesting trend the data shows is that townships which were enumerated by James Roper in 1860, are those which show the greatest percentage increase in 1870. This hints at an enumeration irregularity by James Roper that isn't observed with J.E.Y. Hanna.

Persons Missing from the 1860 Census Count

Another way to look at this is to see who else is missing from the 1860 census, who would be expected to be present. A few households were selected that appeared in both the 1855 and 1865 state censuses and who were nearby neighbors of W.C. Sharp. They are listed in the table below with each family size in parentheses. 

1855 State Census [8]	1865 State Census [9]
W.C. Sharp (7)	W.C. Sharp (11)
S.D. Hemphill (10)	S.D. Hemphill (10)
J.A.G. Hemphill (7)	J.A.G. Hemphill (7)
Osborn Alliston (7)	O.F. Alliston (17)

Searches for these families in the 1860 U.S. census for Pope County [2] failed to find any matches. This is admittedly a small sampling, but with just these families excluded from the enumeration, the township population would have been reduced by about 35-40.

Amongst those listed is a locally prominent citizen, S.D. Hemphill. He was the grantee in a 1859 sale of land in T. 14 S., R. 6 E., with William and Delilah Sharp [10] the grantors. As Justice of the Peace, he oversaw many civil marriages in Pope County [11]. In 1860, he administered 6 marriages with one occurring in July [12] and another in September [13]. So there is corroborating evidence to suggest he was a resident in the county in 1860.

 Future Research

The evidence presented here weighs in favor of a population under-count for Pope County in 1860. However, more evidence is needed to estimate its magnitude and possible causes. A couple of areas for future exploration are: local newspaper reports about the census results of 1860 and other lists (tax, voter registration, etc.) collected near the same time and with township location information.

Reference Notes:

[1] Campbell, R. A. et al., Campbell's topographical & sectional map of Saline, Gallatin, Hardin, and Pope counties [Ill.], (Philadelphia: S. A. Mitchell, Jr., 1870); digital images, David Rumsey Map Collection (http://www.davidrumsey.com : accessed 30 March 2013).

[2] 1860, U.S. census, Pope County, Illinois, population schedule, pp. 157-334 (penned); digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed 23 March 2013); citing National Archives micro-film publication M653, roll 220.

[3] Ibid., pp. 303-306 (penned), civil division: Washington Precinct.

[4] Ibid., pp. 289-302 (penned), civil division: Jefferson Precinct.

[5] Ibid., pp. 277-287 (penned), civil division: Golconda, and pp. 312-317 (penned), civil division: Township 13 S., Range 7 E.

[6] 1870, U.S. census, Pope County, Illinois, population schedule, pp. 409A-554B (stamped); digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed 27 March 2013); citing National Archives micro-film publication M593, roll 270.

[7] Ibid., pp. 497A-505B (stamped), plus unstamped A,B pages preceding 497A, civil division: Township 15 S., Range 6 E., and pp. 543A-544B (stamped), civil division: Township 15 S., Range 7 E.

[8] "Illinois, State Census Collection, 1825-1865," digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 15 November 2012), 1855, Pope County, pp.24-25; citing Illinois State Census, 1855 Microfilm. Record Series 103.008, Roll Number 2194, Pages 24-25. Illinois State Archives, Springfield.

[9] 1865 Illinois state census, Pope County, Golconda Precinct, p.58; Illinois State Archives, Springfield; Record Series 103.010, Microfilm Roll Number 30-2183.

[10] Pope County, Illinois, Deed Records, Series A, 1816-1883, K:103, William C. and Delilah Sharp to Samuel D. Hemphill, 6 April 1859; recorded 13 August 1859; Pope County Clerk & Recorder, Golconda.

[11] Judy Foreman Lee and Carolyn Cromeenes Foss, compilers and indexers, Pope County Illinois Marriage Books A-E, 1813-1877, Volume 1, (1990; reprint; Newburgh, Indiana: Southeastern illinois Resource Books, 1998), pp. 50-59, 61,65-72,74,92-95, 98-102, 111, 113, 133.

[12] Ibid., 69, James Marcum and Sarah Jones, 20 Jul 1860.

[13] Ibid., 70, Dick Necamp and Mrs. Mary Berger, 25 Sep 1860.