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Census & Old Records

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Word 1 of 10: COURTHOUSE

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Use the arrow keys to move between letters. Press Enter or Space on the first letter of a word, then again on the last letter. Press Escape to cancel.

A few of the words

CENSUS
The United States has counted its people every ten years since 1790, and the 1950 returns were opened to the public in 2022, after the usual 72-year wait.Find this word in the grid to read its note.
MICROFILM
Libraries and archives still keep many old newspapers and census pages on reels of microfilm, and cranking through one while squinting at faded handwriting is how plenty of family names finally turn up.Find this word in the grid to read its note.
PROBATE
Probate files are a quiet goldmine, since a will and its inventory can list everything from a farm to a feather bed, and name children you didn't know about.Find this word in the grid to read its note.

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census and old records word search

Census & Old Records: a free online word search

A free census and old records word search for anyone who's ever hunted a great-grandparent's name through deeds, wills and courthouse files.

About Census & Old Records

Anyone who's chased a family name knows the smell of a county courthouse basement: damp paper and dusty shelves, with a clerk who somehow remembers where everything is. The U.S. census has been taken every ten years since 1790, and the names inside it are often spelled three different ways across three decades. Somewhere in a deed or a will, between the cattle and the quilts, is the line that finally ties one generation to the next.

How to play

  1. 1
    Find a word.Tap its first letter, then tap along to its last. The trail fills in and finishes itself when it spells a word. Or press the first letter and drag.
  2. 2
    Words run in straight lines.Across and down, and on the harder difficulties diagonally and backwards.
  3. 3
    It marks itself.Each word you find takes on its own soft color on the grid and is crossed off the list.
  4. 4
    Choose a difficulty.The level you pick sets those directions and how much the word list helps, never the grid size. Tap the A buttons at the top to enlarge the letters, or pinch the grid.
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