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In 1908, the U.S. Bureau of the Census transcribed for publication the Heads of Families at the First Census of the United States Taken in the Year 1790 for the eleven states for which the original census returns were then extant. The New York volume is over 300 pages in length and refers to upwards of 500,000 households. For his latest book, Mr. Bahn has reorganized the household data from the 1790 Federal Census of New York that pertains to slaves and nonwhite free persons only. Slaves and Nonwhite Free Persons in the 1790 Federal Census of New York represents a much improved index to this segment of the first federal census than can be gleaned from the 1908 Government Printing Office (GPO) publication which is its inspiration. In the preparation of his new "index" Mr. Bahn worked from two vast census manuscripts, one covering the six northern counties and the other pertaining to the nine southern counties of New York State in 1790. In all, the compiler transcribed the enumerations of over 9,000 heads of household from the 1790 census. The population is arranged here by county/city and thereunder alphabetically. (In the case of cities like Albany or New York City, the listings are further subdivided by ward.) For each nonwhite or slave resident in New York State in 1790, some or all of the following information is given: surname, given name, and household census counts for the number of white males aged 16 years and older, white males less than 16, white females, nonwhite free persons, and slaves. The final three entries show, respectively, the county, the township, and the location in the GPO volume where the corresponding reference may be found. Following the reconstructed census itself, the reader will find three sets of statistical data showing the totals of slaves and nonwhite free persons associated together in any household, the racial composition of households themselves, and the number of slave/nonwhite households associated with a given surname.

This painstakingly re-worked index and treatise on the 1790 ethnic population of New York should be of great interest to genealogists and social historians alike.