More: Ethnicity on the Cenus

Most US censuses had very limited options when someone was asked their ethnicity. For instance, if your part-Cherokee ancestor was asked in 1850 if they were white or black, they would probably say white as they didn't exactly fit into the options given.

It could be helpful to know which options were available when tracking your family. This interactive graph shows the options at each census which can massively help you in your research.

Visit the website at www.pewresearch.org/interactives/what-census-calls-us/