Encyclopedia of the U.S. Census represents a unique and definitive collaboration among more than 80 leading experts on all aspects of the U.S. Census. Drawing from academia, government, and the private sector, CQ Press and the editorial board have commissioned more than 100 concise, definitive articles on the decennial census and related topics.
Subjects covered include:

• Content of the census. What the census tracks, and when it began to ask specific questions; how questions are formulated, and factors that affect which questions are asked; other types of censuses (housing, economic, and agricultural).
• Procedure. How the census is planned, advertised, and conducted; state and local involvement; how results are tabulated and stored.
• Uses of the census. Publications, databases, and electronic products that provide census information for statistical and demographic research; archiving of census records and genealogical use of census schedules.
• Census history. Census taking in America from colonial times to the present and at each census; population trends over time, including changes in family composition; racial and ethnic groups; and the social, economic, and educational status of the population.
• Politics of the census. Effect of census data on congressional districts and funding of federal programs; controversies: from slavery and the three-fifths compromise in 1790, to the use of statistical sampling in 2000.

Other features include a 16-page photo collection that visually shows the census evolution, and an extensive glossary of terms. An appendix of useful information and a detailed index round out the volume. Most articles include references for further reading; many also point the reader to online resources for census information.