12 May 2014
For most national censuses, the year of the enumeration is a standard part of the citation. The visitation date (the specific date on which a census taker visited a particular household) is part of the household data that we record in our research notes. That visitation date is not included in the citation unless it is needed to locate an entry on the census—a relevant issue in some countries but almost never in the United States. Citing to the page, rather than the visitation date, is the standard U.S. method of locating a specific household within a census. As an exception, if multiple censuses are taken of a locale in the same year, as demonstrated in EE 6.43, we may need to include specific dates to differentiate between those enumerations.
Whatever else you've wondered about citing censuses, EE's Chapter 6 (pp. 235-308) is likely to have an answer. Foundational concepts can be found under our "Sample Text Pages" tab.
