The first United States census recorded a population of 3,929,214 in 1790.
The census counted the population as of August 2, 1790, under authority granted by Article I, Section 2, of the Constitution. Congress assigned the work to marshals of the federal judicial districts, who visited households and compiled schedules for their jurisdictions.
The count covered the 13 states, along with the districts that later became Vermont, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Maine. Virginia was the most populous state, with 747,610 people, while Delaware was the least populous among the states, with 59,094.
The figure should not be compared directly with modern census totals without considering differences in rules and coverage. The 1790 census categorized people in ways that reflected the legal and political structures of its era, and it did not resemble today’s detailed population survey. Even so, it established the recurring decennial census as a central feature of American government.