Reporting Census Extraction Issue

Do you just rely on Ancestry's record information for census records prior to 1850? Or do you locate an extraction form for the census year to verify the interpretation of the check marks?

I have to admit that I often just use the information provided by Ancestry. I'm not sure why I decided to locate an extraction form and record the census information for myself today. However, I'm glad I did since I think the Ancestry record had one piece of information incorrect.

I was researching Isaac Crawford of Jefferson County, Indiana. I suspected he was living in Jefferson County in 1820 but hadn't obtained a census record to support that suspicion. So, I searched Ancestry and was able to locate a record for Isaac Crawford in Jefferson County, Indiana.

The census image for Isaac Crawford also included Will Crawford a few lines up.

Wanting to record the information for both families, I opened my 1820 extraction form and recorded the information on my spreadsheet.

One of the things I noticed was that Will was engaged in agriculture while Isaac was engaged in manufacturing. Suspecting the two men were brothers, this puzzled me. 

When I looked back at the record for Isaac, it didn't say anything about manufacturing. Instead, it indicated a slave under 14. 

I scanned the images to try and find an image with headings at the top. Unfortunately, none of the 25 images I scanned has headings at the top of the image.

After double-checking my extraction, I decided to report the issue to Ancestry. On the record screen, there is a link on the left to 'Report Issue'.

I clicked on that link. On the reporting screen, I selected 'Inaccurate Information' as the issue I wanted to report.

On the next screen, I entered how I thought the information needed to be corrected.

What happens next will be determined by Ancestry. If Ancestry determines that there was an error, then my time will have been worth it. The ultimate goal is to have accurate information.