This data collection consists of 161 selected social, demographic, and educational datasets for France in the period 1801-1897. The data were collected from published reports of three national statistical series: (1) National Censuses, (2) Vital Statistics, and (3) Primary Education. This project was supported by grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Science Foundation. The National Census data were derived from the quinquennial population censuses of France from 1801 to 1896 and were obtained from the Statistique Generale de la France. The data provide detailed social and economic information for the period 1851 to 1896. The data for 1801-1851 are less rich in subject matter coverage but do present some basic information on population characteristics. The National Census data in general describe the population, including the composition of the population by categories of age, sex, place of birth, marital status, religion, place of residence, and occupation. There is also some limited information on migration, transportation and communication, housing, and families. A large segment of the census data pertains to occupations of the population, specifying job classifications within professions, as well as information on non-employed household members that were dependent on employees in the various industries, in addition to enumerations of persons employed in various professions and trades. The Vital Statistics data files contain annual vital statistics for the French population. These data were obtained from two printed series, MOUVEMENT DE LA POPULATION (1801-1868), and STATISTIQUE ANNUELLE (1869-1897). The basic variables included in the vital statistics datasets record births, deaths, and marriages in France. Detailed cross-tabulations of these demographic indicators are presented for births, tabulated by sex, month, legitimacy status, and characteristics of the parents, and deaths, categorized by age and previous marital status of the partners. Additional cross-tabulations are provided for variables such as divorces, passports issued, medical personnel and hospitals, and a literacy indicator (signing of marriage certificates). The Primary Education data files provide information on primary schools and were obtained from the Statistique de l'enseignement Primaire. The data obtained from the series basically cover the period 1829-1897, although some recapitulative information for earlier years is also presented. The main focus of the data in this series is on primary schools, classes and buildings, enrollment, teachers, sources of funding and expenditure, and academic proficiency of the pupils. Additional information is included on literacy, teacher training (normal) schools, school age population, and libraries. A machine-readable French language codebook, describing the data items as well as the sources from which they were obtained, is provided with each dataset supplied. In addition, lists of the variables included in each dataset are included in Parts 162-164. See the related collection, DEMOGRAPHIC, SOCIAL, EDUCATIONAL AND ECONOMIC DATA FOR FRANCE, 1833-1925 (ICPSR 7529).