Don't bother with engineering numbers (what people are calling "casting numbers"). They are not updated every year so they are not going to tell you what year the block/head/intake/etc. is. They also are not going to tell you what the block/head/intake/etc. was originally in. The engineering number only tells you what the part was originally engineered for, e.g. an E6SE block was originally engineered for a 1986 Thunderbird. Blocks, heads, intake, cams, etc. are all shared between different models.
The date casting will tell you the day, month, and year the part was cast but again, not what it was originally in.
There is a partial VIN stamped to the block. That WILL tell you the year and model that the block was originally in. It's either on the driver-side rear of the block, below the deck on cylinder #8, OR it's on the top-rear of the block, on a flat pad behind the lifter valley seal.