Get Ready for the 1950 Census! What you need to know for your genealogy

[@winslowredcross2835]

My mother just missed the 1940 census. She was born in april of that year. I remember her looking though the 1940 census with me when it was released. She was spotting my grandparent's neighbors that she remembered and was telling me about them. I'm very interested in seeing if two relatives on my dad's side were counted in the 1950 census. I could not find them in the 1940 census. My aunt said that both men were basically hoboes at that time. One of them died in 1956 and the other died sometime in the mid 1970s. I've been researching my genealogy for years and I can't wait to see the 1950 census. Miss you mom.

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

When they were conducting the 1950 census, they made special efforts to pick up people who were transient or homeless, because they had been missed in so many previous censuses. I hope you find them!

[@winslowredcross2835]

@@AmyJohnsonCrow Thank you for the information Amy.

[@Kristinapedia]

I was born in sept of 70 and a cousin of mine just said she was born in may of 50. So i will have to wait 82 years to see myself and my cousin will have to wait another 10 years I talked to my dad last night about where he was living in 1950 so I have that going for me. He moved a lot so i’m glad he knew. (He cant remember yesterday but remembers 71 yrs ago!) I’m so excited!

[@jannwebb]

Great idea about asking older people about their neighborhood!

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

It can be a great way to get stories flowing!

[@michelledenise5096]

I vote for ancestry to do the updates on each state alphabetically!! Love, from Alabama

[@chrismoule7242]

Thank you for this, and tickled pink to see someone else recommending that Census ED Finder - it's been on my favourites list for years, and it works for me.

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

It's such a useful resource!

[@rikwen96]

I am glad to be looking at the 1950 census. It is hopefully have lots of information that I can use. But I am not counting on the index until I see it. Census takers through the years have been misspelling a lot of my ancestors names, so I plan on making up a list of all the misspellings so I can do the search easier.

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

Between misspellings and the handwriting recognition that NARA is going to be using, it's going to be very interesting to see how good the NARA index will be. I'm also curious how robust their search will be -- will it allow wildcard searches to pick up misspellings, will it include variants or shortened names... or will be be only exact? We'll find out April 1!

[@Kristinapedia]

I'm sure you know a lot of the misspellings are due to the actual person not being at the residence so they guessed or others gave them a spelling. My last name has been butchered more than once. and one time my gr gr grandfather had a totally different name! He is Ephraim and he was listed as "Warren".. lol.

[@cruzinbosco]

@Kristinapedia Ephraim to Warren.... 😂 That's hilarious.

[@Kristinapedia]

@@cruzinbosco i’m guessing a neighbor gave the census taker the name and he didn’t know him so he guessed it. Lol.

[@rodmanroebuck4599]

I was born in 1955. Looked up the 1950's census a short while ago. It was like walking down memory lane seeing all the family members and neighbors I knew growing up in a small Kentucky town. As with all other censuses, I found a some accuracy discrepancy. My grandfather's name was "George Hayden Turner," and my grandmother's was "Eliza Jane Turner." They're listed as "Hagan G. Turner" and "Liza J. Turner." Challenges to future genealogists will always be part of the game.

[@belindalea]

Thank you for sharing this information!

[@holyvenia]

Great tips in this video. Thanks.

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

You’re welcome! I hope those tips help!

[@suzannemcclendon]

I am so excited about this census that I could pop. :) I went to the site you showed in this video and I have found the enumeration district that I need to find my biological father in his first census. Arkansas, Craighead County, Jonesboro, ED 16-30. I can't wait! Thank you for this very helpful video. Have a blessed week. :) PS I am a new subscriber.

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

Thank you!

[@suzannemcclendon]

@@AmyJohnsonCrow You're welcome. Have a blessed night. :)

[@AmyBreckenridge]

thank you SO much for the tip on the enumeration districts!! i had organized my research list with ward numbers, but the EDs will be so much more helpful 😀 i appreciate you! 🙏🏼

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

You are so welcome! I hope you find everyone you're looking for!

[@sherij7330]

Thanks for all of the info!

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

You’re welcome!

[@lynnhettrick7588]

WikiTree is gathering volunteers to help correct the 1950 Census. I'm going to help out! I am *so* excited!

[@s.barryholland177]

A lot of the enumeration district maps are available on NARA's site I believe. I know I downloaded a lot for 1940 for the area I live in (NW Louisiana). I'm pretty sure I remember seeing links for 1950. I think I have already downloaded some, but I need to check the hard drive

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

Yes, the 1950 enumeration district maps are online. (Some of them would be neat to print and frame!

[@janishardin8324]

Great information Amy. I am so excited to see the 1950 census but also afraid I won't find what I want. Let me explain. I was born April 14 1950! I am so hoping I will be in the census but also afraid I won't be! lol Guess I shall see soon! lol

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

I hate to say it, but if the enumerator followed the instructions, you won’t be. They were only supposed to record people as of April 1, the “official” census date. But you never know!

[@anthonystike6034]

My 1940 research was a complete disaster. My maternal and paternal family names were misspelled. Still missing my maternal grandfather's older brother. I hope 1950 will be better.

[@THECABSOURHERE]

Facts

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

I hope so, too!

[@hoponpop3330]

When the 1940 census came out before it indexed I found my city and traced it to the area were my paper route in the 1950’s was I traced my footsteps. It was interesting that a child in 1940 was the home owner in the 1950’s frequently one or both of the original owners now retired were still living in the home. That way wealth was maintained in the family. Sending your parents to nursing care or even senior housing was not common.

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

That's so neat! If you haven't already, I encourage you to take a few minutes and record what you remember of that paper route -- the people, the houses, your experiences!

[@Kristinapedia]

That's because we all have to work until we drop dead and don't have time to care for our elderly parents. My parents are 77. My two sisters and I are all single parents. Granted mine is now 20 but now I work full time until I drop because I have no retirement. I have 20 years to save up a retirement that will last me a few years. My other sisters still have 9 yr olds at home. I've seen what happens to people who try to take care of parents full time while working full time. The toll it takes on them. I am not doing that to myself. So... this is where nursing homes come in. it's sad, but we aren't all rich. 😥

[@lindyloowho7]

Thank you! I am looking for a News Reel in Greenbelt, MD. How can I find them?

[@richardpcrowe]

It is neat to find someone who shares my surname... My name is Richard CROWE. My father arbitrarily added the "E" to the surname; which was originally spelled "CROW" as is yours. I can trace my CROW surnamed ancestors through our family Bible back to my g-grandfather, Adrian Judson CROW born in Claiborne County, Mississippi in 1857, and further back using a combination of deduction and DNA to James CROW of Spartanburg, South Carolina and Claiborne County, Mississippi. My g-grandfather had a brother James M. CROW who was born in Mississippi in 1842. By a process of elimination and deduction, I have made a guess that James M. CROW was the son of John and Permelia (Parmella) IRBY CROW. I find this family on the 1850 Federal Census of Claiborne County, MS but, I cannot find any members of this family on the 1860 Federal Census or any subsequent Federal Census. However, I find Adrian Judson CROW on the 1880 Census of Bee County, Texas (which is in line with my family bible) and I find James M. CROW (listed as a widower) on the 1880 Census of Llano County Texas. I then find Adrian Judson CROW and family on the 1900 Census of the Chickasaw Nation, Indian Territory (Oklahoma). James M. CROW (brother, b. 1842 in Mississippi) is living in that household. I am a member of the Gold CROW DNA Grouping of Ancestry DNA

[@swanteal2355]

Hello Amy 😊 thank you for guide to genealogy . Could you tell me if we're getting 1950 censers in England too or is it just in America . 🌸🌺 From UK 🏵️

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

This census is just for the US.

[@swanteal2355]

@@AmyJohnsonCrow Thank you Amy 😊👍

[@jacobkaplan-davis5150]

Do you have a scanner you recommend for digitizing old family photos/documents?

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

I don't have a specific make/model, but I do recommend finding one that you can set to scan at least 300 dpi.

[@robertdewey6084]

Thx for the video! Interesting, although off topic, fact: I used to work at the Lancaster-Fairfield hospital 30+ years ago. How coincidental!

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

Small world!

[@xedover]

I don't understand why I need to find the enumeration district, or how that might help me in my research?

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

The National Archives will be releasing an index, but it’s rumored to be only the head of household. Ancestry and FamilySearch are partnering to make an every-name index, but that will take several weeks/months. Knowing the enumeration district will get you into the specific pages for that location, so you don’t need to browse through an entire county or city. Of course, you can wait for the indexes to be ready. (Even then, it’ll be handy to know the ED in case the person is misindexed.)

[@NotABushFan1]

Yes, Ohio should be first and Akron should be the first city and Neptune Ave would be nice also.

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

We don’t ask for much 😊

[@historyrepeats7500]

My family was wrongly indexed in this census too. I only found them because I knew where they lived. Sadly this surname has been wrongly indexed more than once.

[@travismclaurin9419]

I just hope my Paternal GrandFather is in it. He wasn't in the 1940 census, unfortunately.

[@travismclaurin9419]

Found him!! He’s listed in the 1950 census.

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

Wonderful! Congratulations!

[@travismclaurin9419]

@@AmyJohnsonCrow Thank you and also my father is listed with his siblings. All of them. And a few cousins. Thank you again.

[@nadracurtis4563]

I was born in 1949. The census said i was 9 YEARS old. But i was only 9 months old. I inquired about correcting that information as well as the spelling of our family names--nope, no way to do that.

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

You can't correct the census itself, but you can submit corrections on Ancestry, FamilySearch, and the National Archives websites.

[@Kristinapedia]

If NARA's AI software for "transcribing" handwriting is anything like Apple's auto correct and speech to text we're all screwed!! (and I'm an iPhone user!). Couple that with Ancestry's ridiculous search engine and well, we may as just go through the entire US census page by page. (re Ancestry: I search "Smith"/exact spelling and I get "Davis" results. I search "New York"/exact location and I get "San francisco". Granted I use the library version and don't pay for Ancestry because I'm not a Gazillionaire but I'm sure many here understand where I'm coming from.

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

I don't know who has developed NARA's handwriting recognition software, but I've seen some amazing results with some test runs on handwriting by other organizations. It isn't going to be 100% (no index is), but I'm really looking forward to seeing how it does turn out.

[@Kristinapedia]

@@AmyJohnsonCrow If any software was used in the past it’s not bad. I don’t find many errors. I don’t research 24/7 but have put in many 8-10 hour days. Even before ai software results are pretty good so I think we’ll be ok. FIVE MORE DAYS!! 🤣

[@janebuckeye]

Ohio first especially Portage County.

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

If only they would take requests!

[@pizzafries]

What they need to do and they always should of done this,is print the names.

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

In 1950, the Census Bureau worked to recruit teachers as enumerators in part because of their handwriting!

[@51Leenie]

@@AmyJohnsonCrow Good news for future researchers....when I was an enumerator in the 2010 Census they said we must print all info.

[@chadweiss8269]

Darn my pop pop was a baby born in January so he was a baby thus could not remember

[@AmyJohnsonCrow]

Bummer! I had to laugh at the 1940 census when one of my relatives was on the supplemental question line as a baby -- not a whole lot of extra information on him in those questions!

[@chadweiss8269]

I just found my grandmother in the 1950 census as a 1 year old and when I told her she told me about her parents and siblings

[@rjb6327]

Now that the 1950 is out, it tells you next to nothing. Address, names, ages and what they did for a living. Not much else. Very disappointing.