1950 US Census Part 1: What You Need To Know

Can you believe that we’re a month-and-a-half away from the release of the 1950 US census on April 1, 2022? I don’t know about you, but I’m super excited because this is the first census that my parents appear in, so I will definitely be looking for them on Day 1.

If you’re anything like me, you’re probably wondering what will actually happen on Day 1. In this post, I’ll share what I’ve been able to find out, plus I’ll show you the census form and the questions that were asked, noting some interesting things as we go. I’ll also share my thoughts about prepping for the release.

Day 1

On Day 1, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), will release the 1950 census on a dedicated website. Using Artificial Intelligence and Optical Character Recognition technology, we’ll be able to search for names. However, the technology is not perfect. Instead of OCR on typewritten text like we’re used to (which also isn’t perfect), the AI/OCR will be evaluating handwritten text, so the indexed names will most likely be a little wonky. Regardless, you will be able to browse images manually, just like we did back in 2012 with the 1940 census.

FamilySearch and Ancestry are partnering to generate an index using Ancestry’s propriety handwriting recognition technology and the index will include every field. From what I understand, I don’t believe the index will be “published,” meaning available and searchable, until the data has been reviewed. But, both FamilySearch and Ancestry will start uploading images to their respective websites on Day 1, at which point we’ll be able to browse the images manually. Getting the index created using the handwriting recognition technology and reviewed will take time, although FamilySearch hopes that having the initial index generated by OCR technology will reduce the time for a complete index since volunteers will be dedicated to reviewing, not transcribing. For context, the 1940 census took about six months to index with volunteers starting from scratch.

Other genealogy websites will likely also start uploading images to their websites on Day 1.

Form & Questions

Watch this video to see what the form looks like and what questions were asked. I’ve also highlighted some important details and new features.

Prepping

I’ve been hearing lately that people aren’t going to take the time to prep because NARA will have an index on Day 1. But, as I mentioned earlier, it will not be perfect. So, here are my thoughts around prepping.

First, I believe that we should seek out the 1950 census for the people in our tree. Why? Because censuses are one of the foundational genealogy sources, and quite honestly, it’s another set of data points for our research. That said, at a minimum, you’ll probably want to generate a list of people who would likely be in the 1950 census so you can systematically go through the list and find people in the census, whether you use an index or browse the sheets manually.

Second, because the NARA index will not be perfect on Day 1 (or even Day 30!), and we’re not sure when an index will be available through Ancestry or FamilySearch, I will have a backup plan that will allow me to browse the census easily. So, I will be looking up enumeration districts for known locations and addresses around 1950 for the people on my list. Now, before you say, “Julie, that’s a lot of work,” let me just say that I will only be doing this for people in my direct line and their immediate families. I will also do this for instances where the 1950 census might help to answer a specific research question that I’m working on. In both cases, these are the people I want to find immediately, and I’m not relying solely on the new technology to help me find them.

In Part 2 of this series, I’ll be creating a video that will give you an over-the-shoulder view of my prep process.

So what can you do right now to prep for the 1950 census release? Well, in the next part of this series I’ll be sharing with you how I will generate a list of people and find enumeration districts so I’m ready to go on Day 1, so you may want to hold off on that type of prep work until then. In the meantime, there are a few nuances about this census that you might want to explore further. The first has to do with the enumeration of people who didn’t have a permanent address or were temporarily away from home. Second is understanding the process that happened when no one was home on the first visit and how they were recorded in the census. If you have Native American roots, you’ll want to learn about the additional information collected for individuals living on Indian reservations.

You might also want to take a look at the enumerator’s reference manual to get a really good understanding of how the census was to be conducted, for example things like who was not enumerated, as well as all of the detailed instructions for all of the census forms and questions, such as how the dwelling numbers were to be assigned for Question 3 or how income was recorded in supplemental questions 31 and 32.

For even more information on the 1950 census, check out the 1950 Census Records page on the NARA website.

I hope you enjoyed this article and that you’re excited about the release of the 1950 US census. If you found this article helpful, be sure to add the Genealogy In Action blog to your favorite RSS reader.

© Julie Tarr. This article was first published at Genealogy In Action; appearance of this article elsewhere, without my permission, violates copyright.