The U. S. National Archives has released the 1950 Census online! This release provides a snapshot of the nation’s population and is an amazing resource for researchers of history and genealogy.
According to the National Archives website, “The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) has digitized and will provide free online access to the 1950 Census population schedules for U.S. states and territories, enumeration district maps, and enumeration district descriptions.”
The U. S. Census has been taken every 10 years since 1790, with the 1950 Census being the 17th decennial census of the United States. Because of a 72-year restriction on access to census records, the 1940 Census was the last available until this release. As of April 1, 2022, the 1950 Census is available online through the National Archives dedicated website. Here you can search by name and location.
The census consisted of 20 questions for all people, with supplemental questions for others. Enumerators were asked to record information on citizens pertaining to age, address, place of birth, marital status, employment information, and more. The majority of the census was taken by enumerators in person during early 1950 with most finishing by June.
While the census is not completely transcribed, you can search by name and location. If you still have problems locating individuals, you can also locate persons names by identifying the enumeration district in which they lived in 1950 and then browsing the census population schedules for that enumeration district. Digital copies of the enumeration district maps are available in the National Archives Catalog. If you do not know where someone lived you could also try cross-referencing city directories, telephone directories, and other sources for help locating an address from the time period.
Start searching today by following the links below.
https://1950census.archives.gov/
https://Archives.gov/research/census/1950
