On April 1st of this year (no fooling), the National Archives released the original census records from 1950. Interesting stuff if you seek to obtain information for historical, genealogical or other purposes.
With a name and the county / city of residence, you can search for a specific person. The more unique the name, the easier the search, especially in larger cities. You can also look for specific addresses.
I searched for information about parents and grandparents. The results helped me piece together some ancestral facts that I knew in part, but did not fully understand.
Do you want to know who lived in your house (if it existed) in 1950, or even earlier? I learned that the seven occupants in 1950 of my current house included three generations. The “head of household” reported the occupation of university professor. So, I explored the professor’s background and discovered that he had written several important books about local history.
I looked as well at other residents on my city block and nearby blocks. As I read names, ages, occupations of these people, it set me wondering about their stories – how they built their lives, how they arrived where they found themselves in 1950. What shaped their experiences, and how did their lives in these places shape our present experiences? I have looked at earlier census records as well. Comparing records over time provides details of changes at a microscopic level in a neighborhood. It tells us something about the individuals who lived in the houses, and also something about social processes and structures, as they changed or as they did not change, over the decades.
Understanding the past supports our efforts to move into the future. If you take a look at census records, who can predict what fascinating little historical tidbit you might discover – which will change your understanding of the world?
Give it a try!
https://1950census.archives.gov/
