Daily AncestorFind a family in the 1950 census
Find one family you remember, or one you have heard about, in the 1950 census, and read every column for them.
The 1950 census is the newest one open to the public, and it is free to search by name. For many of us it shows parents or grandparents in a record we can still check against family memory.
Your steps this week
- Search the free National Archives site at 1950census.archives.gov by name and place.
- The name index was made by machine reading of handwriting, so try spelling variants or browse by enumeration district.
- Copy each person's relationship, age, marital status, birthplace and work.
- Check whether anyone in the family fell on a sample line, which carries extra questions at the bottom of the page.
- Compare the household with the 1940 census and with what the family remembers.