Daily AncestorH
H in the 1900 and 1910 census means a house rather than a farm; in the 1940 census it means the person was doing home housework.
In 1900 and 1910, the farm or house column took F for a farm home and H for any other home. A family living on a farm that none of them ran was still marked H.
In 1940 the letter changed jobs. For people 14 and older who were not working, not seeking work and without a job, H meant they were mainly busy with their own home housework, even if they worked for pay a short time during the year.
As seen in a recordEmployment status column of the 1940 census
Ross, Ella, Wife, F, W, 42 ... H
Sources
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Daily Ancestor. "H." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/abbreviations/census-h. Last checked 2026-10-10.