Daily AncestorPhil
Phil in the 1930 census veterans column means service in the Philippine insurrection, not the first name Philip.
The 1930 census listed Phil as the short form for the Philippine insurrection, the war that began in February 1899 between the United States and Philippine nationalists after Spain gave up the islands. Today it is usually called the Philippine-American War.
In the name column, Phil. is a common short form of Philip. In the veterans column it is a war. The 1940 census folded this service into the letter S, together with the Spanish-American War and the Boxer Rebellion.
As seen in a recordVeteran columns of the 1930 census
Grant, Oscar, Head, M, W, 52 ... Yes, Phil
Sources
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Phil." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/abbreviations/census-phil. Last checked 2026-10-10.