Daily AncestorSep
Sep in the 1950 census marital status column means separated: married but living apart, without a divorce.
The 1950 census used Mar, Wd, D, Sep and Nev for marital status. Sep meant a married person with a legal separation, or who had parted from the spouse because of marital discord, and had not obtained a divorce.
Do not read it as September, which appears only in date columns. A Sep entry means the missing spouse may be living elsewhere and may turn up in the same census under another address.
As seen in a recordLine of the 1950 census
Bell, Laura, Head, F, W, 38, Sep
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Daily Ancestor. "Sep." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/abbreviations/census-sep. Last checked 2026-10-10.