Almost Finished! 1940 Census Indexing: July 2012 Update

The California Genealogical Society is part of the 1940 U.S. Census Community Project to create a free, online searchable name index of the 1940 U.S. Federal Census.

CGS has sixty-six indexers who are part of a team of almost 155,000 volunteers. Our team members indexed 13,301 names and arbitrated 8,739 during the month of July. 

Amazingly, after only four months, the project is almost finished!

99% of the 1940 census has been indexed and arbitrated. More than 134 million records have been indexed and thirty-one states are searchable by name.

President Jeffrey Vaillant is our acting project coordinator and he is posting periodic "cheerleading" messages to our group participants. 

Thank you to all of our hard-working indexing and arbitrating volunteers! 

If you didn't get a change to participate, don't worry! New indexing projects are added every week. 

Next up: the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Community Project.


Copyright © 2012 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library

Western States Complete! 1940 Census Indexing – June 2012 Update

The California Genealogical Society is part of the 1940 U.S. Census Community Project to create a free, online searchable name index of the 1940 U.S. Federal Census.

CGS currently has sixty-six indexers who are part of a team of more than 143,000 volunteers. Our team members indexed 14,299 names and arbitrated 6,970 during the month of June. The project is ahead of schedule and FamilySearch created the graphic above to show that indexing is more than halfway to completion.

In fact, by the end of June, 75% of the entire 1940 census was indexed and arbitrated! More than 105 million records have been indexed, twenty-nine states and territories are searchable by name, and the entire western U.S. is complete.

President Jeffrey Vaillant is our acting project coordinator and he is posting periodic "cheerleading" messages to our group participants.

Thank you to all of our hard-working indexing and arbitrating volunteers!

If you haven't signed on yet, this may be your last chance to participate. Join us and the 1940 U.S. Census Community Project.

Copyright © 2012 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library

Congratulations California! 1940 Census Indexing – May 2012 Update

The California Genealogical Society is part of the 1940 U.S. Census Community Project to create a free, online searchable name index of the 1940 U.S. Federal Census.

The CGS umbrella now has sixty-four indexers who indexed 28,656 names and arbitrated 10,400 during the month of May.

President Jeffrey Vaillant is our acting project coordinator and he is posting periodic "cheerleading" messages to our group participants.

Amazingly, 1940 census indexing for the entire U.S. is already more than half completed! FamilySearch Indexing is reporting the following statistics:

• 51.88% of the entire project has been completely indexed. 
• More than twenty states are at or above 85% complete. 
• Six states — Delaware, Colorado, Kansas, Oregon, Virginia, and New Hampshire — are now indexed and searchable by name, location, and family relations. 

California is almost finished! The Golden State is 97% indexed, thanks largely to more than forty California genealogical societies that are part of the community project. But don't stop, there is still much to be done in other states, and, as we all know, Californians come from everywhere.

To see the status of each state, visit FamilySearch.org/1940census.

Thanks to all of our hard-working indexers!

If you haven't signed on yet, join CGS and the 1940 U.S. Census Community Project.

Copyright © 2012 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library

On the Street Where We Live: A Case Study Using the 1940 Census

Saturday, June 16, 2012
1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

California Genealogical Society Library
2201 Broadway, Suite LL2
Oakland, CA 94612

Michael Nolan, Marty Combs, and Julie Laguard are neighbors in the Bernal Heights district of San Francisco. They used recently released 1940 census data to look back in time at the street where they live. Join us for this fascinating comparison of then and now. The neighbors will present their research on the 200 Block of Elsie Street. They will compare and contrast who lived there in 1940 with data about who lives on the block today, including:

• How many people lived under one roof? 
• What were their origins? Did they migrate or immigrate from somewhere else? 
• What did they do for a living? 
• How much did they earn? What was their length of employment? 
• Vertical study of one house on the block over time 

They will discuss the role the research played in binding the block together through frequent potluck dinners, mutual support in time of need, celebration in time of joy, and a stellar annual block party.

Michael Nolan and Marty Combs will present, with research assistance from Elsie Street neighbor, Julie Lagarde.

The presentation is free and open to all. Please let us know you are coming.

Register online.

Michael Nolan was born and bred in Brooklyn, the son of an Irish Catholic father and a Polish Jewish immigrant mother. He thinks his fascination with genealogy thus began in the womb. He convenes regular family reunions for both sides of his family and maintains sites for both on Facebook and MyFamily. He recently convened a 50th anniversary reunion for his eighth grade class at PS99 in Brooklyn and used various research tools to find missing classmates. He has a long history in journalism in NYC and San Francisco as a researcher, producer and editor for CBS News, the Public Broadcast Laboratory, and the San Francisco Business Times. He currently researches and develops family trees for individual clients. More information at Give the Gift of Family History on Facebook.

Marty Combs is from northwestern North Carolina where his family has been living since the late 1790s. Having only one living grandparent who was already 82 by his birth, and parents who grew up during the Great Depression, he was exposed early to discussions of “the good ol' days” and how families and homes transition through time. He has often exchanged stories with neighbors regarding the history of his neighborhood and home. Marty's day job is a unix system administrator. In his spare time, he cares for a nearby community garden, does woodworking, metalworking and relaxes on his front stoop socializing with neighbors.

Julie Lagarde is a social historian, policy analyst and advocate. A native of France, she obtained a Masters degree in Public Policy at the Institut d'Etudes politiques de Bordeaux. Growing restless with unemployment, she decided to apply her thirst for research to her home. Michael and Marty will present her “vertical study” on who has lived in her house over the past century, since it was built.


Copyright © 2012 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library

1940 Census Indexing – April 2012 Update

The California Genealogical Society is part of the 1940 U.S. Census Community Project to create a free, online searchable name index of the 1940 U.S. Federal Census.

Fifty-eight indexers have signed on to participate under the CGS umbrella. For the month of April, our group has indexed 29,829 names and arbitrated 2000!

President Jeffrey Vaillant is our acting project coordinator and he is posting periodic "cheerleading" messages to our group participants. We are seeing new members sign on every week.

Overall, the project is exceeding expectations. As of April 20, 2012, FamilySearch Indexing reported the following statistics:

• So far, 14.2% of the entire project has been completely indexed.
• We have 75,820 indexers and arbitrators working to index and arbitrate the census records.
• Colorado and Kansas have been completely indexed and are being processed in preparation for posting on FamilySearch.org.
• Delaware is posted online at FamilySearch.org.
• Nine states (Alaska, Idaho, Indiana, Nevada, New Hampshire, Oregon, Utah, Virginia and Wyoming) are 80% or more indexed and will soon be complete. To see the status of each state, visit FamilySearch.org/1940census.
• A total of 19,242,589 records have been indexed and arbitrated by volunteers.

The state of California is more than 25% indexed already – perhaps because fifty Golden State genealogical societies are part of the community project.

Thanks to all of our hard-working indexers!

If you haven't signed on yet, don't delay! Join us and the 1940 U.S. Census Community Project.


Copyright © 2012 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library

Join Us and the 1940 U.S. Census Community Project

 

The California Genealogical Society is proud of our continuing partnership with FamilySearch Indexing.

CGS has joined forces with genealogy societies around the country as part of the 1940 U.S. Census Community Project to create a free, online searchable name index of the 1940 U.S. Federal Census after images of the census are released to the public starting April 2, 2012.

The 1940 Census is attractive to both new and experienced researchers because most people in the United States can remember a relative that was living in 1940. It will do more to connect living memory with historical records and families than any other collection previously made available.
—David Rencher, Chief Genealogical Officer for FamilySearch.

Join our members throughout California and across the U.S. (and one international indexer!) who have signed on to help. Visit The1940census.com/society and register to participate with our society. Simply select California Genealogical Society and Library on the profile screen when creating your account. Every new person indexing with our society gets us closer to milestones that qualify us for incentives provided by the sponsors of the project, so sign up today!

Steps to take:

1. Download and install the indexing software
   Watch an Overview | Get Started
2. Learn how to index the 1940 US Census
   Watch a Video | Try the 1940 Census indexing simulation
3. Let others know about the 1940 US Census Community Project
   Like the Facebook page | Follow @The1940Census on Twitter | Follow the page on Google+ | Tell friends about the1940census.com

Thank you for your help!

 

Copyright © 2012 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library

Revealing Grandma's Secrets: The 1940 Census

Who knew grandma was living in Kansas City in 1935 and then in San Francisco by 1940? The 1940 U.S. census tells us a wealth of unique information about our families and helps us understand what their lives were like.

The newest video by Reese & Jones features member volunteers Bill O'Neil and Lavinia Schwarz.

Directed by: Shannon Reese
Edited by: Kathleen Jones

Visit our YouTube channel: CAancestors.

If you need guidance finding your people on the unindexed 1940 census, the California Genealogical Society is here to help. Consider using our extended research service.


Copyright © 2012 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library

Come to Our 1940 Census Party!

 

Come and celebrate the release of the 1940 U.S. Census by searching for your ancestors with other researchers!

Where: Oakland Family History Center, 4766 Lincoln Avenue, Oakland.

When: Monday, April 9, 2012, 2:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

RSVP online.

Before the event:
•    Create a list of relatives with their possible locations and addresses in 1940.
•    Visit Steve Morse's 1940 Census ED Finder to narrow down enumeration districts for your ancestors—this will be helpful for ancestors living in major cities.

On the day of the event:
•    Bring a list of ancestors to search for and your laptop computer

•    Invite a friend to join you for the festivities 

•    Contribute by volunteering to index a portion of the census for FamilySearch.Org 

•    Expect to have a great time searching with fellow genealogists and family historians! 

This event is co-hosted by the California Genealogical Society, the African American Genealogical Society of Northern California, and the Oakland California Family History Center.

Can't make the event? If you need guidance finding your people on the unindexed 1940 census, the California Genealogical Society is here to help. Consider using our extended research service. 

Photographs from the Library of Congress.

Copyright © 2012 by Kathryn M. Doyle, California Genealogical Society and Library