Reading the Fine Print for 1950 US Census Procedures

Procedure for enumerating the 1950 US Census

The 1950 Census will have a treasure trove of details to clarify the lives of our ancestors. Even though the release of these records is still more than two years away, I'm reading instructions and procedures to see what's new and different in the questions and answers. What stands out to me are the assumptions made by Census officials in interpreting answers and non-answers.

Mar, Nev, Sep, Wd, or D? 

I'm especially excited about the innovation of recording "never married" as one alternative when enumerating marital status (see excerpt at top of this post). This new answer alternative debuted in the 1950 Census (according to procedures, downloadable from this page of the Department of Commerce).

In the past, enumerators noted if an individual was married, single, widowed, or (sometimes) divorced. These categories were clues that could send me looking for a marriage license or a spouse's death cert or even a divorce record. More than once, my ancestors lied about being married or widowed when they were actually (gasp!) separated or divorced, I later learned through painstaking research.

It's different with "nev," which suggests no need to look for these types of records. I might take a cursory look, but not a deep dive if someone is listed as never married and I have little reason to doubt that status.

At the very least, seeing "nev" next to a name could add weight to other clues indicating this ancestor was single (like a great aunt who was always listed as "S" on every Census).

Just an S? Check the Assumptions!

More detail about 1950 enumeration of marital status for individuals

Sometimes enumerators who had worked in previous Census periods didn't consistently use the new abbreviations for 1950. Above, an excerpt from the procedures explaining that if an individual had "S" next to his or her name, inspectors double-checked to see how that enumerator used S on previous entries.

Officials also looked at the composition of that household to see whether children and a possible spouse were present, and code accordingly. If no children were enumerated in the household, this individual would be coded as "never married." These are interesting and not necessarily correct assumptions, that could cause confusion for genealogists 72 years in the future (meaning us in 2022)!

Note that individuals over the age of 55 with no spouse in the household were to be listed as "widowed" in the absence of any other marital status being enumerated. Again, an assumption based on that time and place in history--but not necessarily accurate for specific ancestors.

With so many months to prep for the 1950 Census release, it makes sense to skim the instructions and get a sense of how we should interpret the answers when revealed in April, 2022. For more about the 1950 Census, please see my summary page here.