Of course, before any census index is searched, there are the following caveats:
- Census information may be incorrect. Someone other than the person enumerated may have provided the information, or the informant may have been uncertain, uninterested, or deceitful.
- The original could be difficult to read.
There are several items one needs in order to search a census. Some of these items can be entered as search terms and others are viewable on the census entry. Personally I hate to have to constantly go back to my database to look these items up while searching.
First Names.
I need all names, not just the “official” one–first and middle names,
nicknames, and diminutives. A person can be enumerated with any combination of
these names and what I think is the middle name may actually be the name under
which the individual is enumerated.
Last Name
All reasonable variants must be considered; a printed list of
variants for any last name is always an excellent idea. Relying on memory to
keep track of all variant spellings is not advised and significantly increases
the chances the entry is overlooked. Use a Soundex converter (
http://resources.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/soundexconverter
)
to determine which variants have the same Soundex code.
Year of Birth/Age
The census provides an age; many Ancestry.com indexes convert that to
an approximate year of birth. Consequently I like to have both in front of me
while searching, keeping in mind that these ages and years are always
estimates. Any age in a census can easily be incorrect, although the younger a
person gets the smaller the potential error in age. A two-year old is not
likely to pass for seven, but a fifty-two-year old could possibly pass for
fifty-seven.
Place of Birth for Person and Their Parents
This information will be listed in the enumeration for the individual
and their parents. For the person being indexed, it will be searchable. Having
what I “know” to be correct on hand for comparison purposes is helpful.
Residence in 1910
Determine the probable residence in 1910 as precisely as possible. In urban
areas, this may be an absolute necessity if the name is common. Even in rural
areas, there may be several individuals with the same name, especially if the
location is not known very precisely. City directories, vital records,
obituaries, estate records, or any record that will mention a residence will
be helpful in determining the location more precisely.
Other Family Members
If your person was not living alone in 1910, names of the other
members of their household (and their identifying information) will aid in
your search. In some situations this information may be necessary to
distinguish between multiple households containing persons with the name of
your lost person. Other times searching may be easier for one of these other
people than for your desired person.
General Suggestions
Become familiar with the political boundaries and geographical
features of the area where your ancestor likely resided. Also consider how
likely accuracy of the information you “know” about your ancestor and review
other census enumerations for additional clues. And if the area of residence
is small, consider a page-by-page search of the census images.
Here are two examples of profiles I used for individuals I am researching:
Martha Sargent
First names: Martha Ellen, Mattie, Marta, Ella, etc
Last name: Sargent (S625)
Last name variants: Sargeant, (S625) Sergent, (S625) etc. 1900 census
enumerated lists name as Sargin (S625).
Year of birth: ca. 1859
Age in 1910: about 51
Place of birth: Illinois
Parents’ place of birth: possibly Indiana
1910 residence: precise location unknown, between Warsaw, Hancock County,
Illinois and Lima, Adams County, Illinois
Other family members in her 1910 household: none. Husband was
institutionalized (and enumerated) elsewhere and child was located with her
own family.
Levi Demar
First names: Levi, possibly Louis
Last name: Demar (D560), Demare (D560), or Desmarais (D256)–and a thousand
variants on that.
Year of birth: 1886
Age in 1910: 24
Place of birth: New York State
Parents’ place of birth: New York State
1910 residence: upstate New York, or Chicago, Illinois.
Other family members in 1910: father Louis (living in Chicago); sister Mary
living in Chicago; other sisters remaining upstate New York. Marital status in
1910 is unknown.
NOTE: This organization might have resulted in my locating Levi. I need to determine if the entry in Dutchess County, New York is the person for whom I am looking.
Good luck and get ready! The every name 1910 census index is on the way.
Michael John Neill is the Course I Coordinator at the Genealogical
Institute of Mid America (GIMA) held annually in Springfield,
Illinois, and is also on the faculty of Carl Sandburg College in
Galesburg, Illinois. Michael is currently a member of the board of the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS) www.fgs.org. He conducts seminars and lectures nationally on a wide variety of genealogical and computer topics and contributes to several genealogical publications, including Ancestry Magazine and Genealogical Computing. You can e-mail him at mjnrootdig@myfamily.com or visit his website at: www.rootdig.com, but he regrets that he is unable to assist with personal research.