1940 US Census is completely searchable

Indexing of all US states on the 1940 census has been completed at Ancestry.com. Now we can search by name, even in Texas!

All that is required in order to view and download 1940 census images is a free Ancestry.com account, so no need to utilize that 14-day free trial just yet (if you haven't already).

Most states in the 1940 US Federal Census are also searchable and available for download free at FamilySearch. All of the names have been indexed, but a handful of states, including Texas (where all of my relatives were), won't be searchable for a few more weeks.

I managed to find about half of my 1940 ancestors by browsing the enumeration districts where I thought they would be living, but many were hard to track down. I now have a complete collection of all of my husband's and my own direct lines from the 1940 census schedule. Yay!

Tips

Like with previous indexed census images, the 1940 index does have errors due to illegible handwriting, fallible informants, and surely a few typos here and there. Also, spelling variations in first and last names may be an issue, though Ancestry.com does try to account for this situation.

If you are having no luck finding a particular ancestor, be sure to try searching instead for another relative who would have been living in the household. You can also just search for the surname within a specific area in order to uncover other relatives in the same area with a single search.

Also be sure to browse up and down census pages for relatives living nearby. I wasn't looking for my great-great grandmother yet, but stumbled across her living a few doors down from my great-grandmother's family.

Happy hunting!

1940 Census - 30 States Indexed and Searchable at FamilySearch

The volunteers at FamilySearch.org, who have been avidly indexing the 1940 Us Census images since it was released to the public in April of this year, now have 30 States available to search by name. That's more than half of the States, and roughly 75% of the entire 1940 Census.

The new US States added June 28 to FamilySearch's 1940 searchable records are California, Washington, Iowa, New Mexico, Nebraska and Missouri. The remaining states can still be browsed by enumeration district, but chances are, it won't be much longer before the indexing of the 1940 Census is complete. FamilySearch is hoping to complete indexing of the remaining census schedules by the end of July.

This event marks an impressive milestone for one of the largest free-to-use genealogical data repositories available online. To check out updated progress of the 1940 Census indexing project, visit familysearch.org/1940census/.

Here's a list of 1940 US Census States searchable at FamilySearch.org as of this posting:

• Alabama


• Alaska


• Arizona


• California


• Colorado


• Delaware


• Florida


• Hawaii


• Idaho


• Indiana


• Iowa


• Kansas


• Louisiana


• Maine


• Minnesota (pending)


• Mississippi


• Missouri


• Montana


• Nebraska


• New Hampshire


• New Mexico


• Nevada


• North Dakota


• Oklahoma


• Oregon


• Rhode Island


• South Dakota


• Utah


• Vermont


• Virginia


• Washington


• Wyoming

1940 New York Census Indexed by Name

Earlier this month, Ancestry.com added New York to the short list of US States that can now be searched by name in the 1940 Census. Completion of the indexing of roughly 13.5 million residents of New York appearing on the 1940 US Census marks the fifth completed State (including Washington DC) Ancestry.com can now provide name-based search results for.

Boasting an impressive 10 percent of the population in 1940, New York had the largest population of any State in the US. It is no wonder that the team avidly indexing the New York enumeration districts of the 1940 Census at Ancestry.com has spent just over 2 months working on the project.

To search names in the 1940 US Census of New York, go to the 1940 Census at Ancestry.com to search the indexed states, or browse by enumeration district. The 1940 Census images at Ancestry are currently viewable without a paid subscription, but a free membership is required.

States that are currently searchable by name in the 1940 U.S. Census at Ancestry.com are Delaware, Nevada, Washington D.C., Maine and New York. The remaining 1940 US Census States are actively being indexed by Ancestry.com staff, and will become available as each State is completed.

The 1940 United States Federal Census was the 16th census taken by the United States. It was released to the public on April 2, 2012, by the National Archives and Records Administration. In an unprecedented internet event, the images were made public in digital format by the NARA on 1940census.archives.gov.