1950 Census - Who Do You Hope To Find?

Who do you hope to find in the 1950 Census? A question asked frequently among the genealogy community. I don't know about you, but I have a list of people I am hoping to find. Some will answer some questions, others are just people I want to find.

There are a couple of family members that could be somewhat troublesome to find until the index gets released. Mostly because they moved around quite a bit. I have a few possible leads, but they may not pan out.

One specific lead that could be helpful is Pictures. My Grandma and Dad had a lot of pictures in their collection. I've been going through them for years dividing them up by year, location, family, etc. These pictures give clues about where my family could have been living during specific times of their lives. And based on these pictures, I can narrow down that location to hopefully find the Enumeration District Map so I can locate them on the 1950 Census.

Here are some pictures of family members I hope to find on the 1950 Census

Ilg, Buer, Cash, Kelley Family 
July 1955
Carmel, Indiana?

    This photo was taken in July 1955 possibly in Carmel, Indiana. Great grand Aunt Ruth and her husband, Howard are going to be a little difficult to locate for the 1950 Census because they moved around quite a bit for his job. He was an architect. I have found them in St. Louis, Missouri;  Joliet, Illinois; Dallas, Texas; and Carmel, Indiana, where they retired to eventually. My mom told me stories about visiting them in Indiana. This photo is one of those times family visited Aunt Ruth and Uncle Howard. Starting in the back row from left to right, there is Oma Mae Caldwell (2nd Great-grandma), Robert Edward Cash (son of Herbert & Alyce), Howard James Kelley (Great-Grand Uncle), Joseph Melchoir Ilg (Great-grandpa), and Herbert Arthur Cash (Husband of Alyce). In the front row from left to right, we have Margaret "Honey" Ilg (Great-grandma), Ruth Helen Kelley (Great-Grand Aunt), Edward Elmer Buer (2nd Great-grandpa), and Alyce(daughter of Edward & second wife, not pictured).

    Edward Buer (2nd Great-grandpa) was married to Oma before they divorced in 1913. He then married Alice Boyer (unknown maiden name). Alice is not pictured with family because she died in December 1950. But she will be on the 1950 Census. When Alice died, they were living in Joliet, Illinois according to the 1950 City Directory. So that's where they will be found in the 1950 Census. I do know that after Alice died, Edward moved in with Aunt Ruth and Uncle Howard. He died in 1967 in Carmel, Indiana. So in this photo, he was more than likely living with them. 

    Mom said she remembers Uncle Howard Kelley traveling to so many places for his work. Seattle, Texas, Illinois, and even Alaska. Mom remembers receiving a souvenir from him when she was little; a little Eskimo doll. So it's possible Aunt Ruth and Uncle Howard may be living somewhere completely different by the 1950 Census. He supposedly even traveled to different countries. Oh boy... But one thing we do know is they were in Carmel, Indiana by 1955. We hope... See how much information you can glean from one picture?

    This picture was taken sometime in the '50s. This is my Grandma Ruth Wheeler, Uncle Jerry Valdes, Uncle Les Wheeler, Mom Maggie Wheeler, and Uncle Howard Wheeler. Mom was born in 1950. I might have some photos from when my mom was little, but I haven't gone through all my grandma's photos yet. This picture was more than likely taken in High Ridge, Missouri at their house.

    This is where mom's memory comes into play. Mom said they moved to High Ridge when she was about six months old. She was born in March so that would mean they moved around September. The Census was taken in April. So mom would have been born for the Census. What's helpful is I have Mom's birth certificate and it has their address listed. That will help me find them in the 1950 Census. Everyone in this photo, except for Uncle Howard (who was born in 1951), will be on that census. 

More Photos to come!