1950 Census - Reviewing names on Family Search

     The 1950 Census has been available now for 21 days. After the excitement of finding ancestors on the NARA site, the focus has now been on indexing and reviewing names. It's amazing how fast this is all going. Thanks to the new software being used by NARA and Ancestry, names are being indexed faster than previous census records. And especially thanks to all the volunteers who are reviewing all the data over on FamilySearch.org. They have been working around the clock to complete this project. You can help too!

How Do You Do It?
    I've dabbled a little bit in helping review names on FamilySearch.org, but yesterday I jumped right in and went crazy reviewing names. You see, Missouri became available yesterday! Yay!! While I have found pretty much everyone on my list, there were some I hadn't found yet. So I dove right in.

1950 Census Community Project

Reviewing Names & Indexing

FamilySearch.org

    As you can see they are coming along fairly nicely. You can choose which state you want to work on either from the drop-down menu or the map. After that, you a box comes up giving you a couple of options. As of right now, the only choice available for Missouri is "Review Names" at the bottom. Once the indexing process gets a little further, other options will be made available. See the images below. Utah is further along in the indexing process so they have more options available.

1950 Census Community Project
Review the Census in Missouri
FamilySearch.og

1950 Census Community Project
Review the Census in Utah
FamilySearch.org

    Since the only option available is "Review Names" that's what I clicked on. And it brought up another box that gives you the options of either searching for specific surnames or just diving into the state. I did both. First I started with the surnames in my family. I wanted to review my family names and I wanted to see if any missing family members popped up.

1950 Census Community Project
Review Individual Names
FamilySearch.org

    When I searched for the surnames in my family, many pages were brought up that were NOT my family, but that's ok. I was happy to review the similar names and help other families. I was pretty impressed it picked up hard to recognize surnames like "ILG". If not written correctly, it could resemble other words. 

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Read my blog post:

52 Ancestors: How Do You Spell That?

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    Searching the surname "ILG" brought up my great-grandparents Joseph and Margaret Ilg in St. Louis, Missouri. I had already located their census page on the NARA site with the help of the SteveMorse.org site. But I was so happy to be able to review the name and identify that it was correct.
    I was able to continue to review the page they were on if I wanted. A continued search of the surname "ILG" brought up other people with that same last night, but no other families like I thought it would. That either means one of two things: 1) The surname wasn't recognized as being "ILG" or 2) The other "ILG" families were already reviewed. Which works for me. We are all working together to help each other and get this project done faster. You can see below what it looks like to review names.

    

1950 Census Community Project
Reviewing Names
FamilySearch.org

    Right now, they are only reviewing first names and surnames on the census for Missouri. If it matches, you click match. If it's incorrect, you can edit it. If you are unsure (and that's ok) then click unsure. Better to be honest than to be incorrect. There are other options to choose from such as if there are other words besides names or if something has been scratched out or other anomalies. I have not worked with the other options available to other states yet such as reviewing groups, but when I do, I will write another blog post.
    There are still some bugs to be worked out in the system so be patient. If you have any questions or want to know about updates to the project, click the link below.

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1950 US Census Project:

Updates, More Information, and FAQ

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    As of this date, Missouri is at 2% for reviewing names. But I know that won't last for long. I will be contributing more as will so many other volunteers. Maybe I will come across some more surprises. Check out a couple I have already found.

Surprises
    As I said above, there are still some family members I have not found yet for various reasons. So I'm waiting for the indexing process to be complete. While waiting, I searched for their surnames for reviewing. I came up with a couple of surprises but not the ones I was expecting.

    First, I searched for the "Rickards" surname to see what would come up. I did bring up my father-in-law and his parents, which I had already found. So I verified their names while I was there. But there was one person missing from that census, which I knew would be. My father-in-law's brother, Keith Rickards. Due to some complications during birth, he was born with severe mental disabilities. He was at home for a few years, as shown in the 1940 Census and in some photographs I have from my father-in-law. But he was not with them on the 1950 Census. As I said, I already knew he wouldn't be.
    I was informed years ago that Keith had spent most of his life in a special facility for his mental disabilities. He thrived well as far as I understood. Lilly, his mom, worked at the facility in the gift shop. According to a newspaper article, Keithie (as his mom would call him) lived at Bellefontaine Rehabilitation Center. I wrote about him for the 52 Ancestors prompt: Bachelor Uncle.

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Read about Keith here

52 Ancestors: Bachelor Uncle

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    Even though I knew the name of the Facility, there was no way for me to track it down in the 1950 Census. And I learned why while I was reviewing names. While searching for "Rickards" surnames, a page popped up with a whole bunch of unrelated names in alphabetical order. And there he was, right on that page. I scrolled to the top and noticed the name of the facility was not the same as what I had. It's possible they changed the name sometime in the years he had lived there.

1950 Census Community Project
Reviewing Names
FamilySearch.org

    The name of the facility was St. Louis State Training School in St. Ferdinand, St. Louis, Missouri. Oh, I feel some more research is going to happen soon and another blog post going more in-depth. That is if I find more information. So I was excited to find this surprise. But this wasn't the only one.

    While still reviewing "Rickards" surnames, I came across a name I recognized: Len Rickards. I know that name because he contacted me a few years ago. We are distant cousins on my husband's side. I didn't realize he would appear on this census! So I downloaded a copy of the census and emailed it to him. Can't wait to hear back from him.

    Going from my hubby's family to my family, I searched for the surname "Strawhun" to see what would come up. My Grandma Fuchs' brother and his family popped up! Wilbert Strawhun was a fireman in Rock Hill, Missouri for years and I hadn't located him yet on the 1950 census. So that was a fun surprise. I continued searching but no other Strawhuns showed up.

I know as the days go on, I will find more surprises popping up as names get indexed. What surprises have you found? Are you helping index? Who are you hoping to find once the index is complete? 

Kindergarten Day!

     According to Thomas MacEntee, today is Kindergarten Day! Did you attend Kindergarten? I did! I was excited to start Kindergarten and meet new friends. But I was also scared to death. I had horrible anxiety when I was a kid. I remember my mom putting me on the bus that first day. I was to the point of tears and begging her to not make me go. But once I got going, things were alright.
  I attended Kindergarten at Geggie Elementary in Eureka, Missouri in 1987. My teacher was Mrs. Ammann. There were two Kindergarten classes in the morning and two in the evening. I had morning Kindergarten. I actually have my yearbook from that year, but it's not in the best condition. I had gotten ahold of it when I was young and kind of marked it up a bit. So I will only share the cover of the yearbook. I know many schools don't do yearbooks for elementary school, so I'm glad ours did. I have all the yearbooks from all my grades. 

Geggie Elementary School Yearbook
Eureka, Missouri
1987-1988

Pictures of the school
Geggie Elementary School Yearbook
1987-1988

    My mom kept EVERYTHING from my years in school. Photos, schoolwork, and more. I have some memories from Kindergarten. I didn't have a best friend really, but I had a few friends. Crystal, Hillary, Bobbi, and Sara. I'm still friends with Crystal and Hillary to this day.
    Some memories I have about Kindergarten include playing with blocks during indoor recess, having show-and-tell in which I shared my stuffed bunny, and one of my classmates kept accidentally taking my work home instead of his. I remember having a box to put in my cubby that had my pencils, crayons, pencil sharpener, and other items. 
    Oh my gosh and I remember if we were bad, we would have to go sit on a stuffed turtle. It was almost like a mat, but softer like a pillow. Oh, and it was so upsetting if we had to go sit on a turtle. I think I had to only once, but can't remember.
    I also remember lining up at the end of the day for our school bus. One time I got in the wrong line and got on the wrong bus. Oops! I knew I was on the wrong bus when it started going the wrong way from what I was used to. Oh, it scared my mom to death! The bus I was on was out of radio range for a while, so they didn't know what was going on. I do remember all of a sudden the bus driver asking if there was anyone on the bus that lived, I think, at my address or something and I raised my hand. She said you realize you are on the wrong bus. I felt so bad. So she finished her route and then dropped me home. My Papa was waiting for me. He always stood out and waited for me to come home.
    Wow, so many memories are just flooding back. I am just mentally walking through the halls at my Elementary School. The school is still there today, but it has changed so much. I would love to walk the halls again just to see how much it changed. Do you have memories from Kindergarten?

History of Kindergarten in St. Louis
    Believe it or not, the first Public School Kindergarten was right here in St. Louis. In Carondelet to be more specific. Susan Blow opened started the first Kindergarten in 1873. She utilized the "learn through play" approach to cognitive development first created by Friedrich Froebel in Germany. 

"In September 1873, Susan Blow opened the first public kindergarten at the Des Peres School in Carondelet. While most classrooms were plain, Blow’s kindergarten classroom was bright and cheerful. It had low tables and short benches just right for small children. The room contained many plants, books, and toys for children to use during work and play. Students learned about color, shapes, and fractions by using simple objects like balls and blocks. They also learned about keeping themselves clean, eating well, and getting regular exercise." Historic Missourians

Susan Blow Kindergarten Room
Des Peres School, Carondelet, St. Louis, Missouri
Emil Boehl, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

    My family's roots run deep in Carondelet. Although I haven't traced any of my ancestors that attended this school as of yet. The Carondelet Historical Society is housed in the old Des Peres school. I've been there once to do research. If you would like to read more on Susan Blow or the Des Peres School, click the links below.

• Susan Blow: Bringing Public Kindergarten to the US
• Historic Missourians - Susan Blow
• FAQs.org - Kindergarten
• Only In Your State - Carondelet Historical Society

So Happy Kindergarten Day!

Check out some more photos from my Kindergarten year.

Week 16: Negatives

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Week 16
There are some negatives to family history... Discovering something "negative" about an ancestor, not finding what you were expecting, and even film negatives. This week, explore one of those negatives. Maybe it will turn into a positive!

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    Negatives are a thing of the past ever since everything went digital. No more having to wait to see if that photo turned out right. No more having to wait for a professional photo studio to make copies of your photos. No more waiting in general for your photos. I grew up with negatives so I'm very familiar with them. I even took a photography class my senior year in high school where I learned how to develop negatives and how to print my own photos. There are generations rising up that have no clue what negatives are.

negatives (noun): a photographic image made on film or specially prepared glass that shows the light and shade or color values reversed from the original, and from which positive prints can be made. Oxford Dictionary

    While going through my parents' basement, I have come across boxes of photos that include negatives. If you come across negatives in your ancestors' collections, DO NOT THROW THEM AWAY. Take some time and review the negatives. I've talked about viewing the negatives in a previous post.

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Read the post here:

Photos Scanned From Negatives

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Why should you keep the negatives?
    Believe it or not, there are a few things you can learn from the negatives. Even if you have examined the negatives & have seen you already have copies of these photos, do not get rid of them. At least not just yet. Do you have photos that you have no clue who is in them or where they were taken? Then read on.

Different types of negatives you might find

    When I was going through the negatives, I noticed photos I knew were in my collection as I have already gone through my parents' photos and attempted to organize them. But there were a few stray photos I had no idea where to put them. Who are these people? When were these taken? Where was this taken?

    Depending on the year the photos were taken, the negatives will either be individuals or in strips. If they are in strips, that is helpful with piecing together other photos. Because if a photo is next to another photo on the strip, then you know it was taken on the same roll of film, more than likely on the same day, for the same event. That came in handy when I found a picture of a turkey sitting in a kitchen on the same film strip as my grandparents. So I knew that photo was taken the same day.
    For individual negatives, that will be more tricky if they are spread out in a box. I got lucky because I found the original envelopes that the photos were put in after being developed. The photos were no longer in the envelope, but the negatives were. I was then able to piece together what photos went together. One was a gathering in my grandma's backyard. I was able to take all those photos and put them together in a group.

    Of course, the obvious next reason to keep the negatives is there may be photos on them that you don't have or have never seen. There were a couple photos I already had copies of, but on some negatives were photos I did not have in my collection. I was able to take a picture of the negative using the method I discussed in the blog post I shared above. 

    If you are having trouble figuring out the year or type of negative you have, check out this website I found that shows the different kinds of negatives that were available, the cameras that used those negatives, and the years they were manufactured.

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Guide to Negative Film & Camera Formats

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Now What?
   After you have scanned the negatives, checked the negatives, and learned everything you can about them, what should you do? I am a big supporter of keeping the old negatives just in case. It's like having an extra backup. But if you keep them, you need to make sure they are kept safe.

    The best way to keep them safe is to store them in archival-quality materials. You can order them from many online retailers. Place them in archive quality sleeves and then in archive boxes. Melissa Barker, The Archive Lady, talks more in-depth about this on the link below.

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The Archive Lady: Preserving Photo Negatives

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    What kind of negatives do you have in your collection? Have you checked them out yet? Have you made any discoveries going through them? Share them in the comments below. I'd love to hear about them. 

Week 15: How Do You Spell That?

     I can't tell you how many times my last name has been misspelled in my life. Both married and maiden! Most of the time people don't even ask "How Do You Spell That?" but just assume they know. I've made it a habit of spelling my maiden name every time someone asks for it to hopefully eliminate any confusion. Yeah, that still doesn't always work.
    As we do genealogy research, we will constantly come across surnames that were spelled in many different ways. Either because it was misheard, or the family was illiterate and couldn't spell to begin with. When I first started, I stuck with the belief if it wasn't spelled it was supposed to be, they weren't family. Yeah, that didn't get me far in my research. I've since learned that I have to be flexible with the spelling and prove the family connection by other means. So these are some of the most commonly misspelled surnames in my family.

Fuchs

    My maiden name is Fuchs. It is of German origin and is usually pronounced like "fyooks"; although I grew up pronouncing it a different way: "fyoosh". I have no idea why we did that or how it got started, but it must have at least come from my Great-grandfather, Michael Fuchs because my grandpa, George Fuchs and all his siblings all pronounce it that way. Anytime I had a new teacher at school, I had to correct how they pronounced it. So much fun! But that isn't even half the problem.

1940 US Fed Census
Fuchs Family
Ancestry.com

    Do you see how it is spelled? It is too closely related to another word that is considered a cuss word. Oh yeah, this was grand growing up with a whole bunch of adolescent kids. One time a classmate got a hold of one of my papers and changed the 'h' to a 'k' (which is not hard to do) and then turned it in. So when it was time for the papers to be handed out, another student was reading out the names and said that word. Oh boy... I had to explain to the teacher I did not do that. And even showed them that the pencil mark on the page was different than my writing. That's just one example.
    Let me tell you, I have friends from high school that STILL don't know how to spell my maiden name. It usually ends up with extra letters or sometimes they drop the 's' on the end. I always felt like I was cursed. Once I started researching German records, I was curious to see how the spelling had changed if any. And it really didn't. Once I got into the records, I saw the surname "Fuchs" everywhere! And spelled like we spell it! But that still doesn't help me today when I meet someone new and I tell them my maiden name. 

Rickards

    I thought when I would get married my troubles would be over. Boy was I fooled. I think I have more trouble with this surname than my maiden name. Everyone always immediately thinks it's supposed to be Richards. I usually tell people it's Richards except with a 'k'. I have to admit even I had trouble when I first met my husband.
    Unlike with Fuchs, Rickards has been misspelled for YEARS. I've lost track of how many variations I have come across in my research. These are just some examples: Rickard, Ricard, Records, Rickert, Ricketts, and of course, Richards. It is unclear how the original was spelled, but research has suggested the original was Rickard. The family came from England, but I haven't traced the family back there myself. 

1850 US Fed Census Records Family Ancestry.com	1920 US Fed Census Richards Family Ancestry.com

Ilg (ILG)

    Now this surname threw me for a loop when mom first told me about it. I was like, um, what did you say? Haha! The 'i' in the surname makes a short i sound, like igloo. This is my grandma's maiden name. I had never heard of this name before and for sure never met anyone with this surname. This family line has been my most researched.

1930 US Fed Census
Ilk Family
Ancestry.com

    The family came from Germany in the mid to late 1800s. I've traced the family pretty far back in Germany and like Fuchs, Ilg was always spelled the same. But pronouncing it I believe is a little different. I think the 'g' makes more of a 'k' sound which makes sense why I've seen the surname spelled with a 'k'. I've seen it spelled Ilck and even Ilk, which is why I couldn't find the family easily in the 1930 census. It's also been spelled Illg, Illig, Ilges, Llg, Elk, and more. when I go looking for them in the City Directories, I have to check under all these spellings. 

    While I've run into other surnames that have been misspelled before, these are the top ones I've dealt with. It's best to include variations of spellings you've come across for the surnames in your tree for anyone who reviews your research or for your own personal notes. 

So, what surnames have you come across in your research that has been constantly misspelled? 

1950 Census - Who Have You Found?

     Everyone is all abuzz over the release of the 1950 US Federal Census. Many of us were up late waiting for the midnight release. I joined Amy Johnson Crow for a release party on YouTube. We were visiting with friends and preparing for the moment the Census was released on the National Archives website. When it finally hit, we all scattered and went searching. Almost like an Easter Egg hunt. You can watch the video below.

Mom, Dad, and Their Parents

    That first night, I only planned on looking up my parents since I had to get up early the next morning for a doctor's appointment. Mom's family, I was able to find them right away thanks to the Enumeration District. I knew where they were living when the census came through so that helped a great deal. 

1950 US Fed Census
Missouri, Gravois - 95-279
National Archives
Wheeler Family

    Mom has given me the information that she was told. She was only a month old when the census came through. Later that year they moved to another location, but that was after the census came through. I wrote about them in previous posts here:

Using Photos to Help Find Addresses

Who Do You Hope To Find?

    Now, Dad's family was more tricky. They were moving around a lot during this time, so there were a couple of places they could have been, and I only had addresses for two of them. While Dad was still alive, he had told me about the places they lived. He had an impeccable memory. The first two places were in Kirkwood that my grandpa built. I had addresses for them and looked them up right away. Nope, they weren't there. Next came the places I DIDN'T have addresses for. Only some details.
    Dad told me after Kirkwood they lived temporarily in Arnold. First at a Gas Station that my Papa was trying to acquire and then at Bridge Inn that doubled as a cafe and Inn. Dad said Papa ran the business while Grandma was the cook for the cafe. Dad said they lived either above the cafe or in one of the buildings on the property. But he couldn't remember where the Bridge Inn was exactly located. I had planned on taking him for a drive around the area to see if that would spark some memory, but he had passed away before I could do that.
    Unfortunately, the deal fell through at Bridge Inn for some reason, dad couldn't remember why, although he was just a kid. Now at this point they were homeless. They ended up moving to their clubhouse on the Meramec River near Eureka. That was yet another location they would have been living when the Census came through. And this was also another location I had no address for. So this was going to be tricky.

    Like I said, I tried Kirkwood first but they weren't there. So the next part was searching in Arnold which was in Jefferson County. I had no address or location of where to look, so I was going to have to rely on the preliminary index that was created from the National Archives. Oh, and am I glad they had that. I did a search in Jefferson County for my Papa's name and it came up. I couldn't believe it! Based on the information given, my Papa was a Cafe Operator and Grandma was a cook. Just like my dad told me. So this must have been for the Bridge Inn. I have now been pouring over maps to try to find the exact location of where the Bridge Inn was located. I know I will be working with my Aunt on this, who was also alive at this time and on the census. So you know I will be writing more about this later.

1950 US Fed Census
Missouri, Rock Township - 50-34
National Archives
Fuchs Family

Great-Grandparents

    I had three sets of Great-Grandparents and one Great-Grandma to look up in this census. Not to mention my husband's family, which we will discuss later.

• Nellie Fuchs
• Robert & Louise Strawhun
• James Benjamin & Pearl Wheeler
• Joseph & Margaret Ilg

    I had addresses listed from all of them, but only one set was questionable. Nellie along with Robert & Louise lived at the same address in Kirkwood for years before and after the 1950 Census so that was an easy find. Joseph & Margaret were living at their location with their daughter (My grandma) before she married my grandpa, and according to records were still living at this address after 1950. But while I had the address, the street couldn't be located on the Census map, so it was a little tricky tracking down that information. But there were right where they were supposed to be.
    The only set I have not found is James Benjamin & Pearl. I had a couple of addresses for them based on sources I had, but they were not living at those addresses; other people were living there. I did a search for them, but St. Louis is a huge area, so that didn't narrow anything down. I know at some point, James Benjamin was put into a nursing home, but don't know when. So they are going to have to wait until the index is more complete.

1950 US Fed Census
Missouri, Kirkwood - 95-75
National Archives
Fuchs Family

1950 US Fed Census
Missouri, Kirkwood - 95-84
National Archives
Strawhun Family

1950 US Fed Census
Missouri, St. Louis - 95-315A
National Archives
Ilg Family

Other Family Members

    Not only did I have Great-Grandparents, I had some 2nd Great-Grandparents to find on my Maternal Grandmother's line. Oma Mae Caldwell and her ex-husband, Edward Buer. Oma lived in her mother's old house, so she was easy to find. But Edward and his new wife, Alice were a little more difficult to track down. Their address was just outside of town limits, so it was hit or miss for the Enumeration District. But they were located.

1950 US Fed Census
Missouri, St. Louis - 96-791
National Archives
Caldwell Family

1950 US Fed Census
Illinois, Will County - 99-112
National Archives
Buer Family

    One family I still have not found in the census is my 2nd Great Aunt, Ruth Kelley and her husband James Howard. I knew this was going to be my most difficult couple. James Howard Kelley worked as an architect, at least that's what I was told, and he traveled around a lot. He lived in Missouri, Illinois, Washington and even Alaska. Mom told me she remembered him sending her a little Eskimo doll from their when she was little. It was also rumored that he helped design the Seattle Space Needle. Since they moved a lot, it is unknown where they were living in 1950 when the census came through. So they will have to wait until the indexes are complete then hopefully I will be able to track them down.

Mark's Family

    Not only did I look up my own family, but I also looked up my hubby's family. I'm the one who has done the research on his family so why wouldn't I? I found both his parents and grandparents easily at the addresses I had for them. This is the first year for both of our parents to be on the census. It was neat to see what Mark's grandfather did for a living.

1950 US Fed Census
Missouri, St. Louis - 96-1494
National Archives
Rickards Family

1950 US Fed Census
Missouri, Kirkwood - 95-362
National Archives
Swope Family

    Moving back another generation, one set of Great-Grandparents had lived in the same location and were easy to locate, but the other two were a little tricky. Rev. Hudson Taylor & Sadie McGrew lived in Breckenridge, Missouri, but I had no address for them. Breckenridge was a small town with only two Enumeration Districts and, luckily, they were on the first district. Found them fairly quickly. Rev. McGrew was retired at this point and they were enjoying time with each other and visiting family. Thanks to the census I learned they lived on Maple. Sadly, Rev. McGrew passed away later that year.

1950 US Fed Census
Missouri, Breckenridge - 13-1
National Archives
McGrew Family

    The only other Great-Grandparent that was living at this time was Mary Alice Swope. She lived on a farm in rural Clinton County, Missouri. She was a little difficult to track down. Their family lived on the farm for many generations & later, her children lived nearby as well. Mary Swope's husband passed away in 1935, but she still lived on their farm in 1940 with two of her daughters, Ethel & Irene. They were right next to one of her sons, James, and his family.
    Now for the 1950 census, they were not next to each other. It probably has to do with the enumerators and which farms they visited in the order they did. Enumeration District lines appeared to be the same as in 1940 so that had nothing to do with it. Whatever the case, thanks to maps, I was able to locate where they should be on the 1950 Census. I explained this in more depth in another blog post: Maps of Clinton County - How Galen & Pearl Met. This time on the census, Irene was the head of the household and her mother, Mary, and sister, Ethel, lived with her. But their brother, James, was not listed in this Enumeration District. Is it possible they moved? Unsure at this time. It will require a bit more research. I do know we will be making another trip up to Clinton County maybe this summer. The good news is I found them on the census.

1950 US Fed Census
Missouri, Lafayette - 25-13
National Archives
Swope Family

   Spreading wide now in Mark's family tree, two ancestors I was excited to find were Ruth & Scottie Rickards. Ruth moved to Iowa from Illinois sometime in the 1920s and after their father died, Scottie moved in with her. Scottie has been a curious ancestor for a while. I wrote about him in a blog post for the 52 Ancestors Challenge: Week 4 - Curious. As you read in the post, there was a lot unknown about him. I've been putting together some information about him as I learn it. The most recent I wrote about in two Friday Finds posts. Westminster College and Update on Scottie Rickards.
    So I was looking forward to seeing the 1950 Census to try to get an idea of when his condition started. I found their address in a 1950 City Directory, so finding them wasn't hard. But I got my answer by looking at the census. Scottie was listed as Unable to Work. So whatever happened, it happened before he moved and sometime after college. Interesting. Another piece of the puzzle is found.

1950 US Fed Census
Iowa, Des Moines - 102-29
National Archives
Rickards Family

    The last ancestor I wanted to find on Mark's side is a living 1st cousin, once removed. I've been in contact with her and her family for a few years now. I got their address directly from her, so I knew it was correct. But finding the Enumeration District was tough. I had to go through a couple of different maps to find it. Read about it here: What If I Can't Find a Street? But I did find the Enumeration District and I did find the ancestor. 

1950 US Fed Census
Texas, Houston/South Side - 101-5
National Archives
Rickards Family

    These are not all the people I looked up in the 1950 census, but the main ones. I did look up ancestors for friends and just for personal fun. Having the Enumeration Districts beforehand really did help locate our ancestors in the 1950 Census. There were only a few times I had to use the preliminary index on the National Archives site. And I am grateful for it as I wouldn't have found my Dad without it. Now that I have found the census pages, it's time to analyze them more closely for clues and information.

    I will also be helping index the census as time goes on. You can help index now on the National Archives site and you can help on Ancestry & Family Search but only on the states they currently have available. I put in for a notification when Missouri is ready to be indexed. 

Who Have You Found??

Week: 14: Check It Out! I wrote a biography

     March was a rough month for me, so I took a break from writing for the 52 Ancestors challenge. But I'm starting back up now with this week's prompt "Check It Out!" It seemed perfect for the announcement I had to make. You see, I've been laid up with a pinched nerve in my back for a month now. So in order to keep myself from going crazy, I worked on editing a biography I wrote about my 2nd Great Grandma, Pauline Ilg.

Cover of my Biography

    Shutterfly was running a special on their site last week. So I went to work on editing the book on their site. I've gotten books from their before and have loved the quality. I know I could have went with an actual book publishing site, but I decided on Shutterfly. And they did not disappoint.

    I wrote this biography in a series of five blog posts back in 2020. I shared them leading up to the anniversary of the death of Pauline. Below are all five blog posts that I turned into five chapters for the bioraphy.

Chapter 1: http://auntiejenstrees.blogspot.com/2020/03/pauline-ilg-brave-courageous-part-1.html

Chapter 2: http://auntiejenstrees.blogspot.com/2020/03/pauline-ilg-brave-courageous-part-2.html

Chapter 3: http://auntiejenstrees.blogspot.com/2020/03/pauline-ilg-brave-courageous-part-3.html

Chapter 4: http://auntiejenstrees.blogspot.com/2020/03/pauline-ilg-brave-courageous-part-4.html

Chapter 5: http://auntiejenstrees.blogspot.com/2020/03/pauline-ilg-brave-courageous-part-5.html

So here is the finished biography.
Check it out!!

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    I am so proud of this book. It looks amazing. The quality is just beautiful. As you can see, I ordered two copies to have on hand. When Shutterfly runs another special, I will order more copies for family members.

    I do hope to write more biographies of other family members and turn them into books. Who will I write about next? You will just have to wait and Check It Out later!