Getting oriented: the 1950 census

by Jennifer Dix (3/23/2022)

1950 census logo

An update to yesterday’s blog post about working on the 1950 U.S. census:

CGS board member Evan Wilson will host two informal Zoom sessions–one before April 1 and one after–so that CGS members interested in working on the project can compare notes, build morale, and discuss what they hope to find in the 1950 census records. If you would like to participate, please email him at erwilson@californiaancestors.org.

2022 NGS Conference Speaker: Jordan Jones

by Jennifer Dix (3/23/2022)

Jordan Jones

Jordan Jones

The National Genealogical Society conference, “Our American Mosaic,” is scheduled May 24-28 in Sacramento. CGS is the local host society! We are pleased to tell you about the CGS members who are among the conference speakers.

JORDAN JONES speaks Saturday, May 28, on “Turbo Charge Your Research Planning With Trello.” Jordan is a past president of NGS. He has worked in information technology for 30 years and speaks frequently at genealogy and technology conferences.

If you haven’t yet registered, now is the time! Early Bird Discount available through March 31. Complete schedule and registration details are available at the Conference website: https://conference.ngsgenealogy.org/

ALSO: Volunteers needed! We need lots of help to keep things running smoothly. Even an hour or two makes a difference. Please take a look at the Volunteer Sign-up Sheet and see what slots are open.

Sign up to help with the 1950 census!

by Jennifer Dix (3/22/2022)

1950 census logo

by Evan Wilson

The California Genealogical Society has joined forces with genealogy societies and organizations around the country as part of the 1950 US Census Community Project, and you are invited to join the effort! The initiative will publish a free, online, searchable name index of the 1950 US census after images of the census are released to the public in April 2022. This online index will offer family history researchers a rich genealogical data set for their ongoing use.

FamilySearch and Ancestry launched the initiative in the fall of 2021, and the project is already engaging thousands of volunteers to help provide this invaluable resource to family historians around the world.

The index created by the project will allow the public to easily search every person found in the census and view digital images of the original census pages where individuals are listed. The highly anticipated 1950 US census will be the most popular US record collection released to date.

“The 1950 census is attractive to both new and experienced researchers because most peopl in the United States can remember a relative that was living in 1950. It will do more to connect living memory with historical records and families than any other collection previously made available,” said David Rencher, Chief Genealogical Officer for FamilySearch.

The 1950 US Census Community Project is also receiving support from leading societal organizations like the National Genealogical Society and other societies around the United States.

Go to FamilySearch.org/1950census, and register to participate.

CGS board member Evan Wilson will host two informal Zoom sessions–one before April 1 and one after–so that CGS members interested in working on the project can compare notes, build morale, and discuss what they hope to find in the 1950 census records. If you would like to participate, please email him at erwilson@californiaancestors.org.