Saturday, April 02, 2011

SNGF: The 1940 Census

I'm looking forward to the 1940 census' arrival as are most genealogists and family historians. I'm so glad it's only a year away. I remember the wait for the 1930 census seemed endless. I'm sure there are those who believe the wait for this one is endless as well. I've wanted it a few times when working on something for a client, but I've rarely needed it for my own research as I have a plethora of resources for family members who were alive in that period.

Which family members were alive then? Both of my parents were alive at that time. They weren't married yet. Both were in Monroe County, Mississippi, although they did not live all that near one another. Their parents were alive at that time. All of these were living in Monroe County as well. Dad's brother was younger than he was and was still at home. Mom's sister Daisy was probably in college at East Mississippi Junior College in Scooba, although she may have been teaching at Bigbee by then. (I guess I need to locate that school program from Bigbee Schools that was done while she was teaching there to check the date on it.) I feel fairly sure that she had not begun her studies at Mississippi State College for Women by the spring of 1940. Mom's brother "Bud" may have been in the NYA or CCC program in the Tupelo area by that time or he may have already gone to Whitehaven (now part of Memphis) to an aeronautics school. I don't have the exact dates of his participation in each of these.

Now for my paternal grandfather's siblings: He was one of 12 children. His sister Ila, the eldest of the 12, was married and living in Osceola, Mississippi Co., Arkansas. They were already there by 1930, and that is where she and her husband died in the 1970s. I am not sure when his sister Carrie moved to the Mobile, Alabama area, but if she and her husband are not still in Monroe County in 1940, I will check Mobile County for them. I do know they were in the Mobile area by the early 1950s. I'm also not sure when his sister Virgie moved from Monroe County (where she is in 1930) to the Tuscaloosa, Alabama area (where they are in the early 1950s), but I will check Tuscaloosa County if they aren't in Monroe. I suspect that his brother Earlie had moved on from Memphis to Arkansas by 1940. I'm not sure exactly where he would be, but I know the most probable ones. The remainder of my paternal grandfather's siblings should all be in Monroe County, Mississippi.

My paternal grandmother's siblings: This could get complicated. She was one of 15 in the blended family. She had 5 step-siblings which I will not include here. She had 5 half-siblings. She had 4 other full siblings. Three of her full siblings were deceased by 1940. Her sister Norma was living in Memphis in 1930. I have no idea if she was still there are had moved elsewhere. All of her half-siblings were in Monroe County, Mississippi.

My maternal grandfather's siblings: Two of his siblings were deceased. His brother Lee will probably be in either Oktibbeha or Noxubee County, Mississippi. His sister Emma was in Telfair County, Georgia in 1930. She may be in Glynn County, Georgia or she may have moved back to Monroe County, Mississippi (or she might still be in Telfair County). His sister Marie should be in Monroe County, Mississippi. His sister Bess is probably in Clay County, Mississippi.

My maternal grandmother's siblings: Seven of her siblings had died before 1940. Her sister Mattie was in Lamar County, Alabama then. (A couple of years later she would be taken to Bryce Hospital in Tuscaloosa to spend the rest of her days. That's another story for another day!) Her brother Charlie was in Monroe County.

My great-grandmother Bennie Duke Thornton was alive in Monroe County, Mississippi. What is even more surprising is that all four of her siblings were also still alive. I believe her brother Jim will be found in Hot Springs, Arkansas at the time of the 1940 census. He later returned to Monroe County, Mississippi. I believe her sister Myrtis will be in Itawamba County, Mississippi at that time, although Monroe County is a possibility as well.

My great-grandmother Jennie Phillips Fowlkes Howell was also alive in Monroe County, Mississippi. She had no known siblings.

This concludes a rather lengthy post for "Saturday Night Genealogy Fun."

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