MyHeritage Publishes the 1950 U.S. Census: Search All States and Territories for Free!

MyHeritage Publishes the 1950 U.S. Census: Search All States and Territories for Free!

On April 1, 2022, the 1950 U.S. Federal Census images were released to the public, 72 years after the enumeration was initiated. Since then, we have been working tirelessly to get the entire 1950 U.S. census collection available to you as a searchable index with the census images, publishing several states each month. We are excited to announce our largest release for this collection, covering 30 million records from the states of Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Virginia. The 1950 U.S. Census collection now includes more than 150 million records from all of the U.S. states and territories and it is available for you to view, search, and add to your MyHeritage family tree for FREE! 

Search the 1950 U.S. Federal Census for free!

The census provides fascinating details about the lives of the entire population living in the U.S. and its territories in 1950. For all individuals, it includes names, ages, addresses, relationships, households, gender, birthplace, marital status, and other facts. If you had family living in the United States during this time period, you are likely to find important details about their lives in the 1950 U.S. Census collection.

The 1950 census collection searchable index contains all records from all 48 U.S. states and territories (Alaska and Hawaii were only added as states in 1959): Alabama, Alaska, American Samoa, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Panama Canal Zone, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Texas. In addition, the collection includes the Indian Reservation Schedules, and four overseas islands of Canton, Johnston, Midway, and Wake.

There are still a few million records remaining that will be added over the next few months. These are records that couldn’t be scanned and indexed accurately through more automated means and require some additional manual handling. We will keep you posted once these are added.

Exclusive MyHeritage census resources

Last year we released the Census Helper™: a useful new feature that tells you who in your family tree is likely to appear in the 1950 U.S. Census and other censuses. Learn more about how to best utilize this free tool in Jump-start Your 1950 U.S. Census Research with the Census Helper™.

For more tips on searching the 1950 U.S. Census and all other censuses on MyHeritage, please visit our Census Content Hub and our dedicated 1950 U.S. Census page.

Gems from the 1950 U.S. Census

The inimitable Diana Ross made her census debut in 1950. Diana, spelled “Dianne” by the census-takers, was 6 years old at the time of the census. Born to Fred Ross, 31, and Ernestine, 34, she was the second-oldest of 5 children at the time. They lived at 23 St Antoine, Detroit, Wayne, Michigan.

Census Record of Diana Ross [Credit: MyHeritage 1950 United States Federal Census]

Census Record of Diana Ross [Credit: MyHeritage 1950 United States Federal Census]

Also making his census debut is renowned basketball player Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who was born Ferdinand Alcindor, Jr. He was the only child of Ferdinand L. Alcindor Sr., 32, and Lillian, 31. Ferdinand’s occupation is listed as a trumpet player. He was known for playing in the NYPD Transit Authority Band. The Alcindors were listed as lodgers as they rented the apartment on 111th Street and Seventh Avenue, Harlem, New York City from Samuel and Ethel Rogers. 

Census Record of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar [Credit: MyHeritage 1950 United States Federal Census]

Census Record of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar [Credit: MyHeritage 1950 United States Federal Census]

Summary

We are delighted to share our latest update of U.S. states from the MyHeritage 1950 U.S. Census collection. This index and its associated images are a significant resource for family historians, genealogists, social scientists, and other researchers for decades to come.

Searching the 1950 U.S. Census on MyHeritage and viewing records is free. 

If you have a family tree on MyHeritage, our Record Matching technology will notify you automatically if records from the collection match your relatives. You’ll then be able to review the record and decide if you’d like to add the new information to your tree (for free!).

Enjoy the 1950 U.S. Census Index!