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Search the 1930 Census at Ancestry.com

What to Expect from the 1930 US Census

with online & offline indexes & finding aids

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The 1930 US Federal Census was made available to the public on 1 April 2002. However, only ten states and portions of two others have been indexed on microfilm (using the Soundex system). These ten states are: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee & Virginia.

Only certain counties for Kentucky and West Virginia have been indexed. These are... Kentucky Counties: Bell, Floyd, Harlan, Kenton, Muhlenberg, Perry & Pike; West Virginia Counties: Fayette, Harrison, Kanawha, Logan, McDowell, Mercer & Raleigh.

Many finding aids have been developed to help researchers find their ancestors in the unindexed states and counties...
(NARA=National Archives & Records Administration)

1930 Census Finding Aids...
    Offline Research Using Microfilm...
  • If the state or county you are researching is indexed (see the list above), then start here: Soundex Search Information
  • If not indexed then start by locating your ancestor's address in a City Directory. NARA & the Regional NARA Branches have City Directories from around 1930 on microfilm to help locate the addresses of people in the states that haven't been indexed. See: Circa 1930 City Directories Available at NARA
    Once you have the address you then use NARA's microfilm locator discussed below.
  • Find the Microfilm Roll: Online 1930 Microfilm Roll Locator Available at NARA
    NARA has an online microfilm locator that is helpful for determining which microfilm roll(s) you will need to search. Start by choosing the state you are researching, then the county and/or city or town. The NARA branches have many maps on hand to help you find the census Enumeration District for the address of the household you are searching for. I have found that MapQuest is helpful for defining the location of the address you have for your ancestor(s) and looking for nearby cross streets. Once you have the the correct roll of microfilm you then look through the Enumeration District on that roll for the street and address of your ancestor. The street names are listed sideways on the left side of each census page.

    If your ancestor lives in a very small town you may find it easier to simply look through each census page for that town until you find the family you are searching for.

    For large city research you may also find this webpage helpful for determining which Enumeration District a particular address is located in...

    Obtaining EDs for the 1930 Census in One Step (Large Cities)

1930 Census Links...

What's in the Census? lists the information given in the US census records 1790-1930

US Population in the 1930 Census by Race

Census Extraction Forms 1790-1930 (free downloadable census forms in PDF/Adobe Acrobat format)

1930 Historical Forms and Questions (free downloadable reproductions)

1930 Census Occupation Codes


© 2002 Joe Beine