The United States 1940 census has been made public!

The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) released the United States 1940 census on April 2, 2012. They will provide free access to the 1940 census digital images. There is no name index for the 1940 census (yet), so you will have to look through the scanned images.

How do you know on which census image your family will be located? 

You might think knowing the address will be enough, but the 1940 census records are not organized by address. They are organized by enumeration district numbers (ED). Knowing the ED number will make your census search faster and less frustrating.

What is a ED number? 

 a ED number on a
enumeration district map

An ED number consists of two parts.

The first part is a region (usually a county) within each state and the second part is a district within that region. Once you have the ED number, you will be able to access the census pages. The ED number will get you to the image of the first census page for that enumeration district. You will need to go through the other images within that particular district to look for your family. 


The Unified 1940 Census ED Finder is one way to search for an ED number. Simply enter state, county, and city. (If you do not know the city or your family did not live in a city, just leave that part blank.) Then click Get 1940 ED number. Under the heading 1940 ED numbers corresponding to your location a list of ED numbers will appear. Then click on more details. Another window will load and on that screen there will be a list that looks like this:

Year	Series	Roll	State	County	ED	Description	Details
1940	T627	4494	WI	Manitowoc (36)	36-1	CATO TOWN OUTSIDE VALDERS VILLAGE, CATO, CLARKS MILLS, GRIMMS, WHITELAW	view	1930
1940	T627	4494	WI	Manitowoc (36)	36-2	CENTERVILLE TOWN, CLEVELAND, HIKA	view	1930

Click on the roll number. The census image should load on a separate screen.  Happy Hunting!!