In 1940, Americans were recovering from the
Great Depression and on the brink of entering a world war. The recently
released 1940 U.S. Census gives us data snapshots of people and families poised
between two of the most devastating world-wide events of the 20th century.
After you locate someone in the 1940 Census (on
Ancestry.com), use that information to find records on Fold3, especially within
the World War II Collection. Then build their personal
histories with images and other details you've discovered.
Examples of what you might find include:
- "Old Man's Draft"
Registration Cards. Any man between the ages of 43 and 62 in
1940 would be required to register in 1942. It's called the "Old
Man's" draft because it was a registration of an older generation
with skills that would be useful on the home front, not in military
action. (Hint: You can also use the addresses on these cards to help you
search for people on the census before the index has been created.)
- Missing Air Crew Reports recount riveting tales of planes
shot down with and without survivors. Some of these reports include names
and addresses of family members back home, as in this examplefor the men in this crash report.
- War Diaries are official Navy accounts of
command units' strategies and actions in battles on land, sea, and air, as
well as between engagements.
- European Theater Army Records.
Shortly after the 1940 census, millions of Americans were serving in
There are also many compelling
records and images within WWII Photos, the Interactive USS Arizona Memorial,
WWII Hero Pages, and Holocaust Records. Pair the people you find in the 1940
Census to their service in World War II through documents, pages, and photos in
Fold3's World War II Collection.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
copyright ©
National Geneal ogical Society, 3108
Columbia Pike, Suite 300, Arlington, Virginia 22204-4370. http://www.ngsgenealogy.org.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Republication
of UpFront articles is permitted and encouraged for
non-commercial purposes without express permission from NGS .
Please drop us a note telling us where and when you are using the article.
Express written permission is required if you wish to republish UpFront articles
for commercial purposes. You may send a request for express written permission
to [email protected]. All
republished articles may not be edited or reworded and must contain the
copyright statement found at the bottom of each UpFront article.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Think your
friends, colleagues, or fellow genealogy researchers would find this blog post
interesting? If so, please let them know that anyone can read past UpFront with NGS posts or subscribe!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Suggestions for topics for future UpFront with NGS posts are always welcome. Please send any
suggested topics to [email protected]
No comments:
Post a Comment