US Federal Census Research: Reflecting and Preparing

What was the most recent Federal Census available to the public when you began researching? For me, it was the 1910 census. A few months after the 1920 Federal Census was released I spent a great deal of time on the 5th floor of the Wallace State Community College Library(Hanceville, AL) in their Family History Collection viewing my ancestors on microfilm and giving my arm a workout advancing and rewinding the film. It won't be too long until we will be able to access the 1950 Federal Census from home. It will be released to the public on April 1, 2022.  I feel old...and grateful.

In what area will you be looking for your ancestors(or yourself if you were alive)?  If you don't know, you need to ask someone who does know.  You might try consulting a City Directory.  That's what I did.  I thought I knew where my Dad and his parents would be but upon consulting the directory, I found out that I did not.  

Preparing to find Dad's Family in 1950

Dad passed on 7 years ago so I'm not able to ask him where he was living.  Consulting a Nashville Directory I found a 1950 entry of Thos E Cook(Pearl)  which I believe is my Grandparents(Mr. & Mrs Thomas D Cooke).  My Uncle Morris is also listed at the same address and my grandfather's place of employment and job title are what they should be which reinforces that I have the correct entry.  The 1950 directory gives 1301 Gallatin Road as the address where my Grandparents lived however the address listed in the 1951 Directory is 1311 East Greenwood Ave.  Between about 1954 and mid-1960s, my grandparents rented homes and moved frequently.  Sometimes Tom and Pearl had separate households.  I do have listings of the addresses I obtained from my grandmother's correspondence as well as a wide variety of receipts and other papers which she and Tom saved.  I would have expected them to still be living at 911 Dodson Ave in Old Hickory because I had been told that my Grandmother insisted that they stay there until my Dad returned from the service.  He didn't enlist until 1952 and had been working at Dupont prior to his enlistment.  He returned to work there when he came back home from Korea.  Apparently, my Grandparents begin moving around abt 6 years prior to what I'd always been told.

Preparing to find Mom's Family in 1950

Mom is still living so I asked her if she remembered where her family was in 1950.  She is "pretty sure" she and her family were living at C.P. Moore's place in Bone Cave in 1950.  She was 10 at the time so this may or may not be where they were.   Bone Cave is in Van Buren Co TN and even if I have to read the entire county it won't take near as much time to find her as it would if I had to do the same for Davidson Co TN for Dad.  There is also a slight possibility that they were in Lincoln Co TN as her family was sharecroppers and frequent movers.

This should be fun.  We've got a little under 4 years to figure it out.  Here's hoping that indexing for it will happen as soon as possible once it is released.