Saturday, January 15, 2022

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun - 1940 U.S. Census Last Name Numbers



Calling all Genea-Musings Fans:
It's Saturday Night again -
time for some more Genealogy Fun!!

 Your mission, should you decide to accept it (and I hope more of you do than participated in the last several SNGF challenges), is to:

1)  How many people in your country had your four grandparents exact last names at birth in the 1940 U.S. Census?  [Note, if you're playing and not in the U.S., pick an appropriate database in your country.]  What about your spouse's grandparents last names at birth?

2)  List each last name at birth and the number of persons in the 1940 U.S. Census [or other database] using an exact surname match.  I suggest using FamilySearch because it is free, but you can use another website (the results should be the same!) if you wish.

3)  Have you performed a "one-name search" for any of those last names and added them to do family tree?

4)  Post your responses on your own blog, in a comment to this post, or in a Facebook Status post.  Be sure to comment and leave a link to your post on this post.


Here's mine:

My four grandparents last names at birth, and the exact number with that last name in the 1940 U.S. Census, are:

*  Seaver -- 2,003 people

*  Richmond -- 19,419 people

*  Carringer -- 320 people

*  Auble -- 446 people

My wife's four grandparents last names at birth, and the exact number with those last names in the 1940 U.S. census are:

*  Leland -- 3,430 people

*  Brocke -- 152 people

*  Schaffner -- 2,259 people

*  McKnew -- 116 people

I have performed an extensive "one name search" for Seaver, Carringer and Auble, but not for Richmond.  I have also performed an extensive search for my wife's McKnew last name.  The results, though incomplete, are in my RootsMagic family tree and Ancestry Member Tree.  

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Copyright (c) 2022, Randall J. Seaver

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12 comments:

ByAPearl said...

That mission was very interesting. Here are my numbers.
https://geneajournalsbyapearl.wordpress.com/2022/01/15/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-1940-u-s-census-last-name-numbers/

Deb said...

In searching the 1940 census on the Ancestry site to find the number of people in the U.S. with the same last name as my four grandparents, and no, I have not done a one name study for any of these surnames.

Gray - 174,145
Towne - 20,631
Cummins - 16,050
Parrent - 8993

Unknown said...

Hello from Portland, Oregon. Actually, Eagle Creek, Oregon but close enough. I am a native of San Diego and can prove it. All I have to do is say this, Del Mar Fair and San Diego Zoo Wild Animal Park. Born in La Mesa and raised in Escondido where I left a daughter and two grandchildren up in Valley Center. My family goes back to my great great grandfather helping paint the houses in Coronado and a few pictures of the family at tent city there. My great aunt and grandmother ran the halls of the Hotel Del Coronado while great grandma worked as a telephone operator.

Here are my answers...

Ashcraft 6,681
Turner 186,082 (WOW)
Humiston 1325
Mowry 9,574

GeneGinny said...

Interesting findings.
My lines:
SHARP = 46,596
MELDRUM = 1,158
SWICEGOOD = 484
BROOKSHIRE = 2,978
Husband's lines:
SOMMARSTROM = 10
GRUND = 912
HANSON = 77,490
MATTSON = 11,472

No, I haven't conducted a one-name study, but I can tell you all the Sommarstroms are in the U.S.

Lisa S. Gorrell said...

I was a little surprised by some of my numbers.

https://mytrailsintothepast.blogspot.com/2022/01/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-1940-us.html

Liz said...

Here's mine:

https://gatapleytree.blogspot.com/2022/01/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-1940-us.html

Thanks for the research idea, Randy!

Liz

Jared said...

Here are mine:

Mine:
Hall 266,863
Oliver 61,926
Axness 132
Morkrid 34

My wife's:
Hanna 18,170
Rodgers 38,672
Allen 255,070
Stidham 2,558

I haven't done a one-name study but will on my smaller ones.

Kath said...

Randy, here are mine:
Larson 90,273
Paulson 15,908
Showley 79
Dennis 41,341

Fun assignment, thanks! Kathy

Linda Stufflebean said...

Here are mine. There is a huge difference in numbers between my paternal and maternal sides. Not as much in my husband's family. https://emptybranchesonthefamilytree.com/2022/01/saturday-night-genealogy-fun-176/

Elizabeth Handler said...

FamilySearch and Ancestry gave different numbers but using Exact Search only made a difference at Ancestry - I got the same numbers at FamilySearch even when Exact Search was selected.
From Ancestry:
Pyle: 10,189
Adsit: 823
Copeland: 29,954
Hunter: 87,687

Husband's lines from Ancestry:
Handler: 1,840 (though it seemed to include Chandler and Sandler)
Hollander: 3,835
Goldstein: 31,325
Levitt: 3,863

The only line I might consider doing a one-name study would be Adsit because it's not common.

Kath said...

I forgot my husband’s! His are crazy high due to such common names :) Yes his grandparents were Smith, Ward and Brown 😂
Ward 153,058
Brown 790,892
Smith 1,405,573
Stallings 8,806

D. Taylor said...

My four grandparents surnames and the number with that surname in the 1940 U.S. Census, are:

• Roberts – 199,363 people
• Barnes – 109,928 people
• Brown – 755,566 people
• Montran – 3 people

My wife’s four grandparents last names at birth, and the exact number with those last names in the 1940 U.S. census are:

• Howell – 61,015 people
• Hobbs – 25,280 people
• Darling – 11,404 people
• Huber – 22,633 people

I have performed an extensive “one name search” for Montran and have set up alerts with Newspapers.Com, Genealogy Bank, and Newspaper Archives that when “Montran” is mentioned I am alerted. Then I include news of the Montrans in my tree and my blog.
(http://dontaylorgenealogy.com/?s=Montran+%22In+the+News%22)