As genealogists, I'm sure you've heard that the 1950 Census in the US is due to be released on 1 April 2022. That is 72 years (the legal requirement for release) from the 1950 Census Date. What does that mean? It has been digitized and if you know the locality, you should be able to browse the records. This is the first census that I will appear in, so I'm excited to see it. Indexes will come later. If you remember the 1940 census there was a massive volunteer index project that got the information out earlier than expected. But that's not what this blog is about although you can read more about it here.
The big news this week is the release of the 1921 Census of England and Wales. Just to be clear, this does not include Ireland (or Scotland). Ireland was in the midst of the Irish War for Independence, so the next Census release for Ireland is 2026 (100 years after the Census). If it doesn't include Ireland, why am I writing about it? Because a large number of the Irish migrated to England either permanently or as an intermediate step before continuing on to the US, Canada, Australia or other location. I blogged about this last spring. This census is also important because it is the last surviving census in the UK until 1951. The 1931 UK Census was destroyed in a fire and the 1941 Census was not taken because of World War II. (Just as a reminder the 1939 Register is a great census substitute for this time period.) The National Archives (UK) announced last week that the 1921 Census will be published on 6 January 2022 by Findmypast.
I can hear those of you who have a subscription to Findmypast, going YESSSS! I hate to burst your bubble, but initially it won't be included in your subscription. In order to recoup the cost of the digitization and indexing, Findmypast will be charging $3.50 for a transcription and $4.90 for an image. Subscribers will get a 10% discount. This is the same scheme they used when they released the 1939 Register in November of 2015...you purchased the transcriptions and images with credits. By 2017 the Register was folded into the Pro and Ultimate subscriptions. Today, there are still people who are redacted on the 1939 Register because they are less than 100 years old with no proof of death. That should not be an issue with the Census since it has been 100 years. People over100 years of age and still alive, can request their names to be removed. Findmypast will not be including Scotland in their release as the ScotlandsPeople website will be responsible for that (no indication yet of when). Here's an article from TheGenealogist which tells you what questions were asked on the Census.
For the genealogical community 2022 will present an abundance of riches with two huge collections becoming available during the year. Who knows what else? Perhaps we'll see a surprise from Beyond2022. We can all hope!
Happy Hunting and Stay Safe!
Would you like to search for your ancestors in Ireland? The May 2022 trip is sold out but there is still space available for Belfast in May and October and Dublin in October. Registration forms are here.
