Census, Ellis Island, and Birding Talks
and Resources
Enumerator Instruction Manuals
Joel Weintraub, PhD
revised Apr 2022
Co-winner of the 2022 Shirley M Barnes
Records Access Award
https://www.massgencouncil.org/shirley-barnes-records-access-award
Joel Weintraub ("JDW Talks") on YouTube Include:
Introduction to the Census: A Genealogy Perspective
U.S. Census: Questions, Confidentiality, and the 72-Year Rule
The 1940 Census Schedule
The 1950 U.S. Census for Genealogists
1950 Census Location Search Tools
Demonstrating 1950 Census Urban and Rural Location Searches
Using Enumeration District Maps with emphasis on the 1940 and 1950 Censuses
Twenty Questions About The 1950 Census & The One-Step Locational Search Tools
Resources For U.S. Street Name & Number Changes With An Emphasis On The 1950 U.S. Census
The Origins of the Morse One-Step Census Tools
Missing From 1950 Census Scheduled - Americans Living Abroad
1950 Census Block Housing Information: Large Urban Areas
Yo Philly: 1950 Census Four Part Workshop
Training 1950 Census Takers: More Resources Including A Real Training Session
Income What It Is And How To Report It Training Film #4
How's Your Interviewing Technique? Training Film #7
Taking the 1960 U.S. Census: Enumerator Forms and Materials
The 1970 U.S. Census: Resource Material
Searching the Censuses of New York City
The Ellis Island Simulation For Adults
"Manifest Destiny": Names at Ellis Island
A Short History of Ellis Island
What Really Happened At Ellis Island? The Name Change Myth
Finding Difficult Passengers on the Ellis Island Manifests
Genealogy Standards and the Biographies of A. L. Heermann
The Life of the Naturalist Adolphus L. Heermann
Birds Commonly Seen at the Headlands (Dana Pt Ca): A Virtual Fieldtrip
Common Coastal Birds of Dana Point, California
Birds of Upper Newport Bay: A Virtual Training Fieldtrip: Fall and Winter Pts I, II, III
Identifying Owl Pellet Rodent Species By A Circular Template
What's in a Turkey Vulture Pellet? A Study of 3,966 California Pellets
Orange County CA Birds & Behavior (multiple videos)
Teaching A Beginning Birding Group How To Use A Spotting Scope
Teaching A Beginning Birding Group How To Adjust Binoculars
Nikon P1000 for Group Field Trips: A Spotting Scope Alternative?
Understanding Using & Fixing Binoculars Pts I and II
Bird Migration Against the Moon Using a Nikon P1000 Camera
History & Resources for Novelty Zithers: Ukelin,Violin-uke, Marxophone, Haw. Art Violin and more
Dr JDW in Concert: Biology Songs on Zithers
Enumerator Manuals U.S.
1930 Supervisor Manual
1940
Hotel List T Night
Abridged Instructions to Enumerators
Supplemental Instructions Enumerators Population Schedule
https://tinyurl.com/49j5ycdb
1950
Urban & Rural Enumerator's Workbook Population Housing & Agriculture
https://tinyurl.com/y4yle55u
U.S. Enumerator Manual Paragraphs 1 to 60
https://tinyurl.com/y2xax5kb
1960
U.S. Enumerator’s Reference Manual Stage 1:
https://tinyurl.com/y63u5uqc
U.S. Enumerator’s Reference Manual Stage 2:
https://tinyurl.com/y4j8jf3c
U.S. Enumerator’s Training Workbook Stage I PH-1:
https://tinyurl.com/y2cshy4g
U.S. Enumerator’s Training Workbook Stage I PH-2:
https://tinyurl.com/y6ssp8kt
U.S. Practice Exercise For Field Review Stage I:
https://tinyurl.com/y5mbc5be
U.S. Answer Sheet For Field Review Practice:
https://tinyurl.com/yycr3yoc
1970
Address Register Book Non-mail D-130
https://tinyurl.com/y257yfd5
Short Form D-11
https://tinyurl.com/y6fnc9d2
Long Form D-2
https://tinyurl.com/y327zacs
Long Form D-3
https://tinyurl.com/yylfld9w
Check-in Instructions D-521
https://tinyurl.com/y3ay3om9
Short Form Edit Instructions D-522
https://tinyurl.com/y46wkv65
Long Form Edit Instructions D-523
https://tinyurl.com/yytqm3f8
Questionnaire Reference Book D-520
https://tinyurl.com/y3s9lckj
List of Forms In My Kit
https://tinyurl.com/y4b73qf6
Crew Leader's Checklist for Preparatory Work D-195
https://tinyurl.com/yy48ze3x
Special Places Enumerators Handbook D-528
https://tinyurl.com/y5po79ke
Field Employee Selection Aid (Test) D-201B
https://tinyurl.com/y2rto2q2
Enumerator's Handbook Decentralized Mail D-507
https://tinyurl.com/y6ngx87k
Enumerator's Handbook Centralized Mail D-533
https://tinyurl.com/y4epxao3
Ellis Island talks: It started as a simple 1 hour presentation on finding difficult-to-find people on the manifest, using less than 5 strategies. Not only do I have now 9-10 different strategies, but I have added information on the Ellis Island Name Change Myth. I have an online essay on the Name Change Myth at: https://www.jewishgen.org/InfoFiles/ellismythnames.html and another InfoFile for finding passenger names on degraded Ellis Island manifests at: https://www.jewishgen.org/infofiles/degradedmanifests.html.
Thus I offer societies a number of possible talks. A 75 minute presentation on Manifest Destiny: Names at Ellis Island emphasizing the history of Ellis Island and U.S. Immigration during it's heyday, finding difficult people with some strategies, and a short discussion on the name change myth.
I have given one hour presentations involving “Finding Difficult Passengers on the Ellis Island Manifests" (new title for updated presentation). Another one hour spin off from the original talk is titled “What Really Happened at Elis Island: the Name Change Myth”. Given that most genealogists do not accept the name change belief, it is likely that I won't be giving that presentation that often.
I try before the Ellis Island talks to involve people in a simulation of what immigrants went through going through Ellis Island. The Seattle group I talked to bought into it and had 15 members assume roles to “process” their own members with the various original immigration documents I have, IQ jigsaw puzzle test, stamping of documents, etc. that I supplied. The Boston group I talked to in June 2018 had some of their members go through a script, with me being the narrator, showing various documents and procedures before their membership. The Ventura Genealogical Society in 2019 provided about a dozen members and we read through the script with a concurrent slide show showing documents referred to. A set of tables with memorabilia were shown before their simulation. At the very least, I come dressed as an Ellis Island Inspector, and stamp members medical clearance card (which is on their handout for the talk) and ask a few questions leading to their being “chalked” (through Saranwrap). If I have more help, I can increase the types of interactions.
More Details:
"Finding Difficult Passengers on the Ellis Island Manifests"
Have you tried and failed to find your ancestors’ names on immigration manifests from Ellis Island? Using a case study, Weintraub will demonstrate nine + strategies to help you locate the records of your elusive immigrant ancestors. We will start with a 12 year old boy on his 1907 voyage from Hamburg, Germany to New York, and then find out why some search strategies cannot find his record (including the Ellis Island search database!), and surprisingly why some other strategies can find his record!!! There will be a number of take home messages here for researchers, even those who have done many such searches, so be prepared to be entertained, confused, and educated about the assumptions behind the databases we use for immigration searches including some lesser known ones.
“What Really Happened At Ellis Island: The Name Change Myth”
The idea that inspectors at Ellis Island regularly Americanized immigrant names is a persistent myth. We will investigate the evidence that should exist (it doesn’t) to confirm the story as fact, and why name changing at the station was improbable given how immigrants were processed. The history of this immigration station, the types of people who passed through their doors, the legal documents (including their name) they came
with, and station detention documents generated for about 1/6 of them, will be discussed with actual examples. Note: be prepared to avoid deportation by Inspector Weintraub.
""Manifest Destiny": Names at Ellis Island"
Come feel a fraction of what our ancestors may have experienced when they arrived at Ellis Island. You will gain a greater appreciation of the Manifest as a genealogy research tool and will be prepared to successfully negotiate the "Island of Tears.” This main
immigration station into the U.S. was most active from 1892 through 1924. About 70 percent of immigrants to the U.S. during this time came through Ellis Island. The history of this immigration station, including the Wall of Honor will be discussed. The pressures of the "Great Migration" eventually led to immigration quotas. The persistent myth of name changes at Ellis Island will briefly be discussed. Twenty percent of immigrants ended up listed on detention sheets and we will find out where those can be found. Finally, using a case study, Joel will detail a number of name search utilities you can explore later.
Another recent talk that Joel developed concerns the biographies of an important mid-19th century collector of natural history in California and the Southwest. Forty years after the death of Adolphus Heermann, the first biography appeared based mainly for personal information on two people who knew him. Very little is presented on his early years. The next biography relied on information provided on the family by a granddaughter of his father, and that turned out to be inaccurate, but most subsequent studies used the same information. By using modern approaches to family research, Joel has been able to document the true date of birth and death of this naturalist, and to fill in many important details of his fascinating life. The talk emphasizes, in a case study, the pitfalls and promises of genealogy research and what is the nature of documentation and genealogy "facts." When this talk was given to natural history groups, the collecting experiences of A. L. were emphasized. (This research was published in the Journal Cassinia. To see a scan of the article: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/12108455/Cassinia%20Paper.pdf)
Here's some information about the two 1950 U.S. Census talks.
The 1940 U.S. Census opened in 2012 without a name index. A FamilySearch led consortium used 160,000 volunteers to name index that census in 5 months. In addition, Joel and Steve Morse, over seven years with about 125 volunteers, developed free utilities to find which of 150,000 census districts someone was in, when a location or address is known. Steve and Joel have now done a similar project for the 1950 Census. Joel will discuss differences between the 1940 and 1950 censuses that impacted their planning and project design. The film scanning, publicity, volunteer response, Yahoo Group site, cloud storage, software, One-Step utilities, and project phases will be discussed. With only 64 helpers, all 233,800+ 1950 enumeration district definitions have now been transcribed, as well as street indexes for over 2,400 communities to help find 1950 census district numbers. The transcriptions were finished during summer of 2018. Original 1950 census documents will be displayed to the audience. Depending on time allotted, Joel will also bring other state and federal census documents to pass around the audience, including original 1870 U.S. census population and mortality sheets. A companion talk on what's in the U.S. 1950 Census has also been produced.
Also see https://sites.google.com/site/census1940/ for material on previous talks.