Census Records

The 1940 Census was released for public use on April 1, 2012.

The indexes and digitized images of the complete 1940 Census are available for free at the following websites:

• Ancestry Library Edition: You can use Ancestry Library Edition in any of our library branches. If you are using the internet outside the libraries, go to Ancestry's page on the 1940 Census. There is free access to just this part of Ancestry; however, you will need to register for a free Ancestry.com account.
  Go to: https://www.ancestry.com/1940-census
• HeritageQuest provides the same 1940 census images and indexes as Ancestry, but can be used at home with your library card through NC Live.
  Go to: https://www.nclive.org/cgi-bin/nclsm?rsrc=218
• FamilySearch.org
  Go to: https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2000219

The National Archives provides the images, but not any indexing. It does provide a quick process to save an entire Enumeration District file as a pdf on your own computer.
Go to: https://1940census.archives.gov/

• Use the National Archives guide to research the 1940 Census Records.
  Go to: https://www.archives.gov/research/census/1940
• See a list of the questions asked on the 1940 Census.
  Go to: http://www.archives.gov/research/census/1940/general-info.html#questions
• Print out a quick reference to the column headings on the 1940 Census form (make sure to print with the paper in the landscape orientation).
  Go to: http://www.archives.gov/research/census/1940/general-info.html#form
• Frequently Asked Questions about the 1940 U.S. Census.
  Go to: https://1940census.archives.gov/faq.asp?
• 1940 Census Occupation and Industry Classifications
  Go to: https://www.archives.gov/files/research/census/1940/occupational-codes.pdf
• Deciphering Miscellaneous Codes Appended to the 1940 Census in One Step by Stephen P. Morse.
  The codes that appear in the various lettered columns of the 1940 U.S. Census were put on the census pages well after the enumeration was done, and therefore provide no additional information. However, sometimes knowing the code can help you determine the information in cases where the quality of the microfilm is poor or the handwriting of the enumerator is difficult to read.
  Go to: https://stevemorse.org/census/mcodes1940.htm

 

Author: Gaston County Public Library
Title: The U. S. Census for Genealogists: 1940
URL: http://gastonlibrary.libguides.com/census/the-united-states-census-for-genealogists-1940
Revised: 24 October 2019

The 1940 census was divided into enumeration districts (geographic areas) created to allow a census taker (enumerator) to visit every house in the district within a two-week period (one month allowed for rural areas). Enumeration district maps illustrate these districts’ boundaries.

If you wish to browse the area that your ancestor lived in, you will need to know his or her address in 1940 and the census Enumeration District in which that address was located. Then you browse the census population schedules for that district.

Wondering where to find addresses? Try looking in the following: city directories; old family letters, postcards, and address books; WW II draft records (available in Ancestry Library Edition); and the 1930 census if the family lived in the same place at that time.

See “How to Access the 1940 Census in One Step” for a tutorial to using this census.
Go to: http://stevemorse.org/census/quiz.php

Local

Paper copies of these place name indexes and copies of the Enumeration District descriptions are at all libraries in our county.
Go to: http://gastonlibrary.libguides.com/census/the-united-states-census-for-genealogists-1940

• Gaston County Enumeration Districts
• Lincoln County Enumeration Districts

Nationwide

• Steve Morse's website provides 3 utilities to find EDs and go straight to the page you want in the census.
  Go to: http://stevemorse.org/census/unified.html
• Family Search has the United States Enumeration District Maps for the Twelfth through the Sixteenth US Censuses, 1900-1940.
  Go to: https://familysearch.org/search/collection/2329948
• HeritageQuest has the U.S. Enumeration District Maps and Descriptions, 1940 and the Map Guide to the U.S. Federal Censuses, 1790-1920. Select a State to see how the county boundaries changed with each census year or view the entire United States by decade to see the changes in state boundary lines. HeritageQuest is a free genealogy database available through NCLive.org. It can be accessed from any internet-enabled device with a current library card number. 
  Go to: https://www.nclive.org/cgi-bin/nclsm?rsrc=218
• The National Archives provides an ED Map Search. Enter in the search box: 1940 Census maps + the county + the state. For example "1940 Census maps Gaston North Carolina". Warning: these can be very large images.
  Go to: http://www.archives.gov/research/search/

When the 1940 census was released for public use on April 2, 2012, it was not yet indexed. You can locate people by identifying the Enumeration District in which they lived in 1940 and then browsing the census population schedules for that district.
First, search for any clues that will narrow down the person's address such as city directories, old letters and documents, and the 1930 census.

A 4 page list of the Enumeration Districts in Lincoln County has been produced by the The National Archives. Copies will be available at all the libraries. This is an index of the Lincoln County places and streets mentioned, giving the page number in the list.

---

---

• Numbered streets
• See also State Road [#]

• A
• Aspen St, Lincolnton, p. 2, 3

• C
• C. and N. W. Rwy. see Carolina and Northwestern Railway
• Carolina and Northwestern Railway, p. 3, 4
• Catawba Springs township, p. 1
• Crouse, p. 1

• D
• Denver, p. 1

• G
• Goodsonville [Southeast Lincolnton], p. 3

• H
• Howards Creek, p. 1
• Howards Creek township, p. 1

 

• I
• Iron Station, p. 2
• Ironton township, p. 2

• L
• Laboratory, p. 4
• Leepers Creek, p. 2
• Lincoln County Home, p. 2
• Lincoln County Jail, p. 3
• Lincoln Hospital, p. 3
• Lincolnton [town], p. 2, 3
• Lincolnton township [outside city], p. 3, 4
• Long Shoals, p.

• M
• Main St., Lincolnton, p. 2, 3

• N
• North Brook township, p. 4

• R
• Reeves Hospital, p. 3

 

• S
• S. A. L. Rwy. see Seaboard Air Line Railroad
• Seaboard Air Line Railroad, p. 2, 3, 4
• Southeast Lincolnton, p. 3
• Southside, p. 4
• State Road 27, p. 1, 4
• State Road 73, p. 1
• State Road 150, p. 2
• State Road 271, p. 1
• State Road 274, p. 4

• V
• Vale, p. 1

• W
• Ward 1, Lincolnton, p. 2
• Ward 2, Lincolnton, p. 3
• Ward 3, Lincolnton, p. 3
• Ward 4, Lincolnton, p. 3

When the 1940 census was released for public use on April 2, 2012, it was not yet indexed. You can locate people by identifying the Enumeration District in which they lived in 1940 and then browsing the census population schedules for that district.
First, search for any clues that will narrow down the person's address such as city directories, old letters and documents, and the 1930 census.

A 15 page list of the Enumeration Districts in Gaston County has been produced by the The National Archives. Copies will be available at all the libraries. This is an index of the Gaston County places and streets mentioned, giving the page number in the list.

Numbered streets

• 2nd Ave, Gastonia, p. 5, 6, 7
• 3rd Ave, Gastonia, p. 6, 7
• 4th Ave, Gastonia, p. 6
• 10th St, Cramerton, p. 14
• 13th St, Bessemer City, p. 1, 2
• See also County Road [#]; State Highway [#]; and U. S. Road [#]

A

• Acme-Stowe-North Belmont Mills, p. 13
• Alexis, p. 3

B

• Belmont, p. 11, 12
• Belmont Abbey, p. 14
• Belmont Junction, p. 11
• Belmont Town Jail, p. 12
• Belvidere [Belvedere] Ave, Gastonia, p. 7
• Bessemer City, p. 1, 2
• Blackwood Creek, p. 9
• Branch of Catawba Creek, p. 10
• Broad St, Gastonia, p. 3, 4

C

• C and NW Rwy see Carolina and Northwestern Railway
• Carolina and Northwestern Railway, p. 8, 9
• Catawba Creek, p. 10, 14, 15
• Catawba river, p. 14
• Catawba St, Belmont, p. 11, 12
• CCC Camp S. C. S. 11, p. 10
• Cherryville town and township, p. 1
• Church St, Gastonia, p. 7
• Civilian Conservation Corps see CCC Camp
• County Road 94, p. 7
• County Road 155, p. 9
• County Road 263, p. 14
• Cramerton, p. 14
• Crowder Mountain township, p. 1, 2
• Cumberland Ave, Gastonia, p. 7

D

• Dallas, p. 2
• Dallas township (outside town), p. 3
• Dellview, p. 1
• Dix St, Gastonia, p. 5
• Duheart Creek, p. 14
• Dutchman's Creek, p. 11

E

• East Gastonia, p. 7, 8
• East Woodrow Ave, Belmont, p. 11, 12
• East Woodworth Ave, Belmont see East Woodrow Ave, Belmont

F

• Falls St, Gastonia, p. 4
• Flint, p. 7
• Franklin Ave, Gastonia, p. 5

G

• Garbage dump, South Point township -- lane passing by, p. 15
• Garrison General Hospital, p. 6
• Gaston County Almshouse, p. 3
• Gaston County Colored Hospital, p. 4
• Gaston County Jail, p. 6
• Gastonia city, p. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
• Gastonia City Hospital, p. 4
• Gastonia suburbs (unincorporated), p. 8, 9, 10
• Gastonia township outside of city, p. 7, 8, 9, 10
• Greater Gastonia see Gastonia suburbs

H

• Hardin, p. 3
• High Shoals, p. 3
• Highland St/Ave, Gastonia, p. 5, 6
• Highway... see State Road [#] and U. S. Road [#]
• Hospital see Garrison General Hospital; Gaston County Colored Hospital; Gastonia City Hospital; North Carolina Orthopaedic Hospital.

L

• Lincoln Academy, p. 2
• Lincoln Ave, Gastonia, p. 4
• Linwood St, Gastonia, p. 5
• Long Creek, p. 7, 8
• Long Creek Road, p. 2
• Lowell, p. 13

M

• Marietta St, Gastonia, p. 4
• McAdenville, p. 13
• Morris St, Gastonia, p. 4
• Mount Holly, p. 11

N

• New Hope Road, p. 14, 15
• North Belmont Mills see Acme-Stowe-North Belmont Mills
• North Carolina Orthopaedic Hospital, p. 10
• North Central Ave, Belmont, p. 12
• North Main St, Belmont, p. 11, 12

O

• Oakland St, Gastonia, p. 6, 7

P

• P and N Rwy see Piedmont and Northern Railroad
• Park St, Belmont, p. 11, 12
• Piedmont and Northern Railway, p. 13
• Pisgah Church road, p. 8, 9

R

• Ranlo-Rex-Smyre Mills, p. 7 (twice), 10
• Ransom St, Gastonia, p. 4, 5
• Ratchford Ave, Gastonia, p. 3, 4
• Rex Mills see Ranlo-Rex-Smyre Mills
• Rhyne St, Gastonia, p. 3, 4
• River Bend township, p. 11

S

• Sacred Heart Convent, Belmont, p. 12
• Saint see St.
• S. A. L. Rwy see Seaboard Air Line Railroad
• Seaboard Air Line Railroad, p. 1, 11
• Sisters of Mercy Motherhouse see Sacred Heart Convent
• Smyre Mills see Ranlo-Rex-Smyre Mills
• South Fork of Catawba River, p. 3, 13, 14, 15
• South Main St, Belmont, p. 12
• South Point township, p. 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
• Southern Railway, p. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12, 13, 14
• St. Leo Preparatory School for Little Boys, Belmont, p. 12
• St Mary's College, p. 14
• Stanley, p. 11
• State Road 273, p. 13
• State Road 274, p. 1, 9, 10
• State Road 275, p. 3
• State Road 277, p. 1
• Stowe Mills see Acme-Stowe-North Belmont Mills

T

• Todd St, Belmont, p. 12
• Tuckaseegee, p. 13

U

• U. S. Road 29, p. 2, 8, 10, 13, 14
• U. S. Road 74, p. 2
• U. S. Road 321, p. 3

V

• Vance St, Gastonia, p. 5, 6

W

• Ward 1, Gastonia, p. 3, 4
• Ward 2, Gastonia, p. 4, 5
• Ward 3, Gastonia, p. 5
• Ward 4, Gastonia, p. 5, 6
• Ward 5, Gastonia, p. 6 [split on page]
• Ward 6, Gastonia, p. 6
• Ward 7, Gastonia, p. 7

Y

• York St, Gastonia, p. 4, 6