“No one home” is a phrase that litters the 1950 census enumeration in many districts. The reference usually indicates where the actual members of the household are listed–usually at the end of the entries for the district that were made on the first sweep.
The 1950 census is like many other records in that respect–things get added “at the end.” In some churches, baptisms of children whose parents were not married may be found at the end of entries for that year. A list of individuals on a personal property tax rolls may contain a set of additions at the end of what is otherwise a roughly alphabetical list. A set of birth certificates that appear to be in rough order for a year as they are browsed manually may contain a few additional ones filed “at the end” for one reason or another.
Overlooked items get stuck “at the end” in a variety of records for a variety of reasons. The 1950 census enumeration makes it clear where the “no one home” entry is to be found. Other records do not.
If you don’t find your ancestor in a sorted (or semi-sorted) set of records, look at the end of the set. Their entry may have been stuck after the last “Z” entry or the last item for the month of December.
Join Michael at either the Allen County Public Library in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, or the Family History Library in Salt Lake City this summer!
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