Saturday, March 3, 2012

Who do you hope to find?


Like most of the geneaworld, I have been eagerly awaiting release day of the 1940 U.S. Census.  I wasn't active with family research 10 years ago when the 1930 census was released so I feel a bit like the new kid in school - excited to get started yet a little apprehensive about where to begin.  So I'm going to start easy and focus on finding someone who can help me in my quest - my mother!

My mother was 12 in 1940 and due to her parents' divorce, at some point she lived with her great aunt and uncle in a different city than either of her parents.  But she's not 100% sure where she was in 1940 - was she still with her mother, had she moved to Berkeley with her aunt, or was she back in Fresno with her mother and step father?  So I'm going to help her figure that out!

She remembers the address of the home she lived in with her grandfather's sister, Anna Teresa Fitzgerald Sronce, as 1441 Milvia Street, Bereley, California.  Lo and behold, when I received the 1950 death certificate for Anna, that was the address listed and it showed that she had lived "in this place" for 30 years.  However, the 1930 census shows Anna and Robert Sronce in Oakland.  My guess is that I'll find them on Milvia Street in 1940 but we'll have to wait to know for sure.

Once I find the Sronce family, I'm hoping my mom will be listed with them.  If she's not there, I'll have to start searching in Fresno to see if she's listed with her mother or, perhaps, her grandparents.  I'm hoping that once I find her, I'll spark some memories for her and she'll be able to put more pieces of the puzzle together.

Who do you hope to find in the 1940 census?


My mom - Geraldine Martin
She looks to be about 14 years old


2 comments:

  1. I'm looking to find out where my dad and his parents and sister were in 1940. I know that he and my mom graduated from high school in 1936, and she went off to Sacramento and then San Francisco for art schools. But I don't know when my grandparents moved to Santa Ana, CA, from Winnemucca, and I don't know when the Nevada National Guard was activated and sent to SoCal for training, but I know he was already in the Army before Dec 7, 1941. And I don't know if my aunt stayed in Winnemucca when her parents moved to SoCal. It's all very confusing!! Ron's dad was in the Nevada National Guard, too. I imagine he was "activated" about the same time my dad was, but I'm not sure.

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  2. I see a little bit of Grace Kelly in that photo...awesome picture!

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