According to word I received from Ancestry.com, they should have every page, all 3.8 million of them, online on Ancestry.com sometime tomorrow (latest ETA is by 2 p.m. Eastern Friday – maybe sooner). At the same time, they’ll be launching a handful of tools that can help you find answers in those images.
I will be very glad when they get Arkansas up and rolling because I have been scouring the National Archives site for Arkansas census records and already, I have found my father Rufus Higginbotham, living with his parents:
I found my mother, Mary Helen Parks, living with her parents, and her grandparents on her Grandad’s farm:
I found my great grandparents Major and Mollie Harris, on my paternal grandmother’s side, and my great Uncle James Harris, all on the same farm with my father, only in a different house:
I found my great Aunt Sis, and her family, on the same farm with my father and his grandparents, but in a different house:
As to the hours I spent searching for other relatives and haven’t found them, I hope these tools that Ancestry is talking about, come through for me because finding them on the National Archives site has been no easy task.
Here is what Ancestry says is next:
Once all images are uploaded, we’ll move the focus to creating a searchable index for all 132 million records. (FYI, this process has been underway since we picked up the images at 12:01 a.m. Monday) As soon as the first state is ready, we will let you know. In the meantime, we want to know what questions you have and what questions you are hearing from your friends and followers. Please submit them to ask@ancestry.com and put “1940 FAQ” in the subject line. Based on your questions, we will create a Frequently Asked Questions document that can be shared.
Good luck, and happy census hunting! I’m anxious to see your tools Ancestry.com because I have some cousins to find!
Susie
