National Archives Begins Work on 1960 Census Records Release
By Angela Tudico | National Archives News
New microfilm scanners ready to digitize the 41,000 rolls of the 1960 Census. Photo courtesy of Denise Henderson.
WASHINGTON, November 28, 2022 — Though genealogists and other researchers are still busy researching the 1950 U.S. Federal Census, which the National Archives released entirely online April 1, the agency is already preparing for the next launch: the 1960 population census.
Almost as soon as the 1950 Census schedules went live, work began on digitizing approximately 41,000 rolls of the microfilmed 1960 Census, a notable increase from the 6,373 rolls of the 1950 Census. The 1960 Census records are scheduled to be released in April 2032.
For the next decade, the agency will work on digitizing the census schedules as well as administrative records related to the census.
“It’s amazing to see our staff shift from launching the 1950 Census to starting work on the next one,” said Digitization Division Director Denise Henderson. “Every census comes with unique, interesting challenges for digitization. We’re excited to figure out the best solutions for getting the 1960 Census online and sharing that wealth of information with the public in 2032.”
Staff have already digitized a series of meetings and conference papers related to the 1960 Census, which can be found in the Catalog.
Claire Kluskens, a Digital Projects Archivist and Genealogy/Census Related Records subject-matter expert, will be guiding researchers, family historians, and others through the 1960 Census, just as she did for the 1950 Census, via a series of blog posts and webinars.
Her work on the 1960 Census debuted last month with her blog post on the topic on History Hub, “1960 Census: NARA’s Already Working Toward 2032.”
Check out this post to find out why the 1960 Census has more than six times the microfilm rolls than the 1950 Census and why the agency has already begun its work.
Kluskens will continue to highlight major features of the 1960 Census and how to research it in the decade-long leadup to its release in April 2032. You can follow along on History Hub and also catch up on her series about the 1950 Census.