Punch Cards Made for the U.S. Census of Population, 1930
date: label: date made
content: 1930
name: label: maker
content: U. S. Census Bureau
notes: label: Description
content: These paper punch cards have the fields used in the U.S. Census of population in 1930. Each is marked: POPULATION, 1930. Each is also marked: TM2021.
label: Description
content: The cards were similar in past ones in that they record the age, gender, race, marriage status, and education status of an individual. The 1930 punch card changed from the 1920 punch card in three ways. The first was the use of a more standardized 12-key punch, which required changing some of the code symbols to make the card puncher’s job a bit easier. The second was a different look and column spacing of the card. The third was changes in the content. Some areas, like household head, were moved to the family card. The columns were numbered and labeled on the bottom of the card.
label: Description
content: Columns indicated (by number):
label: Description
content: 5. Whether the person lived on a farm
label: Description
content: 6. Sex
label: Description
content: 7. Color (or race)
label: Description
content: 8-9. Age (in units of 10)
label: Description
content: 10. Marital State
label: Description
content: 11. Education: NY – not attending school, able to read and write
label: Description
content: NN – not attending school, not able to read or write
label: Description
content: Yes – attending school
label: Description
content: 12. State of birth
label: Description
content: 13. Mother tongue
label: Description
content: 14-15. Country of birth
label: Description
content: 16. Nativity: of individual and parents
label: Description
content: 17. Year immigrated to the U.S.
label: Description
content: 18. Citizenship: Na – native
label: Description
content: Pa – papers
label: Description
content: Al – alien
label: Description
content: 19. Speak English?
label: Description
content: 20-23. Occupation
label: Description
content: 24. Class
label: Description
content: Reference:
label: Description
content: Truesdell, Leon E. The Development of Punch Card Tabulation in the Bureau of the Census,1890-1940: With Outlines of Actual Tabulation Programs. Washington, D.C.: G.P.O., 1965.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
topic: label: Subject
content: Mathematics
setName: label: See more items in
content: Medicine and Science: Mathematics
label: See more items in
content: Science & Mathematics
label: See more items in
content: Punch Cards
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Transfer from Bureau of the Census
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: 1988.3098.01
label: catalog number
content: 1988.3098.01
label: nonaccession number
content: 1988.3098
objectType: label: Object Name
content: Punch Cards, Group of
label: Object Name
content: punch cards, group of
physicalDescription: label: Physical Description
content: paper (overall material)
label: Measurements
content: each card: 17 cm x 8.2 cm; 6 11/16 in x 3 7/32 in