Deciphering Occupation Codes Appended to the 1950 Census in One Step
Stephen P. Morse, PhD & Joel D. Weintraub, PhD


The codes that appear in columns C (see picture below) of the 1950 U.S. Census have been summarized from the 1950 Census Bureau publication "1950 Census of Population: Classified Index of Occupations and Industries'" These codes were put on the census pages well after the enumeration was done, and therefore provide no additional information. However, sometimes knowing the code can help you determine the occupation in cases where the quality of the microfilm is poor or the handwriting of the enumerator is difficult to read.

The transcribed version of these codes was provided by Tom Lynch.


Occupation Code   
Industry Code   
Class Code   

n.e.c. = not elsewhere classified
1950 census column C


Data presented here comes from
Census of Population 1950: Public Use Microdata Sample .
The 1950 Censuses -- How They Were Taken .

© Stephen P. Morse & Joel D Weintraub, 2014