This was a post to the City-Directories list on Rootsweb. I thought you might find it interesting. From: "Joel Weintraub" <jweintraub@fullerton.edu> To: <city-directories@rootsweb.com> Subject: [CITY-DIRECTORIES] Street Name Changes/Renumbering 1900-1940 All Large Cities Group, I made this request here last, I believe, in 2006. Everyone on this list can help. So far you have been helping individuals one at a time. I'll give you an opportunity to help hundreds. On April 2nd, 2012 (the 1st falls on a Sunday and NARA will be closed) the 1940 US Census will become public. The National Archives has made a decision to digitize the census and put it online, rather than distribute it on film, and is looking into ways of having a name index available at the opening. We will see if the latter happens, but we have been busy producing geographical finder aids for 1940 and now have procedures in place for finding practically every 1940 Enumeration District number by location. (We now have this capability for 1930 and 1920 as well.) This group may be inundated with requests for 1940 City Directory/Telephone Directory searches in a few years when name indexes are either not available for the opening of the 1940 Census, or, because of indexing/transcribing problems, that don't produce the necessary information. Over 70 volunteers have helped me produce street indexes to ED numbers for the top 220 plus cities in 1940 (populations generally 50,000 or more). In addition, I've transcribed all 150,000 plus 1940 to 1930 ED correlates so one can convert a 1940 ED # to a 1930 one, and more importantly, vice versa. Our past efforts for the 1930 census produced street indexes for over 400 cities of 25,000 or more, which can be used to look up a 1940 address (if that city isn't one we did for 1940), and then convert the resultant 1930 ED # to a 1940 ED #. These databases reside on the freely available, Steve Morse One Step site, and Steve has a number of search utilities that use these files. (at http://www.stevemorse.org/census/index.html ) So where does this group come into play? For the 1930 and 1940 large city geographical finders, people will be searching for an address, and would also need to know the other street names on the target city block to use our utilities. But as we all know, streets tend to change names over time, and even houses can be renumbered. Thus researchers are going to come to this group wanting to know where 101 XYZ street is in ABC city since a current map doesn't show the street name or the address number is improbable today. But City Directories often show street name changes..... e.g. Elm St (see Acorn Ave).....and even renumbering data. I would guess most regulars here have the necessary information if only they would look for it, compile the information, and deposit it in a central place. Let's not wait until 2012 before we recognize what is needed. We haven't..... and for street name changes Steve Morse has programmed and I've seeded a list of websites and tables (from NARA circa 1930 city directories and many, many other resources) of street name changes at: http://stevemorse.org/census/changes.html These lists are woefully inadequate....and with the resources of this group I'm sure you could add street name changes (old to new) to the cities shown, or renumbering information, or add new city tables to my list from the City Directories that you use to answer other questions on this site. I'll acknowledge your help within the One Step tables. (In fact, if someone with the 1887 Baltimore City Directory would scan the renumbering information there, and send that to me, I would work to get that included on our Street Change section.) So please look at your city directories from, say 1900s through recent years, find street name changes, renumbering information, and check to see if they are missing from our tables. If they are, then send me an email with the findings of old to new names. Also, if there are links to street name changes I'm not aware of, let me know and I'll add them to the utility. Thanks in advance...and future 1940 researchers (and actually present researchers for all 20th Century Census searchers) will also thank you. Please feel free to post this request on regional and state boards as well. Joel Weintraub Dana Point, CA