Help with weird abbreviations on 1920 Census, Jefferson County Ohio

Dear Gene Genie,

Thanks for your question.  I see what you found.  BD, MH, and BwF are written in column 13 (year of immigration) for U.S.-born individuals and above (or near) the person’s marital status for foreign-born individuals. 

After studying the occupation column, it appears that all of the persons with these annotations were coal miners. Looking more closely, a pattern appeared:

• MH - a coal miner as head of household (or another occupation in the mine (such as laborer)
• BD - a coal miner as a boarder in a household
• BwF - a young man who was a coal miner residing in his family's household.  In some cases the boy's father was not a coal miner, so perhaps BwF is “boards with family.”

These annotations were made at a later time by a different person than the census enumerator, since the handwriting is different than the enumerator’s.  In addition to those abbreviations, there are additional annotations:

• In the left margin (M for miner and SM for son of miner)
• In columns 2, 3, and 4 (relationship and other undetermined demographic codes, usually relating to households with occupants who worked for coal mines in an occupation other than miner, such as carpenter, pumper, or laborer)
• In column 19, above place of birth (USC and other marks that appear to relate to birth in the United States)

All of these annotations (or “codes”) were made by a clerk based on the English language words written by the enumerator on the census form.  The codes enabled a different clerk operating a keypunch machine to more efficiently compile the data into useful statistics.

It is likely that these annotations were made as part of the study of coal mining communities by Marie L. Obenauer called “Living Conditions Among Coal Mine Workers of the United States,” Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, No. 111 (January 1924): 12-23, which is online at https://hdl.handle.net/2027/coo.31924053988238?urlappend=%3Bseq=22%3Bownerid=27021597767351416-26. She noted that “data compiled for the United States Coal Commission from the 1920 Census Population Sheets” included information from census schedules of major coal producing states like Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Illinois, Ohio, Indiana, and Arkansas, as well as other states with smaller coal mining operations:  Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wyoming.  The article discusses the characteristics of miners, including their age, immigration and naturalization status, marital status and family size, home ownership, and other demographic details that could be culled from census records. 

This data may also have been included in the five volume “Report of The United States Coal Commission Transmitted Pursuant to the Act Approved September 22, 1922 (Public [Law] No. 347), S. Doc. 195, Parts 1-5, 68^th Congress, 2^nd Session (Congressional Serial Set Nos. 8402-1 to 8402-5). 

• Part I:  Principal Findings and Recommendations (Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1925), online at https://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.b3993504. 
• Part II:  Anthracite—Detailed Studies (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1925), online at https://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.b3993505. 
• Part III: Bituminous Coal—Detailed Labor and Engineering Studies (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1925), online at https://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.b3993506. 
• Part IV: Bituminous Coal—Detailed Studies of Cost of Production, Investment and Profits (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1925), online at https://hdl.handle.net/2027/uc1.b3993507. 

• Part V: Atlas of Statistical Tables (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1925), no online location found as of September 24, 2024. 

These reports contain lots of detailed information about the coal mining industry that could provide good background information to include in an ancestor’s life story.  Also, now through December 7, 2024, the National Archives has a great exhibit on the lives of coal miners in the 1940s: “Power & Light: Russell Lee's Coal Survey.”  Check out the images and information at https://visit.archives.gov/whats-on/explore-exhibits/power-light-russell-lees-coal-survey.

U.S. census records often contain marks or annotations added by a clerk after the census schedules reached Washington, DC.  These marks usually don’t provide new information beyond what we can easily read on the page.  However, the marks can be interesting and help us understand the history of the census itself.  

I hope this answer has been useful.

Claire Kluskens, National Archives

Image below:  Detail from 1920 Census, Jefferson County, Ohio, Enumeration District 181, Sheet 4B, from Roll 1401, NARA Microfilm Publication T625, Fourteenth Census of the United States, 1920.