African-American Series: 1940 Federal Census, Matawan Twp (ED 13-97)

Below is my index to the African American residents enumerated in the 1940 Federal Census for New Jersey in Enumeration District (ED) 13-97, which included part of Matawan Township - present day Aberdeen Township.  (Other districts not yet processed included ED 13-98 and ED 13-99)
 
A few immediate observations:

• It was a surprise to me that so many folks living here in 1940 came from the British West Indies.
• A number of households consisted of a single or widowed man and his age-mate housekeeper, who was also single or widowed. There are many examples of this. It's impossible to know the true story based simply on the census, but it seems likely that many of these were unmarried couples "living together", as we'd call it today. It seems unreasonable that so many single men would have had live-in housekeepers.
• There are a number of cases where a man or woman would claim to be married but the spouse is not in the household. The census supervisor marked most of these with a question mark (?) and crossed through the M for married. The spouse could be living elsewhere, of course, but the supervisor evidently had some doubts.
• Aberdeen Township Historian assembled a history of local street names some years ago. The census shows some variations to these names and even an additional street. It does not include a Garden Street. And it lists Arlington as an avenue and Bayview Street with Bay and View pushed together.

Entries show head of household and spouse, if married, with ages and place of birth. Children and grandchildren are listed as family. Others are described and listed. The last figures in each entry show the household number and page number from the census. Apparent household numbering errors are marked with an asterisk (*).

Abbreviations for places of birth listed below:

• AL - Alabama
• AR- Arkansas
• BWI - British West Indies
• CT - Connecticut
• FL - Florida
• GA - Georgia
• LA - Louisiana
• MD - Maryland
• MO - Missouri
• MS - Massachusetts
• NC - North Carolina
• NJ - New Jersey
• NY - New York
• SC - South Carolina
• VA - Virginia

 County Road

• Charles Richardson (47, BWI), roomer in Regan household (98, pg 9)
• Walter and Marie Bethune (37 SC, 39 SC) (100, pg 9)
• Joseph and Bessie Paul (42 BWI, 45 GA), plus Thomas Blandford (24 GA), a cousin (101, pg 9)
• Phillip and Laura Hodge (44 BWI, 40 BWI) and family (102, pg 9)
• Edgar and Louisa Rodgers (59 NC, 63 CT) (104*, pg 9)
• Nathan Gumbo, widowed (52 BWI) and family (105, pp 9-10)
• Sarah Rogers, widowed (48 BWI) and family, including sister Beatrice Richardson (35 BWI) (149, pg 25)
• Mack and Melinda Jones (48 SC, 49 VA) (598, pg 28)

Bay View Street

• Fleta Bell, divorced (36 GA) and family (116, pg 11)
• Robert and Cora Richardson (57 NC, 50 VA) and a grandson (117, pg 11)
• Mary Riley, widowed (55 VA) with boarder Isaiah Spots, widowed (64 NY) (118, pg 11)

Third Street

• Joseph and Susan Boles (61 GA, 48 AL) and family (119, pg 11)
• Claude and Anna Stokes (36 VA, 35 GA) (120, pg 11)
• Thomas Johnson, widowed (62 VA) and housekeeper Rosie Bouyer, widowed (68 NY) (121, pg 11)
• Roosevelt and Ruby Bethune (35 SC, 34 SC) and family (122, pg 11)
• Teresa Foster widowed (48 SC) (123*, pg 11)
  

West Bay Street

• Robert Jefferson (43 NJ) and housekeeper Ida Evans, single (35 NY) (123*, pg 12)
• Susie Dickerson, married (38 FL) and family (124, pg 12) 
• Fanny Buntin, married (24 FL) (126, pg 25)
• Frank W and Maude Bell (50 FL, 50 BWI) and family, including son-in-law Hugo Flemming (25 VA) and family (127, pg 25)
• Louis Bell (40 FL) (128, pg 25)
  

 Arlington Street

• William and Mabel Phillips (50 VA, 47 NY) plus the Solomon children as boarders (125, pg 12)

Avon Street

• James and Maude Gumbo (42 BWI, 45 BWI) and family (131, pg 12)
• Arthur and Ivy Richardson (42 BWI, 38 BWI) and family (132, pg 12)

Garden Street

• Ozzie and Sally Williams (52 SC, 42 SC) and family (133, pg 12)
• William and Nellie Richardson (60 FL, 50 FL) (134, pg 12)
• Walter and Sarah Hicks (40 GA, 39 GA) and family (135, pp 12-13)
• Montague and Amanda Hughes (46 BWI, 42 BWI) and family (136, pg 13)
• Jonas Royster, married (42 NC) and family and housekeeper Maggie Harris, widowed (28 NC) (137, pg 13)

Atlantic Avenue

• Samuel and Mary Parlor (66 SC, 50 NC) and widowed brother Wesley Parlor (77 SC) (138, pg 13)
• Harry Knight, married (51, NC) and family (139, pg 13)
• Col Henry and Nettie Washington (50 FL, 52 MD) (140, pg 13)
• Benjamin Evans, married (58 VA) (141, pg 13)
• James Smith, widowed (52 LA) and housekeeper Laura McCray, widowed (46 SC) (142, pg 13)

Fourth Street

• Otis and Melissie Washington (25 AL, 20 NC) and family (143, pg 13)
• Isham Edwards (45 LA) with boarder Joseph Darry, widowed (67 FL) (144, pg 13)
• Missouri Owens, widowed (73 GA) (145, pg 13)
• William and Florence Pope (44 AL, 40 AL) and family (153, pg 25)
• George and Carnie Smith (66 AL, 64 AL) (154, pg 25)
• William and Estelle Baskerville (55 VA, 43 VA) and family, including a granddaughter Centamac Ogden (13 NJ) and a niece Anna Mae Matthew (14 VA) (599, pg 28)

Fifth Street

• John and Annie Mills (60 NC, 55 GA) and Annie's mother, Fanny Murphy, widowed (94, GA) (155, pg 14)
• Joseph and Lillian Page (51 VA, 50 AL) and family, including a step-son Nathaniel Mumford, single (20 NJ) (156, pg 14)
• Louella Boswell, single (33 NJ) and her mother Lavenia Boswell, widowed (55 VA) and family (157, pg 14)

Matawan Avenue

• Lee and Maggie Brown (41 NC, 32 NC) and family (165, pg 15)
• Carl and Elizabeth Tullis (55 AL, 50 AL) and family, including son-in-law Roger Mitter (26, VA) and family (166, pg 15)

Center Street

• Edward and Minnie Causby (57 GA, 45 GA) and family (265, pg 23)
• Elizabeth Lowe, widowed (60 GA) and family (266, pg 23)
• David and Lillie Bullock (45 NC, 35 NC) (267, pg 23)
• John Fields, widowed (98 NC) (271*, pg 23)
• Harold and Grace Dodson (59? MA, 38 VA) and family (272, pg 23)
• Gabriel and Sophie Simms (56 GA, 65 GA)(273, pg 23)

Raritan Street

• Anthony and Stella Todd (55 AR, 57 MO) (274, pg 23)
• W Henry and Mary P Jackson (48 PA, 46 VA) and family, including a son named after Charles Lindberg born about 1928. (The pilot accomplished the first transatlantic flight in 1927.) (275, pg 23)
• McKinley and Dorothy Askew (27 NC, 22 MD) and family (276, pp 23-24)
• Sadie Battle, married (59 NC) and family (277, pg 24)
• Dorothy Anderson, widowed (31 GA) and family (278, pg 24)
• William and Annie Gross (47 MD, 39 VA) and niece Frances Dockery (8 NJ) (279, pg 24)
• Charles and Mary Jane Penny (52 MO, 51 AL) and daughter Catherine Hall, married (3X AL) (280, pg 24)
• John and J Annie Leary (58 GA, 52 AL) and boarder James Brown, widowed (54 SC) (281, pg 24)
• Union and Marie Lester (41 GA, 39 GA) and family (594, pg 24)
• Mamie Coakley, widowed (47 GA) and roomer Joseph Foster, widowed (66 ??) (595, pg 24)

Cliffwood Avenue

• Weyman Jetins (43 AL) (ff, pg 24)
• George and Elba Shaw (52 AL, 51 FL) and sister-in-law Mary Tillman (?? FL) (88, pg 25)
• George and Barbara Mack (41 SC, 37 NJ) and family (89, pg 25)
• Arthur and Ruth Yancy (45 VA, 42 NJ) and family (293, pg 28)

Unreported Street

• Arthur and Sarah Mouring (58 AL, 64 GA) (596, pg 28)