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Thu, 22 Mar 2001 11:40:29 -0500 |
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I am working with the census returns from a small coal mining town in western
PA and have come across two abbreviations that require clarification. Any
assistance would be most appreciated!
1) Under Nativity/Place of Birth and same for parents, I have found several
entries that list "Ata. English." In this census, usually the political unit
is listed first, then the cultural affiliation, e.g., Austria Slovak or
Russia Polish. Any idea what Ata. stands for?
2) Under citizenship, there are numerous entries that list Pa, rather than
Na (naturalized) or Al (alien). This is clearly a deliberate use of the
abbreviation as "Pa" occurs some two dozen times in 1910 and is used
consistently in the 1900 and 1920 census schedules too. I am guessing that
"Pa" stands for Pennsylvania, but would like to hear suggestions as to why
this abbreviation would be used.
Last question. The enumerators made the distinction between servant at home
(usually a young girl) who, though listed as a servant, was not considered to
be an employee or a wage earner, and servant in a private family/home, where
the young lady was indeed a wage earner. Why list the servant at home? The
only explanation I see is that this listing was made to explain the lack of
school attendance by the girl, as the census indicates that none of the girls
had attended school in the last eight months. Their ages range from 13 to
18. Any thoughts?
Thanks in advance,
Karen Metheny
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