1950 full-count income variables (INCWAGE): updated since the Jan 2024 preliminary release?

USA
1

I’m working with the 1950 full-count census, relying on INCWAGE (my extract also has INCTOT, INCBUSFM, INCOTHER).

The January 2024 Preliminary Release notes flag the income values as often erroneous (~70–75% match to the form). The January 2025 “New Variables and Corrections” notes don’t mention the income variables under either corrections or continuing known issues, so I’m unsure how to read that. I would appreciate some clarification on the following points:

  1. Were the income variables (especially INCWAGE) corrected since the preliminary release, or do they carry over unchanged?
  2. If unchanged, do the January 2024 cautions still apply to the current data?
  3. Which VERSIONHIST value corresponds to the most current income data?

Thanks!

2

The January 2025 re-release of the 1950 full count U.S. census microdata did not address issues with the income variables. The cautions you referenced do apply to the current version of the 1950 full count data. Any limitations announced with the initial release in January 2024 are still present unless otherwise specified in a subsequent revision history note.

Whatever version of the data you have in your data extract is the version reported in VERSIONHIST. The variable VERSIONHIST has equalled 1 for all 1950 full count data thus far.

We are currently processing a limited data release with updated versions of the income and education variables only for 1950. I would suggest waiting for this release in order to take advantage of the new variables, which will be superior for researchers using income and education variables. The data release will be announced on our revision history page and in an email to registered IPUMS users. Sometime in the next year we expect to release a new version of the 1950 full count data with a broader range of improvements and changes, at which time we will increment the VERSIONHIST value. The new income and education variables which will be released sooner are interim improvements to correct some of the most critical issues with the data.

Please post on the forum or send us an email at ipums@umn.edu with any questions you have related to the new release, which will come with documentation detailing the changes made to variables.