Saturday Night Genealogical Fun (on Sunday) - A Genealogy Easter Egg Hunt

I may have had one special Easter egg too many, for this afternoon I took to the 1940 U.S. census to nibble again on Randy Seaver/Geneamusings' "Saturday night fun."
 
1. My target was John L. Preston (1904-1997) and his first wife, Bernice Cottrill (1909-1941).
 
2. Street address. This was more of a challenge for me. John's wife Bernice died 6 June 1941, in childbirth [Ohio death certificate, Bernice Ann Preston, (Chillicothe, Ross County)]. 


(a) The residence address on her death certificate was just "Chillicothe, RR #1." Sigh.
(b) I next checked letters my father had written to John, his brother, just later (1942ish), but found no better detail.
(c) Off to the Ancestry.com city directories--I found a series of entries for my John L. Preston, serving in different capacities at the federal reformatory in Chillicothe. He was listed with a residence at 1016 N. High. [Polk's Chillicothe (Ross County, Ohio) City Directory, v1940; p. 217.] 

1936 Polk's Chillicothe directory; digital image from Ancestry.com

1938 Polk's Chillicothe directory; digital image from Ancestry.com

1940 Polk's Chillicothe directory; digital image from Ancestry.com

3. Mapping. I had no problem finding what at least seems the address, 1016 N. High, on the various maps. (Apparently there is a Subway now in the general area where John once lived.)


4. Steve Morse' Unified 1940 Census ED Finder. Sigh. The map and census finder didn't pan out for me; it returned EDs 71-23, 71-24 and 71-29.


Browsed more pages than I will admit; no joy. Okay, now it's starting to feel like a real challenge.


3-take two. Back to the maps, and more maps, and more and more maps with a dabble here and there in an alternate ED or two.


No joy.


2-take 2. Back to the 1940 Chillicothe city directory, this time to find the entry for Bernice's parents--given as John Cottrill and May Frances on Bernice's death record.  Ha! I located what seemed the possible parents at 1020 N. High, a few doors down or over from where John and Bernice were reported in the same directory.

1940 Polk's Chillicothe directory; digital image from Ancestry.com

4-take 2. Back to check the above noted EDs for this John Cottrill.


No joy, but since I was not having any luck, I looked for and found ED descriptions for "Scioto Township, U.S. Industrial Reformatory," which connected with John's entry in the 1940 city directory. As many officers and families were enumerated there, I checked for John and Bernice, but did not find  them.


4-take 3. Decided to try my hand using the Cottrill 1930 U.S. census ED and Steve Morse' option, "If you know the 1930 ED for this location." (John was living in Michigan in 1930, so the prior research I had done about him would not have helped.)


(a) First to find the Cottrill family in the 1930 U.S. census--success. 

1930 U.S. census image; from Ancestry.com

(b) I used the 1930 Cottrill ED (71-27) location reference to develop reference for that location in 1940. This returned two EDs.

(c) And .... and ... Yes! Success. John and Bernice, and Bernice's parents, too, were located in 1940 ED 71-37. 

1940 U.S. census images; via Steve Morse' site integration with Ancestry.com

I learned more about Bernice during the challenge; will save that for another day. Bear just gonna do the happy dance for now.