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Soundex was used by the National Archives to index the U.S. censuses.  It codes together surnames that sound similar but have different spellings, i.e. Lorren and Lauren.  Lorren Soudex is Lorren = L650; other surnames
sharing this Soundex Code: LARN | LAUHARN | LAWHORN | LEARN |

The Soundex Algorithm

    Soundex codes begin with the first letter of the surname followed by a
three-digit code that represents the first three remaining consonants.
Zeros are added to names that do not have enough letters to be coded.

Soundex Coding Guide

    Consonants that sound alike have the same code

        1 - B,P,F,V
        2 - C,S,G,J,K,Q,X,Z
        3 - D,T
        4 - L
        5 - M,N
        6 - R

        The letters A,E,I,O,U,Y,H, and W are not coded.

    Names with adjacent letters having the same equivalent number are
coded as one letter with a single number.
    Surname prefixes such as La, De and Van are generally not used in the
soundex. However, Mc, Mac and O generally are not considered prefixes
and are coded for soundex.

To Calculate a Soundex Code by Hand:

    1.  Print name on a piece of paper: Lorren
    2.  Cross out spaces, punctuation, accents and other marks:  Lorren
    3.  Cross out any of the following characters A, E, I, O, U, H, W, Y
         Unless they are the first letter of the surname:  Lorren = Lrrn
    4.  Cross out the second letter of duplicate characters:  Lrrn = Lrn
    5.  Cross out the second letter of adjacent characters with the
         same soundex number: None for Lorren
    6.  Convert characters in positions 2 to 4 to a number:
         L = L, r = 6, n = 5 =L65

            B, P, F, V = 1
            C, S, K, G, J, Q, X, Z = 2
            D, T = 3
            L = 4
            M, N = 5
            R = 6

     7.  Fill any unused positions with zeros (remember the codes have to
          have one letter followed by at least three numbers): L650

Soundex Limitations:

    Names that sound alike do not always have the same soundex code.  For example, Lee (L000) and Leigh (L200) are pronounced identically, but have different soundex codes because the silent g in Leigh is given a code.
    Names that sound alike but start with a different first letter will always have a different soundex code.  For example, names such as Carr (C600)
and Karr (K600) should be calculated separately.
    The Soundex system is based on English pronunciation so European names may not soundex correctly.  For example, some French surnames with silent last letters will not code according to pronunciation. This is true with the French name Beaux - where the x is silent.  Sometimes this surname is also spelled Beau (B000) and pronounced identically to Beaux (B200), yet they will have different soundex codes.
    Sometimes names that don't sound alike have the same soundex code. If you are looking for Powers (P620), you will also have to look through
Pierce, Price, Perez and Park because they all have the same soundex
code.
    Surnames with prefixes were usually coded without the prefix, but not always.  If you are searching for a surname such as DiCaprio or LaBianca,
you should try the soundex for both with and without the prefix.
    US Census soundex confusion arises with names such as Ashcraft.
When the original soundex coder didn't code the H and didn't consider the
H as a separator between the adjacent letters with the same code S and
C, then the S and C would be considered adjacent letters to be coded only
once and the soundex will be A261. In the 1920 NY Census, Ashcraft is
found under A261.
    Those who coded the soundex for the 1880*, 1900 and 1910** census
may or may not have used this rule. They sometimes considered the H
as a separator, and did not code the S and C as adjacent letters that
would only be assigned one letter, but rather gave a number code to each letter.  In this case Ashcraft would be A226.
    The important thing to know is that the US Census was not consistent
with using the letter H and W as separators between adjacent letters. If you
are trying to calculate the soundex for a name with the letters W or H that
separate two adjacent letters, it is best to calculate the soundex using the
two different methods to locate the name in the US census. This would be
true of any name that has any of the letters C,S,G,J,K,Q,X,Z on both sides
of the letter H or W such as SHC, SHS, CHS, KHZ, SWS, KWS, CWK.
    A surname of more than one word, or a surname that commonly comes
before a given name, such as Native Americans and Chinese surnames,
may have been coded under the name which appears last, even though it
might not be the actual surname. In the case of multi-word surnames, only
the last word may have been coded.

Uses for the Soundex Code

    Once you have a soundex code for a surname, you can order the
soundex microfilm for the 1880*, 1900, 1910** and 1920 US census. This
census soundex microfilm is an index to the actual census where you will
receive a lot more information than is on the census soundex. If you cannot
find your ancestor with the soundex code you calculated for his surname,
try a soundex variation keeping the soundex limitations (see above) in mind.  The purpose of the soundex indexing system is to keep all spelling
and pronunciations of a given name together, but because of the limitations
of the soundex, you may have to try different spellings of a name that may
give you a different soundex code.
    Do not assume that your surname was always spelled the way it is today, and that is the way it will appear on the census 100 years ago. The census
taker, in a lot of cases, wrote the surname how he heard it. Try listening
outloud to the surname and write down as many spelling variations as you
can think of. One of these may be how your surname was spelled in the
census.

    *There is only an 1880 soundex census if there was a child under the age of 10 living at
that address.

    **The 1910 U.S. Census was indexed for only a handful of states, and it was called the
Miracode instead of Soundex. The states indexed in the Miracode system for the 1910 U.S.
Census are: Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky,
Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania,
South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia.

Soundex Cards Abbreviations:
 

A = Aunt	FoSi = Foster sister	Nl = Nephew-in-law
Ad = Adopted	GA = Great aunt	Nu = Nurse
AdCl = Adopted Child	Gcl = Grandchild	O = Officer
AdD = Adopted daughter	GD = Grand-daughter	P = Patient
AdGcl = Adopted        grandchild	GF = Grand-father	Pa = Partner
AdM = Adopted mother	GGF = Great-grandfather	Ph = Physician
AdS = Adopted son	GGGF = Great-great-grandfather	Por = Porter
AiL/All = Aunt-in-law	GGGM = Great-great-grandmother	Pr = Prisoner
Ap = Apprentice	GGM = Great grandmother	Prl = Principal
Asst = Assistant	GM = Grand-mother	Prv = Private
At = Attendant	Gml = Grandmother-in-law	Pu = Pupil
B = Brother	GN = Grand or great nephew	R = Roomer
Bar = Bartender	Gni = Grand or great niece	S = Son
Bboy = Bound boy	Go = Governess	Sa = Sailor
Bgirl = Bound girl	God Cl = God child	Sal = Saleslady
BiL/Bll = Brother-in-Law	GS = Grandson	Sb = Stepbrother
Bo = Boarder	Gsl = Grand-son-in-law	Sbil/Sbl = Stepbrother-in-law
Boy = Boy	GU = Great uncle	Scl = Step child
Bu = Butler	Gua = Guardian	Sd/SD =  Stepdaughter
C = Cousin	Guest = Guest	Sdil/Sdl = Step daughter-in-law
Cap = Captain	Hb = Half brother	Se = Servant
Cha = Chamber Maid	Hbl = Half brother-in-law	Se.Cl = Servant's child
Cil = Counsin-in-law	He = Herder	Sf = Stepfather
Cl - Child	Help = Help	Sfil/Sfl = Step father-in-law
Coa = Coachman	H.Gi = Hired girl	Sgd = Step granddaughter
Com = Companion	Hh = Hired hand	Sgs = Step grandson
Cook = Cook	Hk = Housekeeper	Si = Sister
D = Daughter	Hlg = Hireling	SiL/Sl = Son-in-law
DiL/Dl = Daughter-in-law	Hm = Hired man	Sm = Stepmother
Ddla = Day laborer	Hmaid = Housemaid	Smil/Sml = Step mother-in-law
Dom = Domestic	Hls = Half sister	Ss = Stepson
Dw = Dish washer	Hsil = Half  sister-in-law	Ssi = Stepsister
Emp = Employee	H = Husband	Ssil = Step sister-in-law
En = Engineer	Hw = Houseworker	Ssl =Step son-in-law
F = Father	I = Inmate	Su - Super-intendent
FaH = Farm hand	L = Lodger	Ten = Tenant
FaL = Farm laborer	La = Laborer	U = Uncle
FaW = Farm worker	Lau = Launderer	Ul/Uil = Uncle-in-law
FB = Foster brother	M = Mother	Vi = Visitor
FF = Foster father	Maid = Maid	W - Wife
Fi = Fireman	Man = Manager	Wa = Warden
First C = First cousin	Mat = Matron	Wai - Waitress
FiL/FL/Fl = Father-in-law	ML/MiL = Mother-in-law	Ward = Ward
FM = Foster mother	N = Nephew	Wkm = Workman
FoB = Foster brother	Ni = Niece	Wt = Waiter
FoS = Foster son	Nil = Niece-in-law	--------------------------------

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