Using Social Security Application Files, SS-5

Tip #9.   This tip comes from Temple Pouncey

Another excellent resource, not limited to Texas: SS-5 files from the Social Security Administration, for ancestors who lived long enough (1935 or 1936) to get a Social Security number. The SS-5 is the person's original application for a Social Security number and includes the applicant's full name, address, name of employer, and names of parents. Find your ancestor's name and SS number in the Social Security Death Index (through rootsweb.com), then mail in your request for a copy through the Freedom of Information Act. It's $27 for a photocopy of the original or $16 for a transcript.

4/18/03