An official website of the United States government                

----

end of header

# History

###### You are here: Census.gov ›  History ›  Through the Decades › Fast Facts › 1970 Fast Facts

Skip top of page navigation

                - History Main
                - Agency History                    - Director Biographies
                  - Census Facilities
                  - Suitland, MD
                  - Notable Alumni
                - Innovations                    - Data Collection
                  - Technology
                - Programs                    - Agriculture
                  - Demographic
                  - Housing
                  - Economic
                  - Geography
                  - Governments
                - Through the Decades                    - Fast Facts
                  - Overview
                  - Index of Questions
                  - Questionnaires
                  - Census Instructions
                - Genealogy                    - Decennial Census Records
                  - Other Resources
                - Reference                    - Data@Museums
                  - Artifacts
                  - Lesson Plans
                  - Legislation
                  - Maps
                  - Oral Histories
                  - Privacy & Confidentiality
                  - Apportionment
                  - Publications 
                - Home Page Archive                    - 2024
                  - 2023
                  - 2022
                  - 2021
                  - 2020
                  - 2019
                  - 2018
                  - 2017
                  - 2016
                  - 2015
                  - 2014 
                - FAQs                    - Genealogy
                  - Agency History
                  - Demographic
                  - Economic
                  - Governments
                  - Agriculture
                  - Geography
                  - Innovations
                  - Miscellaneous

### Fast Facts

### Also in this Section:

                          - 2020 Fast Facts
                          - 2010 Fast Facts
                          - 2000 Fast Facts
                          - 1990 Fast Facts
                          - 1980 Fast Facts
                          - 1970 Fast Facts
                          - 1960 Fast Facts
                          - 1950 Fast Facts
                          - 1940 Fast Facts
                          - 1930 Fast Facts
                          - 1920 Fast Facts
                          - 1910 Fast Facts
                          - 1900 Fast Facts
                          - 1890 Fast Facts
                          - 1880 Fast Facts
                          - 1870 Fast Facts
                          - 1860 Fast Facts
                          - 1850 Fast Facts
                          - 1840 Fast Facts
                          - 1830 Fast Facts
                          - 1820 Fast Facts
                          - 1810 Fast Facts
                          - 1800 Fast Facts
                          - 1790 Fast Facts

### *POP*Culture: 1970

**ICONS:** Watergate, Oil Embargo, Mars
                          - The Ohio National Guard opens fire on protesters at Kent State University, killing four and wounding nine on May 4, 1970.
                          - The Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries announces an embargo on oil exports to the United States on October 15, 1973.
                          - Construction is completed on the Sears Tower (now the Willis Tower) in Chicago, IL, in 1973, and it becomes the tallest building in the world until surpassed by the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 1998.
                          - President Richard M. Nixon resigns from office on August 8, 1974.
                          - The last Americans (10 U.S. Marines) depart Vietnam on April 30, 1975.
                          - Michael Shaara's  The Killer Angels , a novel about the Battle of Gettysburg, wins the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1975.
                          - NASA's Viking 1 lands on Mars on July 20, 1976.
                          - The miniseries  Roots  airs from January 23 to January 30, 1977.  The series would earn 36 Emmy nominations and win 9.
                          - The 1978 Tony Award for Best Musical is awarded to "Ain't Misbehavin'."
                          - The  Bee Gees  dominate the music charts with hits songs, including "Night Fever," "Stayin' Alive," and "How Deep Is Your Love."

| The 1970 Census  |   | 10 Largest Urban Places |
|------------------|--------|-------------------------|
| 203,302,031      |
| 57.5             | 1      | New York City, NY       | 7,894,862 |
| 13.4             | 2      | Chicago, IL             | 3,366,957 |
| April 1          | 3      | Los Angeles, CA         | 2,816,061 |
| 50               | 4      | Philadelphia, PA        | 1,948,609 |
| $247,653,000     | 5      | Detriot, MI             | 1,511,482 |
| 121.8            | 6      | Houston, TX             | 1,232,802 |
| 200,000          | 7      | Baltimore, MD           | 905,759 |
| 166,406          | 8      | Dallas, TX              | 844,401 |
| George Hay Brown | 9      | Washington, DC          | 756,510 |
| 12               | 10     | Cleveland, OH           | 750,903 |
| 41               |

  This symbol  indicates a link to a non-government web site.  Our linking to these sites does not constitute an endorsement of any products, services or the information found on them. Once you link to another site you are subject to the policies of the new site.

CONNECT WITH US**********

                            - Information Quality
                            - Data Linkage Infrastructure
                            - Data Protection and Privacy Policy
                            - Accessibility
                            - FOIA
                            - Inspector General
                            - No FEAR Act
                            - U.S. Department of Commerce
                            - USA.gov

----

Measuring America's People, Places, and Economy

Is this page helpful?
YesNo

NO THANKS

255 characters maximum255 characters maximum reached

Thank you for your feedback.Comments or suggestions?