The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1911-08-17
URBAN AND RURAL
POPULATION OF
THE UNITED STATES
Preliminary Statement Of
Figures by the Census
Bureau for the Thirteenth
Census.

| The proportion of the population
living in urban and rural territory,
as shown by the latest census figures,
has been determined by the Census
Bureau and a preliminary staten ent
covering every state and territory OF
| continental United States has been
| issued by Census Director Durand.
| These statistics are derived from the
| populatio returns of the Thirteenth
Decennlal Census, taken as of April
10, 1910, and are compared in the
statement with similar figures for the
! censuses of 1900 and 1890. The fig
ures bring out very forcibly the gen.
eral trend of population toward the
cities
The Census Bureau. Cor purposes of
discussion, has defined urban popula-
ton generally as that residing in cit
les and other incorporated places of
1900 inhabitants or more. In the
New England States, in addition to
cities having this populat ton, all
towns having population of $500 or
more have also been classed as ur-
ban, without regard to the popuIa-
ton of the villages whether incorpo-
rated as such or not) which they may
contain. In Massachusetts and Rhode
Island political divisions of lesser area
than the town do not exist; in New
Hampshire there are only two such
OIFISiOuS, anu III odcn OIL the InT0e
remaining states, although many such
villages within town limits have been
Incorporated, they do not include all
the actual villages in the state. For
this reason it is not practicable in
the New England States to make
villages from the towns in which they
are located. The result is that the
urban areas" in New England include
some population which in other Sec
tons of the United States would be
segregated as rural This depar-
necessary by local conditions in New
England, probably makes no great
change in the proportions of urban
and rural population in those sections
where population is dense and gem
orally devoted to manufacturing In
other sections a considerable variation
doubtless results, but there is no rea-
son to suppose that it materials af-
fects the distinguishing characteristics
of urban and rural populate as de-
fined by census statistics.
Urban population being thus defin-
ed, the remainder of the country or
state is classed as rural. In most
of the states. Their fore, the rural pop
ulation consists of the population out
side of cities or other incorporated
places of $500 inhabitants or more,
but in the New England States it
consists of the population outside Of
towns and cities having $500 inhabi-
tantS or more.
The comparisons of the urban and
rural population in 1910 with that at
earlier enumerations may be made
either with respect to the varying pro-
portions of the two classes at sue
cesslve enumerations or with respect
to the increase between enum erations.
In order to contrast the proportion of
the total population living in urban or
rural territory at the census of 1910
with the proportion urban or rural
at the preceding census it is neces-
sary to classify the territory Accord
ing to, the conditions as they existed
at each census On the other hand,
in order to present fairly the contrast
between urban and rural communi-
ties, as regards their rate of growth,
1t Is necessary to consider the chang
es in population for the same terri
tory which have occurred FROM one
decennlal census to another. Far this
purpose the territory which in 1910
was urban or rural, as the case fmay
be, is taken as the basis, and the pop
ulatlon in 1900 for the same terri
tory may, on the basis of it's 'popula-
ton at the earlier census, have then
been in different class. This avoids
the disturbing effect of comparisons
which would arise from the passage
for example, of communities formerly
classed as rural into the urban group.
The total population of continental
United States, according to the CEN
sus of 1910, is 91,s72,266, but of the
population, under the definitions of
the Census Bureau, 42,623,383, or 1873
per cent. lived in urban territory and
4s,S4S.sSS, or 81 per cent. lived in
and in 1890 similarly classified as ur-
ban-that is, the cities and other pla-
ces at each census having $500 in
ma bltants or more-contained 40.5 and
SOL per cent. respectively, of the to-
tai population of the country. There
mas thus been very considerable in
crease in the proportion of urban pop
-ulation in continental United States
taken as whole, but the proportions
vary greatly for the individual states
AND for the different sections of the
country.
In the New England division more
than four-fifths of the population in
1910 lived in urban territory Yer
mont is the only state in this divis-
lon In which the population classified
as urban is less than half the total
population of the state while in
Rhode Island and ssachusetts more
than nlne-tenths, and in Connecticut
very nearly nine-tenths, of the total
population in 1910 is classified as ur-
ban.,
In the Middle Atlantic division the
urban population constituted more
than seven-tenths of the total popula-
ton, but the proportion for the state
OF New York alone was very nearly
Iour-hfths. and that for New Jersey
fully three-fourths. a
In the East North Central and the
Pacific divisions the urban territory
In each case contained more than half
the total population in 1910, but in
the former division there were three
states-Indiana, Michigan and Wis
cons1n-and in the latter division one
tate-Oregon-in each of which the
urban population comprised less than
half but more than 40 per cent of
the total population.
There are IA states in which more
than half the population in 1910 was
living in urban territory
For continental United States as a
Whole, 1t appears that the total pop
ulat1on in 1910 of those cities and
other places which at that time had a
population of not less than $500 each
was 42,62338S; and that in 1900 the
total population of these same places
was 31,587,542.
comparison of the figures for
continental United States as just CIV
en-, shows an increase since 1900 in
the population living in urban terri
tory of 11,e35,841, or 34.9 per cent |
The total population living in rural
territory in 1910-that is, in the re-
mainder of continental United States
outside of urban communities-was
40, 34S,SS3, as compared with a to-
tai population living in the sanoa for