The 1990 United States Census [2nd] — A Closer Reading

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Authors: United States. Bureau of the Census Digital Source: Project Gutenberg Gutenberg Release Year: 1992 First Publication Year: Not confirmed

Key Word: United States -- Population -- Statistics; United States -- Census; Housing -- United States -- Statistics Target Reader: Readers of public-domain and historical texts

Book Edition: Project Gutenberg digital edition Book Language: en

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An editorial note on the 1990 U.S. Census data, focusing on the tension between aggregate national figures and granular state-level details, the structural contrast between population and housing tables, and the statistical patterns visible in Nebraska's demographic profile.

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THE 1990 UNITED STATES CENSUS

These are the REGIONS commonly referred to in the US Census:

NORTHEAST (NE) 9 states (ME, NH, VT, MA, RI, CT, NY, PA, NJ) Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey

SOUTH (S) 16 states (DE, MD, WV, VA, NC, SC, GA, FL, AL, MS, TN, KY, AR, LA, TX, OK) Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma

MIDWEST (MW) 12 states (MI, OH, IN, IL, WI, MN, IA, MO, ND, SD, NE, KS) Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas,

WEST (W) 13 states (WA, OR, CA, NV, ID, UT, AZ, MT, WY, CO, NM, HI, AK) Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Idaho, Utah, Arizona, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico, Hawaii, Alaska

November 7, 1991 release date: 1990 POPULATION FOR ALL PERSONS

United States Regions and Divisions States ------------------------------------- Estimate of 12/29/94 261,653,497 United States 248,709,873

Northeast Region 50,809,229 New England Div. 13,206,943 Middle Atlantic Div. 37,602,286

Midwest Region 59,668,632 East North Central 42,008,942 West North Central 17,659,690

South Region 85,445,930 South Atlantic Div. 43,566,853 East South Central 15,176,284 West South Central 26,702,793

West Region 52,786,082 Mountain Division 13,658,776 Pacific Division 39,127,306

Maine 1,227,928 New Hampshire 1,109,252 Vermont 562,758 Massachusetts 6,016,425 Rhode Island 1,003,464 Connecticut 3,287,116 New York 17,990,455 New Jersey 7,730,188

Pennsylvania 11,881,643 Ohio 10,847,115 Indiana 5,544,159 Illinois 11,430,602 Michigan 9,295,297 Wisconsin 4,891,769 Minnesota 4,375,099 Iowa 2,776,755 Missouri 5,117,073

North Dakota 638,800 South Dakota 696,004 Nebraska 1,578,385 Kansas 2,477,574 Delaware 666,168 Maryland 4,781,468 District of Columbia 606,900 Virginia 6,187,358 West Virginia 1,793,477

North Carolina 6,628,637 South Carolina 3,486,703 Georgia 6,478,216 Florida 12,937,926 Kentucky 3,685,296 Tennessee 4,877,185 Alabama 4,040,587 Mississippi 2,573,216 Arkansas 2,350,725

Louisiana 4,219,973 Oklahoma 3,145,585 Texas 16,986,510 Montana 799,065 Idaho 1,006,749 Wyoming 453,588 Colorado 3,294,394 New Mexico 1,515,069 Arizona 3,665,228

Utah 1,722,850 Nevada 1,201,833 Washington 4,866,692 Oregon 2,842,321 California 29,760,021 Alaska 550,043 Hawaii 1,108,229

THE 1990 UNITED STATES CENSUS

1990 Census of Population and Housing Page 1 *** Alabama Total population............................................ 4,040,587 SEX Male..................................................... 1,936,162 Female................................................... 2,104,425 AGE Under 5 years............................................ 283,295 5 to 17 years............................................ 775,493 18 to 20 years........................................... 205,557 21 to 24 years........................................... 237,778 25 to 44 years........................................... 1,232,067 45 to 54 years........................................... 419,421 55 to 59 years........................................... 183,677 60 to 64 years........................................... 180,310 65 to 74 years........................................... 301,218 75 to 84 years........................................... 173,264 85 years and over........................................ 48,507 Median age............................................... 33.0 Under 18 years.............................................. 1,058,788 Percent of total population.............................. 26.2 65 years and over........................................... 522,989 Percent of total population.............................. 12.9 HOUSEHOLDS BY TYPE Total households............................................ 1,506,790 Family households (families)............................. 1,103,835 Married-couple families............................... 858,327 Percent of total households........................ 57.0 Other family, male householder........................ 44,288 Other family, female householder...................... 201,220 Nonfamily households..................................... 402,955 Percent of total households........................ 26.7 Householder living alone.............................. 358,078 Householder 65 years and over...................... 154,191 Persons living in households............................. 3,948,185 Persons per household.................................... 2.62 GROUP QUARTERS Persons living in group quarters......................... 92,402 Institutionalized persons............................. 51,583 Other persons in group quarters....................... 40,819 RACE AND HISPANIC ORIGIN White.................................................... 2,975,797 Black.................................................... 1,020,705 Percent of total population........................... 25.3 American Indian, Eskimo, or Aleut........................ 16,506 Percent of total population........................... 0.4 Asian or Pacific Islander................................ 21,797 Percent of total population........................... 0.5 Other race............................................... 5,782 Hispanic origin (of any race)............................ 24,629 Percent of total population........................... 0.6

1990 Census of Population and Housing Page 2 *** Alabama Total housing units......................................... 1,670,379 OCCUPANCY AND TENURE Occupied housing units................................... 1,506,790 Owner occupied........................................ 1,061,897 Percent owner occupied............................. 70.5 Renter occupied....................................... 444,893 Vacant housing units..................................... 163,589 For seasonal, recreational, or occasional use......... 35,609 Homeowner vacancy rate (percent).......................... 1.8 Rental vacancy rate (percent)............................. 9.4 Persons per owner-occupied unit.......................... 2.70 Persons per renter-occupied unit......................... 2.44 Units with over 1 person per room........................ 52,927 UNITS IN STRUCTURE 1-unit, detached......................................... 1,133,927 1-unit, attached......................................... 31,943 2 to 4 units............................................. 96,104 5 to 9 units............................................. 66,413 10 or more units......................................... 102,462 Mobile home, trailer, other.............................. 239,530 VALUE Specified owner-occupied units........................... 753,827 Less than $50,000..................................... 343,854 $50,000 to $99,000.................................... 310,737 $100,000 to $149,000.................................. 62,459 $150,000 to $199,999.................................. 20,129 $200,000 to $299,999.................................. 11,264 $300,000 or more...................................... 5,384 Median (dollars)...................................... 53,700 CONTRACT RENT Specified renter-occupied units paying cash rent......... 386,179 Less than $250........................................ 214,363 $250 to $499.......................................... 155,027 $500 to $749.......................................... 14,380 $750 to $999.......................................... 1,594 $1,000 or more........................................ 815 Median (dollars)...................................... 229 RACE AND HISPANIC ORIGIN OF HOUSEHOLDER Occupied housing units................................... 1,506,790 White................................................. 1,159,263 Black................................................. 334,513 Percent of occupied units.......................... 22.2 American Indian, Eskimo, or Aleut..................... 5,288 Percent of occupied units.......................... 0.4 Asian or Pacific Islander............................. 6,077 Percent of occupied units.......................... 0.4 Other race............................................ 1,649 Hispanic origin (of any race)......................... 7,373 Percent of occupied units.......................... 0.5

1990 Census of Population and Housing Page 1 *** Alaska Total population.............................................. 550,043 SEX Male..................................................... 289,867 Female................................................... 260,176 AGE Under 5 years............................................ 54,897 5 to 17 years............................................ 117,447 18 to 20 years........................................... 22,934 21 to 24 years........................................... 32,913 25 to 44 years........................................... 216,062 45 to 54 years........................................... 53,929 55 to 59 years........................................... 16,595 60 to 64 years........................................... 12,897 65 to 74 years........................................... 15,548 75 to 84 years........................................... 5,570 85 years and over........................................ 1,251 Median age............................................... 29.4 Under 18 years.............................................. 172,344 Percent of total population.............................. 31.3 65 years and over........................................... 22,369 Percent of total population.............................. 4.1 HOUSEHOLDS BY TYPE Total households............................................ 188,915 Family households (families)............................. 132,837 Married-couple families............................... 106,079 Percent of total households........................ 56.2 Other family, male householder........................ 8,529 Other family, female householder...................... 18,229 Nonfamily households..................................... 56,078 Percent of total households........................ 29.7 Householder living alone.............................. 41,826 Householder 65 years and over...................... 5,737 Persons living in households............................. 529,342 Persons per household.................................... 2.80 GROUP QUARTERS Persons living in group quarters......................... 20,701 Institutionalized persons............................. 4,574 Other persons in group quarters....................... 16,127 RACE AND HISPANIC ORIGIN White.................................................... 415,492 Black.................................................... 22,451 Percent of total population........................... 4.1 American Indian, Eskimo, or Aleut........................ 85,698 Percent of total population........................... 15.6 Asian or Pacific Islander................................ 19,728 Percent of total population........................... 3.6 Other race............................................... 6,674 Hispanic origin (of any race)............................ 17,803 Percent of total population........................... 3.2

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The 1990 United States Census presents a striking contrast between sweeping national totals and the precise, almost granular detail of individual state profiles. The opening pages list the four regions—Northeast, South, Midwest, West—with their constituent states, then immediately drop into a dense table of population figures for every state and the District of Columbia. This juxtaposition of macro and micro is the document's defining structural feature: the same data that sums to 248,709,873 persons also breaks down to Maine's 1,227,928 and Wyoming's 453,588.

National Totals vs. State Specifics

The census opens with a national population estimate of 261,653,497 (dated December 29, 1994) and the official 1990 count of 248,709,873. These figures anchor the document, but the real texture emerges in the state-by-state breakdown. The South region, with 85,445,930 persons, dwarfs the Northeast's 50,809,229, yet within the South, Texas (16,986,510) and Florida (12,937,926) dominate while Delaware (666,168) and the District of Columbia (606,900) are outliers. The Midwest's 59,668,632 includes Illinois (11,430,602) and Ohio (10,847,115), but also North Dakota's 638,800. This uneven distribution—a few populous states carrying entire regions—is a recurring pattern visible in every regional table.

Population and Housing: Two Views of Nebraska

Nebraska's profile, spanning two pages, illustrates the census's dual focus on people and dwellings. The population table records 1,578,385 residents, with a median age of 33.0, 27.2% under 18, and 14.1% aged 65 or over. The housing table then reports 660,621 total units, of which 602,363 are occupied—66.5% owner-occupied. The vacancy rate for rentals is 7.7%, versus 1.7% for homes. These two tables, though adjacent, tell different stories: one about age and household composition (31.0% nonfamily households), the other about property values and rent. The median home value is $56,600; the median contract rent is $251. The contrast between ownership and renting, between family and nonfamily households, is a tension that runs through the entire document.

Race, Ethnicity, and the Limits of Categories

Both the national and state tables include racial and Hispanic-origin breakdowns, but the categories are broad and the numbers sometimes surprising. In Nebraska, 1,480,558 persons identify as White, 57,404 as Black (3.6%), 12,410 as American Indian/Eskimo/Aleut (0.8%), and 12,422 as Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%). Hispanic origin (any race) accounts for 36,969 persons (2.3%). The housing table for an unspecified area (likely a smaller geography) shows 290,030 White householders, 760 Black (0.2%), and 13,230 American Indian (4.3%)—a striking inversion of proportions compared to the state. These discrepancies hint at how racial composition varies dramatically by locality, a layer the census's aggregated format can only partially convey.

The 1990 Census is best read not as a single narrative but as a set of parallel data streams—national, regional, state, and local—each with its own internal logic. Pay attention to the footnotes and release dates (the November 7, 1991 release versus the December 1994 estimate), as they reveal the document's provisional nature. The tables reward slow, comparative reading: a single state's profile, like Nebraska's, contains enough contrasts to fuel a dozen questions about demographic change and housing patterns.