Current Popui .. a Tion Reports
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u. S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE BUREAU OF THE CENSUS Sinclair Weeks, Secretary Robert W. Burgess, Director CURRENT POPUI.. ATION REPORTS POPULATION' ESTIMATES November 12, 1956 Washington 25, D, G. Series P-25, No. 146 ESTIMATES OF THE POPULATION OF THE UNITED STATES, BY AGE, COLOR, AND SEX JULY I, 1950 TO 1956 (This report includes prOVisional estimates for July 1, 1956. The estimates for 1953 to 1955 presented here. supersede the corresponding figures published in Current Population Reports, Series P-25, No. 121. The figures for 1950 to 1952 are the same as those previously published in that report. Estimates for July 1 of each year, 1900 to 1949, con~arable to the data shown here, are given in Nos. 98 and 114 of this series) Large increases in the number of children (2) the population residing in continental and aged persons. a continuing decline in the United States (exoluding Armed Forces over proportion of males, and an apparent downturn seas), and (3) the civilian population. in the average age of the population are some of the outstanding recent population ohanges INDICATED CHANGES indicated by estimates of the population of the United States, by age, color, and sex, for Age composition.--Between April 1950, the midyear 1950 to 1956. released today by the date of the last census, and July 1, 1956, the Bureau of the Census, Department of Commerce. total population of the United States includ The figures also show partioular1y sharp in ing Armed Forces overseas increased by almost oreases in the number of ohildren of elemen 17 million, or 11.2 percent. Primarily beoause tary school age, higher than average gains for of past fluctuations in the annual numbers of the presohool and high-sohool age groups, and births, however, the growth rates for some of less than average increases in the main work the age groups were quite different from the ing ages, for the 1950-56 period. The report average for all ages (table A). Children of presents figures for (1) the population of the elementary sohool age (5 to 13 years) continued United States inoluding Armed Forces oversees, to show the most rapid gains, increasing by Table A.--ESTIMATED POPULATION CHANGES BY AGE: 1950 TO 1956 Population including Armed Forces Change, April 1950 to overseas Age July 1956 July 1, 1956 April 1, 1950 Number Percent All ages ••••.••.•••••••••••••••• 168,091,000 151,132,000 +16,960,000 +11.2 Under 5 years •••••••••••••••••••.••• 18,680,000 16,164,000 +2,517,000 +15.6 5 to 13 years ....................... 29,213,000 22,180,000 +7,034,000 +31.7 14 to 17 years •••••••••••••••••••••. 9,543,000 8,409,000 +1,133,000 +13.5 18 to 24 years •••.•••••••••••••••••• 15,145,000 16,081,000 -936,000 -5.8 25 to 44 years ••••••••••••••••••.••• 47,056,000 45,385,000 +1,672,000 +3.7 45 to 64 years •••••••••••.•••••••••• 34,028,000 30,720,000 +3,308,000 +10.8 65 years and over ••.•••••••.•••.•••• 14,426,000 12,195,000 +2,232,000 +18.3 For sale by the Bureau of the Census Price 10 cents more than 7 million t or almost 32 pe~oent. of the total population, from 61 peroent in during this period. This inorease refleots 1950 to slightly more than 57 peroent in 1956. the much larger number of births in the sev eral years just following World War II than The population 65 years and over continued in several years just before the wer (births to show rapid gains~ inoreasing by about 2.2 during the war years being oommon to the group million between 1950 and 1956. There were a t both da te s ) • Wi thin the group 5 to 13 about 14.4 million persons in this age group years, the younger ohildren~ i.e., those 5 to on July 1, 1956; in contrast, there were only 9 years, grew at a rate half-again as fast as 12.2 million in 1950 and fewer than 9 million that for the older ohildren. The 5-to-9-year in 1940. Thus, in 1956 about 1 in every 12 olds inoreased by 37 peroent between 1950 and persons in our population was 65 years old or 1950@ oompared with 24 peroent for those 10 to older, as oompared with 1 in every 15 in 1940. 13 years old. Even the lattel' rate, howevsr, At the beginning of' thia oentury. only 1 in was more than twioe the average rate for all every 25 persona was 65 or over. ages.. There were about 29.2 million ohi1dren of elementary sohool age in July 1956, oom~ Changes in the age-sex structure ot the pared with 22.2 m:Ul1on in April 1950. popUlation between 1950 and 1956 are il1us trated in the ohart belowt which shows the Persons of high sohoo1 age (14 to 17 distribution of the population by age and sex years) showed moderate inorease between 1950 for these years. and 1956 whereas the oollege age group (18 to 21 years) deolined. The 14-to-17-year age group inoreased by about 1.1 million, or 13.1 fiGURE A.-DISTRIBUTION BY AGE AND SEX OF THE" percent; it numbered 9.5 million in 1956, oom POPULATION OF THE UNITED STATES INCLUDING pered with 8 .. 4 million in 1950. It is entiot, ARMED FORCES OVERSEAS: 1956 AND 1950 pated that this group will grow at an even more rapid peoe in the next several years, be MALE FEMALE cause of the general inorease in the annual .1956 MORE THAN 1950 number of births during the war and postwar years. The oollege age group numbered 8.8 ~1956 LESS THAN 1950 million in 1956, as oompared with 9.1 million at the beginning of this decade; the deoline amounted to about 3.5 peroent. Births were low in the middle thirties as compared with the several preceding year's. This group has been increasing sinoe about 1954, however. More over. it is expeoted to show slight inoreases for the remainder of this deoade. After 1960 this group will begin to grow more rapidly, as the larger number of persons born during the war and postwar years replaces the smaller num ber born in the latter part of the 1930 decade and the first part of the 1940 deoade, respeo tive1y. Persons in the prime military ages 10 It 64;:' 02. 4 6 8 10 (18 to 24 years) also showed declines between POPULATION IN MILLIONS 1950 and 1956. This group. too, is expeoted to inorease slowly for the remainder of this decade and then grow rapidly in the 1960's. Other important ohanges in the population during this period are the shifts in the annual The number of persons in the prinoipal number of persons reaohing certain important working ages (lB to 64 years) inoreased from "threshold" ages. Thus, the annual number of 92.2 million in 1950 to 96.2 million in 1956. ohildren becoming old enough to enter the first The gain of about 4.0 million represents 4.4 grade in sohool (reaohing age e) inoreased percent of the 1950 figure. About four-fifths from 2.7 million in the year beginning July 1& of' the inorease oocurred among those over 45 1950, to about 3.5 million in the year begin years of age; the number of' persons 45 to 64 ning July 1» 1955. On the average j about 3.3 years of age increased by 3$30B~OOO, or 10.B million ohildren annually beoame old enough to peroent. whereas those 18 to 44 in.oreased only enter the first grade in sohool betwaEln1950 slightly~ In this period the 18-to-64 age and 1956. In oomparison, during the 1940's group as a whole deoreased in its proportion only about 2.2 million renoned age e eaoh year on the average. Also, between 1950 and 1956, now the minimum voting age.) Estimates of the approximately 2.2 million persons reaohed age number of persons reaohing various threshold 21 annually, thus becoming old enough to vote ages eaoh year between 1950 and 1956 are given for the first time. (In two States, age 18 is in table B. Table B.--NUMBER OF PERSONS REACHINC SELECTED .AGES: 1950 TO .1956 Year 6 years 1/, years years 21 years 65 years ----- 1950-51. .•••.•••.••••.••••••••••. 2,72',,000 2,267,000 1,119,000 1951-52 •••••.•••••••••••••••.•.•• 2,751,000 2,243,000 1,133,000 1952-53 ••••.•.••.•••••• " .•••.•••• 3,802,000 2,219,000 1,150,000 1953-54 ••.•.•••••.•••.•••••••••.• 3,530,000 2,097,000 1,172,000 1954-55 ••••.•.••.•••••.•.•••••••• 3,537,000 2,074,000 J.,1%,000 1955-56 •• " .•..••.••..•••••••••••• 3,5J.7,000 2,J.60,000 1,2J.9,000 ANNUAL AVERAGE J.950 to J.956 •• , .................. 3,3J.0,000 2,324,000 2,150,000 2,177,000 J.,165,000 1940 to J.950 ..................... 2,244,000 2,262,000 2,36/,,000 2,378,000 966,000 Trend in the median age.--A notable fea deoline in the sex ratio. but not until the ture of reoent population changes is the ap 1950 Census were more remales oounted than parent reversal in the historical inorease of males. In that year women appear to have out the median age of the popUlation. The median numbered men by about 600,000 (inoluding Armed age has inoreased during each interoansal Forces overseas). By 1956, women outnumbered period as far bao'k as 1800.. At the beginning men by about 1.4 million. of this centurY9 the median age stood at 22.9 The sex ratio for eaoh oensus date since years; by 1950 it had increased by more than 1900 and t:or July 1, 1955, is given in table D.