IDENTIFIERS *New Mexico
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DOCUMENT RESUME ED 082 871 RC 007 310 AUTHOR Johansen, Sigurd TITLE The People of New Mexico. INSTITUTION New Mexico State Univ., Las Cruces. Agricultural Experiment Station. SPONS AGENCY Cooperative State Research Service (DOA), Washington, D.C. REPORT NO AES-Bull-606 PUB DATE 7:2 NOTE 97p. EDRS PRICE MF-$0.65 HC-$3.29 DESCRIPTORS Demography; Education; Ethnic Groups; Income; Migration; *Population Distribution; *Population Trends; Racial Characteristics; *Rural Population; *Socioeconomic Background; *Statistical Data; Urbanization IDENTIFIERS *New Mexico ABSTRACT The bulletin provides data on New Mexico's population. Information is given on population size, distribution, and composition; topography and climate; urban and rural population changes; racial and ethnic characteristics; age and sex composition; fertility and mortality; population mobility; nativity; income; marital status; and education. A brief historical background is also given. Population changes are examined for their effects on political representation and influence, economic and industrial activity, education, welfare, social life, and other spheres of activity in New Mexico. Data range from 1900 to 1970. (NQ) FILMED FROM BEST AVAILABLE COPY U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH. EDUCATION WELFARE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEENREPRO DUCE° EXACTLY AS RECEIVED FROM fliE PERSON OR ORGANIZATION ORIGIN ATINO IT POINTS OF VIEW OR OPINIONS STATED 00 NOT NECESSARILY REPRE SENT OFFICIAL NATIONAL INSTITUTEOF EDUCATION POSITION OR POLICY the people ofnew mexico 1 e,(I Co t.t% Ak AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 606 ows,".°41/VEFIS vow HIGHLIGHTS Topography and climate stronglygrowth in any decade occurred be- influenced the early settlement oftween 1900 and 1910, due primarily New Mexico and the subsequent dis-to a large net in-migration of people tribution of the population withinattracted by an over-optimistic,,pro- the state. In recent decades, how-motion of dry farming. The rate of ever, extensive improvement in agri-population increase slowed during cultural technology and rapid urban-the second and third decades, but ization have tended to alter thein the 1930s, New Mexico again saw effect of these influences. a rapid proportional population in- Economic development in New.crease, an increase which continued Mexico, viewed historically, did notuntil the 1960s. proceed rapidly until railroad and During the1960s, the rate of communication facilities were com-population growth dropped sharply, pleted to join the territory with thesothatthe population increased rest of the nation. The validation ofonly 6.8 percent. This represents land titles and the increased availa-an increase of only 64,977 inhabit- bility of agricultural lands throughants compared with an increase of the extension of both irrigation and269,836 between 1950 and 1960. dry farming accelerated the eco-Even so, the population of the state nomic progress. More recently, thehad passed the million mark when development of potash, oil and gas,the federal census was taken April 1, and uranium resources has stimu- 1970. lated the state's economy, as have The low rate of population in- federal governmental programs andcrease during the 1960s was pri- the ever-growing tourist industry.marily due to a net out-migration As the economy expanded, thefrom the state. To some degree, it state's population has grown. was also due to smaller natural in- creasein the1960s than in the 1950s. During the 1950s, the net When the Population Grew in-migration amounted to slightly over 20,000 people, but during the This population growth has been1960s, approximately 130,000 more rapid most of the time since Newpeople left New Mexico than came Mexico became a part of the Unitedin. Without thisloss and with -a States. The greatest proportionalnatural increase as high as it was in 1 the 1950s, the population. of Newcounties in existence in 1930 gained Mexico would have increased 22.7population and 10 lost population. percent between 1960 and 1970The large differentials in population instead of 6.8 percent. changes in the counties during the 40-year period were the cumulative effect of differences in birth, death, Where New Mexicans Live andnetmigrationrates.These changes occurred as peoplel'adjuSied, Fifteen of New Mexico's .countiesto 'their environment and to each' gained population between1960other. The resulting distribution of and 1970. Seventeen counties had athe population in turn has created population loss. Practically all of thenew political, social, and economic counties which gained populationproblems which will require further had a relativelylownetout-readjustment. migration. The counties which lost population almost all had high net out-migrations. More Urban Than Rural New Mexicoissparsely popu- lated in terms of land area. Within More than two-thirds of New thestate,the populationisun-Mexico's population live in places evenly distributed. The populationclassified as urban by the Bureau of density varies widely from countytheCensus. Thestate remained to county.In general, the morerural longer than did the United densely populated counties are con-States as a whole, but by 1970, the centrated in the southeastern andproportion of the total. population northern or northwestern portionsliving in urban areas in New Mexico of the state. The more sparselyhad increased to 69.8 percent, only populated counties form a contig-slightly below the national percent- uous area stretchingdiagonallyage of 73.5 percent. across the state from the south- Urbanization in New Mexico was western corner to the northeasternparticularlyrapidinthe1950s. corner. During that decade, the proportion of urban people in the total popula- tion increased 15.7 percent, nearly Changes Call for Adjustments three times as high a rate of increase as that for the United States. In the Major changes occurred in the1960s, the population movement distribution of the population ininto urban areas took place at a New Mexico between 1960 andmuch slower rate, only 3.9 percent. 1970 because of population gains The urban-rural distribution of in some counties and losses in otherthe population of New Mexico in counties. Changes in the distribution 1970variedconsiderablyfrom of the state's population during thecounty to county. Nine counties last 40 years have been even morehad no urban population; insix extensive. Twenty-one of the 31counties, less than half of the popu- 2 lation was urban; of the 17 counties Of the Indians in the state, 61.7 with over half of the populationpercent livein McKinley and San urban,10 had urban populationJuan counties, and nearly all of the percentages above the state average.remainderlive in sevenother In 1950, the federal census forcounties. Indians constitute a large the first time showed a numericalproportion of the populations in as well as a percentage decline inSandoval. McKinley, and San Juan the rural population. The numericalcounties. decline has continued since. The The majority .of Negroes also live rural population loss, however, wasin a few counties. Seven counties not uniform throughoutNew have 88.5 percent bf the total, but Mexico. Twenty-three counties lostin none of these does the Negro rural population in the 1960s, butpopulation form a large percentage the other nine counties hadin-of the total population. creases, some of which were quite Spanish-Americans constitutea substantial. In some of those coun-large segment of New Mexico's pop- ties, the increase no doubt was duelation and live in all of the state's topeoplemoving from urbancounties, although most of them are centers. concentratedina few counties. Therural-nonfarmpopulationBernalillo, Rio Arriba, Santa Fe, and doubled to 267,808 between 1920Valencia counties in the north and and 1970, but the rural-farm popu-Dona Ana Comity in the south have lation decreased sharply to 37,48758.4 percent of this ethnic group. in1970, less than one-fourth ofIn18 counties they constitute a what it was in 1920. The proportionmajority of the population. of both rural-nonfarm and rural- farm populations in New Mexico's total population declined betweenAge and Sex 1920 and 1970. The decline for the rural-nonfarm population was from New Mexicohasarelatively 37.4 to 26.4 percent and for theyoung population. The median age rural-farm population from 33.3 tois much lower than that for the 3.7 percent. United States as a whole. The dif- ferential increased between 1890 and 1970, but due to the sharp de- Racial and Ethnic Groups cline in New Mexico's birth rate in the 1960s, the difference has be- Whites constitute the major racialcome smaller. The median age of group in New MeXico (90.1 peicent).males has not varied greatly over Indians arethelargest nonwhitethe years.. Historically, the median racial group (7.2 perbent). In addi-age of females has been considerably tion, thereis a small proportionlower than that of males in New of Negroes (1.9 percent), and a veryMexico, but beginning with 1930 small proportion of people of otherthe difference gradually decreased races (0.8 percent). and in 1960, for the first time, the 3 median age of females was higherconsiderably in the 1960s, a drop than that of males. no doubt due to the sharp The number of males per 100in the crude birth rate in thatthat dec- females in New Mexico in the pastade. Nevertheless, the state's fertility has been much greater than for theratio isstill high with a resulting United States, but the differencehigh potential for future population has gradually decreased. In bothgrowth. instances, the number of males per New Mexico has made great pro- 100 females consistently decreasedgressinreducing mortality. The so that in 1950 it fell below 100 incrude dead. rate in the state has the United States, a point reachedbeen declining more rapidly than the in NeW Mexico in 1970. national rate and in 1940: dropped The age and sex composition ofbelow the national rate, with an the urban population closely resem-increasing differential taking place bles that of the total state. popula-sincethen. Tremendous progress tion, which is to be expected- sincehas also been made in the reduction the state is predominantly urban.of the infant mortality rate.