1910 United States census

1910 United States census
Original: United States Bureau of the Census Vector: Mysid · Public domain · source
Name	1910 United States census
Country	United States
Date	April 15, 1910
Population	919,928,000?
Percent change	21.0%
Headquarters	Washington, D.C.

1910 United States census The 1910 United States census recorded demographic, social, and economic data for the United States as of April 15, 1910. Conducted under the supervision of the United States Census Bureau during the presidency of William Howard Taft, the enumeration followed the 1900 and preceded the 1920 enumerations, informing policymakers, scholars, and institutions such as the U.S. Congress, United States Department of Commerce and Labor, and the Library of Congress about population distribution, immigration, and urbanization. The census influenced decisions by entities like the Supreme Court of the United States, the Interstate Commerce Commission, the Federal Reserve Act proponents, and civic organizations including the National Civic Federation.

Overview

The 1910 enumeration extended practices from the 1890 United States census innovations and incorporated lessons from enumerations overseen by George K. Shanly and earlier superintendents associated with the Census Office. Directed by officials in Washington, D.C., the operation engaged enumerators modeled on procedures linked to the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act-era hiring and supervised through branches that coordinated with census offices in states such as New York (state), Illinois, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Massachusetts. Census results were used by institutions including the United States House of Representatives, state legislatures like the New York State Legislature, urban planners influenced by figures such as Daniel Burnham, and philanthropic organizations such as the Russell Sage Foundation.

Methodology and enumeration

Enumerators employed schedules influenced by earlier forms used under superintendents whose methods echoed practices from the 1870 United States census and 1880 United States census. The census used paper schedules filled by enumerators trained in techniques borrowed from administrative reforms tied to the Civil Service Commission and the Treasury Department. The process involved coordination with local registrars in cities such as New York City, Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston, and San Francisco, and for rural areas with county clerks in jurisdictions like Cook County, Illinois and Los Angeles County, California. Questions on birthplaces referenced nations including Germany, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, and China, while occupational entries recorded trades linked to firms such as U.S. Steel Corporation and shipping lines like the Hamburg America Line. Supervisory oversight involved statistical techniques reminiscent of those later formalized by scholars affiliated with Harvard University, Columbia University, and the University of Chicago.

Population results and demographics

The enumeration reported a national population increase that reflected migration patterns involving arrivals through Ellis Island, departures and movements related to the Mexican Revolution, and internal migration from rural states like Iowa and Kansas to industrial centers including Pittsburgh, Detroit, Cleveland, and Cincinnati. Data highlighted immigrant communities from Italy, Russia, Austria-Hungary, Poland, and Scandinavia concentrated in metropolitan areas governed by mayors such as William Jay Gaynor and William Hale Thompson. Racial and ethnic statistics captured populations identified as African American in states like Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia and included entries for Native Americans associated with tribes catalogued under authorities such as the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Age distribution tables informed public health officials tied to institutions like the Public Health Service and reformers including Jane Addams and Lillian Wald.

Geographic and state-level data

State totals revealed growth in states such as New York (state), Pennsylvania, Illinois, Ohio, and Michigan, while some rural states like North Dakota and South Dakota showed slower increases. Urbanization rates for municipalities such as New York City, Chicago, Philadelphia, St. Louis, and Boston were contrasted with rural counties in regions like the Ozarks and the Great Plains. Congressional apportionment debates in the United States House of Representatives used the census to argue redistricting affecting delegations from states including California, Texas, Florida, and Massachusetts. Transportation planners for railroads such as the Pennsylvania Railroad and port authorities in New Orleans and San Francisco used county- and city-level figures to plan infrastructure investments.

Social and economic characteristics

Schedules collected information on occupation, industry, and employment that illuminated labor forces engaged in sectors dominated by corporations like Standard Oil, Bethlehem Steel, and the Pullman Company, and by craft employers in shipyards linked to Bath Iron Works and mills in regions such as New England and the Rust Belt. Household composition data aided social reformers from organizations including the Settlement movement and schools like Hull House in assessing conditions faced by immigrants from Greece, Hungary, and Poland. Literacy, nativity, and homeownership patterns were analyzed by economists affiliated with institutions such as Brookings Institution and scholars like Simon Kuznets-era predecessors. Data on unemployment and underemployment informed debates involving labor leaders such as Samuel Gompers and political figures in the Progressive Era.

Impact, uses, and historical significance

The 1910 results shaped redistricting, immigration policy deliberations involving legislators in the U.S. Senate, and scholarship by demographers at universities like Columbia University and Harvard University. Planners and reformers used the data to support initiatives championed by municipal leaders including Tom L. Johnson and Fiorello La Guardia-era predecessors, while legal arguments in cases adjudicated at the Supreme Court of the United States referenced demographic shifts. The census influenced subsequent legislation such as debates over revisions to the Immigration Act of 1924 and informed the foundational collections of the National Archives and Records Administration and the Library of Congress. Its legacy continues in genealogical research pursued by societies like the New England Historic Genealogical Society and historians studying the Progressive Era and American urbanization.

Category:United States census