1920 United States census

1920 United States census
Original: United States Bureau of the Census Vector: Mysid · Public domain · source
Name	1920 United States census
Country	United States
Date	1920
Population	106021568
Percent change	15.0%

Contents

1920 United States census

The 1920 decennial enumeration recorded population and social data for the United States on 1 January 1920 and produced a total population count of 106,021,568. The census followed the 1910 enumeration and preceded the 1930 enumeration, influencing apportionment, representation, and policy debates involving figures such as Woodrow Wilson, Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, and institutions including the United States Census Bureau, United States House of Representatives, and United States Senate. The results generated controversy among political leaders, demographers, social reformers, and organizations like the American Civil Liberties Union, National Urban League, NAACP, and academic centers such as Harvard University, Columbia University, and the University of Chicago.

Introduction

The 1920 enumeration was conducted by the United States Census Bureau under supervision of directors appointed during the administrations of Woodrow Wilson and the incoming Warren G. Harding. Census operations interacted with federal agencies including the Department of Commerce and Labor legacy functions and influenced state governments such as New York (state), California, Texas, Illinois, and Pennsylvania (state). Leading statisticians and social scientists like Herbert Hoover (then an engineer), E. Dana Durand, Simon Kuznets, and scholars at the American Statistical Association debated methods and interpretations. The count informed migration studies involving regions from the Northeast United States and Midwest United States to the Southern United States and Western United States and touched on international issues affected by the First World War, Treaty of Versailles, and the postwar movement of peoples.

Census preparations were shaped by legislative acts in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, including the legal framework of the United States Constitution and laws passed by the United States Congress. Apportionment controversies referenced precedents from the Reconstruction Era and court decisions involving the Supreme Court of the United States. The census coincided with political reforms such as the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution ratification movement, labor disputes involving the American Federation of Labor, and immigration debates influenced by groups like the Immigration Restriction League and policies later echoed in the Immigration Act of 1924. State apportionment battles drew attention from governors such as Calvin Coolidge (as Governor of Massachusetts), urban leaders like Fiorello H. La Guardia, and lawmakers in New York (state), Ohio, Michigan, and Missouri.

Enumerators used schedules and forms developed by the United States Census Bureau with input from statisticians at the Census Office (United States) predecessor agencies and academics at institutions such as Harvard University, Columbia University, University of Chicago, and the Carnegie Institution for Science. Questions covered household relationships involving heads of household, marital status as recognized by laws in Massachusetts, New York (state), and California, birthplace referencing countries such as Germany, Italy, Ireland, Mexico, and Japan, and occupation categories tied to industries in Pittsburgh, Detroit, Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Enumerators collected data on race classifications used by agencies influenced by research from scholars like W. E. B. Du Bois at Atlanta University and social work practitioners in organizations like the Hull House led by Jane Addams. The instrument omitted some subjects later included in subsequent enumerations, reflecting priorities debated at meetings of the American Statistical Association and panels including representatives from the National Bureau of Economic Research.

The count of 106,021,568 represented about a 15 percent increase since 1910, with urbanization trends showing more residents in cities such as New York City, Chicago, Philadelphia, Detroit, and Los Angeles than in previous decades. Internal migration included movements from the Rural South to industrial centers in the Northeast United States and Midwest United States, affecting communities in Atlanta, Birmingham, Alabama, Cleveland, and St. Louis. International immigration from Italy, Russia, Poland, and Austria-Hungary prior to World War I altered ethnic distributions in neighborhoods like those in Boston, Providence, and Baltimore. The census documented changes in household composition and fertility that drew analysis by demographers including Frank W. Notestein and economists at Princeton University and Yale University.

Enumerators faced challenges in reaching populations in rural areas of states like Alaska (territory), Arizona, New Mexico, and the Deep South where access mirrored transportation issues involving railroads owned by companies such as the Pennsylvania Railroad and waterways connecting ports like New Orleans. Controversies included disputes over the accuracy of racial classification affecting citizens and residents associated with communities like Harlem and the Mexican Revolution refugee flows, partisan debates in the United States House of Representatives over reapportionment, and legal questions considered by the Supreme Court of the United States. Civil rights organizations including the NAACP and labor unions such as the Industrial Workers of the World raised concerns about undercounting industrial workers in cities including Gary, Indiana and Flint, Michigan.

The 1920 count precipitated political fallout when leaders in states like New York (state), Ohio, and Pennsylvania (state) confronted reapportionment delays, contributing to legislative standoffs in the United States Congress and debates involving presidents Woodrow Wilson and Warren G. Harding. The results influenced scholarship at universities such as Harvard University, Columbia University, University of Chicago, and policy planning in municipal agencies of New York City and Chicago. Long-term legacy included methodological reforms advanced by the United States Census Bureau, the growth of professional demography at institutions like Johns Hopkins University and Princeton University, and the use of census data by organizations including the Social Security Board and business groups like the National Association of Manufacturers.

Microdata and aggregate reports were archived by the United States Census Bureau and later made available to researchers at repositories including the National Archives and Records Administration, university libraries at Harvard University and University of Michigan, and historical societies in states such as Virginia and Pennsylvania (state). Genealogists consulted schedules for counties in New York (state), Ohio, Illinois, and Texas via archives managed by the National Archives and Records Administration and local county clerks. Subsequent digitization projects involved partnerships with institutions like Library of Congress, Smithsonian Institution, and academic data centers at University of Minnesota and University of Michigan, improving accessibility for historians, demographers, and organizations including the American Historical Association and the Economic History Association.