Decennial Census Historical Facts

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Within Decennial Census of Population and Housing

Decennial Census Historical Facts

Censuses are not conducted in a vacuum. They occur amidst internal and external crisis, shifts in cultural interests, and events that become "defining moments" for each decade. Census data reflect the growth of the population as well as the changing values and interests of the American people.

Decennial Historical Facts provides a portrait of the United States both statistically and culturally in the following four areas:

  • Pop Culture – key milestones from the decade following the census.
  • Population
  • Census Details
  • 10 Largest Urban Places

1790
  • 2020
  • 2010
  • 2000
  • 1990
  • 1980
  • 1970
  • 1960
  • 1950
  • 1940
  • 1930
  • 1920
  • 1910
  • 1900
  • 1890
  • 1880
  • 1870
  • 1860
  • 1850
  • 1840
  • 1830
  • 1820
  • 1810
  • 1800
  • 1790

1790

ICONS: George Washington, 1790 Census, USS Constitution

Population

3,929,214 U.S. Resident Population
4.5
 Population per square mile of land area
N/A
 Percent increase of population
13
 Number of States

10 Largest Urban Places

Rank
 Place
 Population
1
 New York City, NY 33,131
2
 Philadelphia, PA 28,522
3
 Boston town, MA 18,320
4
 Charleston, SC 16,359
5
 Baltimore, MD 13,503
6
 Northern Liberties township, PA 9,913
7
 Salem town, MA 7,921
8
 Newport town, RI 6,716
9
 Providence town, RI 6,380
10
 Marblehead town, MA
Southwark district, PA		 5,661

The 1790 Census

Cost $44,000
Cost per Capita (cents) 1.1
Total Pages in Published Reports 56
Number of Enumerators 650 (est.)
Census Bureau Director Thomas Jefferson
Number of Questions on the Questionnaire 6
Number of Questions on the Long Form N/A

Pop Culture

  • President George Washington delivers the first "State of the Union Address" on January 8, 1790.
  • Benjamin Franklin dies on April 17, 1790 in Philadelphia, PA.
  • Washington, DC, is established as the capital of the United States, in 1791.
  • The U.S. Post Office Department is established on February 20, 1792.
  • In October 1794, federal troops put an end to the "Whiskey Rebellion," after distillers in the Appalacian region of the United States resisted paying a tax on distilled spirits.
  • Eli Whitney is granted a patent for the cotton gin, which cleans seed from cotton, on March 14, 1794.
  • The USS Constitution ("Old Ironsides") launches as part of the U.S. Navy in 1797 and sails to the Mediterranean Sea to protect American merchant vessels from Barbary pirates.
  • Construction begins on Fort McHenry in 1798. Sixteen years later, Francis Scott Key pens "The Star Spangled Banner" during its bombardment by British forces.
  • George Washington, first President of the United States, dies at Mount Vernon, VA, on December 14, 1799.

Related Information

Page Last Revised - October 8, 2021