Beginning with our country’s first census in 1790, when U.S. marshals counted 3.9 million residents, the decennial census has collected data on the nation’s population, including data on race. For the first time, the U.S. Census Bureau has released a historical summary by city, titled Historical Census Statistics on Population Totals by Race, 1790 to 1990, and by Hispanic Origin, 1970 to 1990, for Large Cities and Other Urban Places in the United States.

     This working paper illustrates how the composition by race and Hispanic origin has changed over the years in 306 cities. Data are provided for 224 places that have had a census population of 100,000 or more at some point during the 1790 to 1990 period, as well as another 82 places that historically were among the largest in their state.

     The racial categories used in the report are those used in the 1990 census. Data from Census 2000 are not included because they are not directly comparable with race data from previous censuses.

     Census 2000 data on the population by race and Hispanic origin for cities of 100,000 or more population are available at <http://www.census.gov/population/www/cen2000/phc-t6.html>. Corresponding Census 2000 data for all places, regardless of size, are also available on the Census Bureau Web site at <http://www.census.gov>.

     A working paper released in 2002, Historical Census Statistics on Population Totals by Race, 1790 to 1990, and by Hispanic Origin, 1970 to 1990, for the United States, Regions, Divisions and States, [PDF] contains race and Hispanic-origin data for the nation and states.