History

Demographic

Collecting census data at a Chinese-owned
laundry during the 1960 census.

Over the decades, the reach of the census spread to new states and areas under U.S. sovereignty or jurisdiction. Census officials, even when they led temporary offices, have constantly sought to increase both the amount and the diversity of information they collected about the people of the United States. From mortality to home ownership, statistics have given Americans a better idea of the demographic profile of the United States. Click on the link below for more information on the decennial census:

• The Decennial Census of Population and Housing

The development and implementation of statistical sampling techniques for the 1940 census gave birth to several mid-decade demographic surveys at the U.S. Census Bureau. These surveys give businesses, policy planners, and the public the opportunity to use updated national and state- or local-level (depending on sample size) statistics for relatively little cost or difficulty. Some of these surveys include:

• The American Community Survey
• The Current Population Survey
• The Survey of Income and Program Participation
• The American Housing Survey