Statistics indicate that the total population of the United States of America stood at 106,021,537 in 1920 (University of Virginia Library 1). Statistics indicate that quite a good number of people born outside the US composed the population of the time because of immigration from other countries.
In fact, the white ethnic group had the largest number of individuals born outside the country. This is true because there was a massive rate of immigration from Europe to the US during the First World War as well as American economic boom in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
When examining age groups within the US population of 1920s, it is evident that young people composed the largest portion of the population. Individuals aged between 18 and 44 years made the largest group. This can be explained with the fact that most immigrants were people in this group. They were looking for employment and business opportunities in the US especially due to economic problems facing Europe during the First World War.
The population of women was significantly large. During the early 1900s, the role of women in the economy was experiencing change as more women moved from the kitchen to business and formal employment. For instance, in the 1920s, about 673 farms were under control of women. There were over 1242 farms owned or controlled by females in the US during that period (University of Virginia Library 1). The rate increased every year.
However, there was a great disparity between the number of farms run by whites and those run by non-whites. Native whites controlled more than 11,179 farms spread all over the country. However, foreign-born whites owned and controlled more than 3,801 farms, mostly located in the North and North West of the country.
This indicates that most of the farms in the South, Central and Eastern parts of the US were controlled and owned by native whites. These individuals were primarily the descendants of the white immigrants who settled in these areas during the slave trade era.
The disparity in farm ownership between the whites and non-whites was extremely large. For instance, while the whites controlled about 15,000 farms, only about 542 farms were owned or controlled by black or other non-white farmers (University of Virginia Library 1).
From these statistics, a number of inferences can be made. First, it is worth noting that the population age structure has changed significantly. In 1920s, majority of people were young individuals aged between 16 and 50 years (University of Virginia Library 1). This group was actively involved in production, especially in industries that were dominated in the economy. In addition, most of the people in this age group were looking for employment in these industries because farms were no longer the preferred source of employment.
It is evident that the number of births was also high and primarily in towns. The population age structure also shows a small apex because the number of old people was significantly small compared to the lower groups. The immigration from Europe and other nations involved younger people looking for employment or business opportunities in the US.
Race and ethnicity were important aspects of the population at that time. The disparity between whites and none-whites, specially the blacks, is high in almost all aspects of the population. For instance, whites made up more than 80% of the total population in most areas. In particular, cities and towns had extremely higher number of whites than non-whites. In addition, racial disparities dominated the economy. Farms, businesses and other institutions were under control of the whites.
It is surprising to note that the site contains statistics on various aspects of the early population that are not found in other books or websites. I consider that this website is important for studying the history of American demographics. I also find it easy to use because it involves selecting a variable of the population of interest with instant results.
Works Cited
University of Virginia Library. American demographics Census data for year 1920. Web.