Rensselaer Union, Volume 9, Number 14, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 December 1876 — Census Curiosities. [ARTICLE]

Census Curiosities.

From the first volume of the Massachusetts Census Tables of 1875, containing “Population and Social Statistics,” recently published, the Springfield Republican has gathered the following interesting and curious statistics: The population of Massachusetts, May 1, 1875. was 1,651,912; of whom 794,883 were males, and 857,529 females)', Wk excess of 63,416 females. There has been an excess of women over men in every census since 1754, the first ever taken in Massachusetts. In 1840 this excess was smallest—being less than one percent.; in 1865 it was highest, being more than five per cent. But it appears that this surplus of women is made up almost wholly of widows, who numbered last year in Massachusetts 73,52.7, while there were only 20,654 widowers. Of single women there is a slight excess over men —8,978. 'The number of married women, not counting widows, is reported as 323,515, while the whole number of families is 359,009, living in 255,518 dwelling houses. The number of married women who have had children is 309,520, out of a total of 898,759, who are or have been married. The whole number of births from these 309,52(1 mothers has been 1,254,409, or a little'more than four children for each mother. Adding to these births the 619,000 .fathers and mothers, and we have a total of 1,873,000 persons, more than 200,000 larger than the whole present population of the State. Of the mothers, 190,311 were native born, and have had 669,193 children; 119,209 were foreign-born mothers, and have had 585,216 children. Each native-born mother has had an average of 3.52 children; each foreign-born mother an average of 4.91 children. A Very curious table is that showing the ages of the population. The largest number of people are reported at thirty years of age, viz., 70,736. The next highest number is at two years old—--39,707; the next at forty—B(l,973, and the next at three —36,678. Above seventy years old a great majority are women. Above eighty the number of surviving women isTnearly twice as great as that of men, while at ninety and beyond, the women outnumber the men more than two to one. Of persons 100 years old and upward there were thirty-four, of whom, only eight were men.