Washtenaw's Growing Numbers

WASHTENAW'S GROWING NUMBERS

Some Valuable Census Statistics Given

A STAGNATION PERIOD

Which Is Happily Over Lost Her the High Rank She Once Held - Ann Arbor's Growth Now Helping County

Washtenaw county had a population of 47,761 in 1900. This was an increase of 5,551 in 10 years, most of the increase being in Ann Arbor cty. For the 20 years preceeding 1890 the population of the county had been almost stationary, but the increase from 1860 to 1870 had been almost the same as 1800 to 1900. The greatest increase, however, in the history of the county was between 1830 and 1840 when Washtenaw jumped from a county of 4,042 people to one of the 23,571. The population by decades is interesting. In 1830 the first census of this county alone was recorded. From that time to this the population has been as follows:

In 1830 .......... 4,042
In 1840 .......... 23,571
In 1850 .......... 28,567
In 1860 .......... 35,686
In 1870 .......... 41,434
In 1880 .......... 41,848
In 1890 .......... 42,210
In 1900 .......... 47,761

It is interesting to note that in 1840 the three largest counties of the state were Wayne with 24,173, Washtenaw with 23,571 and Oakland with 23,646 but in none of these had the increase in the preceding ten years been as large as in Washtenaw.

In 1850 Washtenaw was still the third largest county in the state but was not so near the two leaders and was more cleosely pressed by Lenawee. In 1860 Lenawee had passed Washtenaw which now held the fourth place. In 1870, Washtenaw passed Oakland but had been herself passed by Kent and so still held the fourth place. But in the 20 years of comparative stagnation other counties passed her and in 1890 she held the ninth place, the leaders being Wayne, Kent, Saginaw, Bay, St. Clair, Lenawee, Jackson and Catherine, all due to the growth in city population in those counties. In 1900 two more counties, Houghton and Berrien, had passed her putting Washtenaw in eleventh place. Washtenaw had, however, nearly reached Lenawee, Jackson and Calsoun and if Ann Arbor maintains its relative growth bids fair to pass at least two of them in the present decade.

In the last census decade Ann Arbor city gained 5,078 in population. Ypsilanti city gained 1,249, Northfield township gained 56, Saline gained 9, Sylvan gained 238, all of which was in Chelsea village whose gain was 279, Lyndon gained 48, York gained 46, due to a gain of 136 in the part of Milan village in the township. There were losses in all the other townships as follows: Ann Arbor 347, due in part to annexation to the city, Augusta 30, Bridgewater 73, Dexter 6, Freedom 21, Lima 30, Lodi 43, Manchester 32 Pittsfield 8, Salem 24, Scio 53, Sharon 30, Superior 57, Webster 116, Ypsilanti town 3.