Population of Atlanta
Encyclopedia
Atlanta is the largest city in the state of Georgia
. 2010 census results varied dramatically with previous Census Bureau estimates, counting 420,003 residents, versus the 2009 estimate of 540,921. Atlanta is the core city of the ninth most populous United States metropolitan area
at 5,268,860 (est. 2010), with a combined statistical area
of 5,626,400. The population grew steadily for its first 100 years, and peaked in 1970 at around 496,000. While the population within the city limits of Atlanta fell throughout the 1970s and '80s, the metro area continued to grow. In 1990 the city's population bottomed out at around 394,000, and it has been increasing steadily every year since then, growing 29% from 2000 to reach around 540,000 residents in 2009. The City of Atlanta ranks as the 40th-largest in the United States, and the sixth-largest city in the southeastern
region.
The city of Atlanta is seeing a unique and drastic demographic increase in its white population, and at a pace that outstrips the rest of the nation. The proportion of whites in the city's population, according to Brookings Institution
, grew faster between 2000 and 2006 than that of any other U.S. city. By 2010, Atlanta's white population had increased by 22,763 people. The white percentage increased from 31% in 2000, to 35% in 2006, to 38% in 2010, more than double the increase between 1990 and 2000. During the same time, the city's black poulation decreased by 31,678 people, shrinking from 61.4% of the city's population in 2000 to 54.0% in 2010. The demographic changes are due to an influx of whites into gentrifying intown
neighborhoods, such as East Atlanta
and the Old Fourth Ward
, coupled with a movement of blacks into adjacent suburbs, such as Clayton County
.
populations per capita. It ranks 3rd of all major cities, behind San Francisco and slightly behind Seattle, with 12.8% of the city's total population recognizing themselves as gay, lesbian, or bisexual. According to the 2000 United States Census (revised in 2004), Atlanta has the twelfth highest proportion of single-person households nationwide among cities of 100,000 or more residents, which was at 38.5%.
According to a 2000 daytime population estimate by the Census Bureau, over 250,000 more people commuted to Atlanta on any given workday, boosting the city's estimated daytime population to 676,431. This is an increase of 62.4% over Atlanta's resident population, making it the largest gain in daytime population in the country among cities with fewer than 500,000 residents.
1860 - 9,554
1870 - 21,789
1880 - 37,409
1890 - 65,533
1900 - 89,872, including 2500 persons of foreign birth and 35,900 of African descent.
1910 - 154,839 (metro 522,442)
1920 - 200,616 (metro 622,283)
1930 - 270,688 (metro 715,391)
1940 - 302,288 (metro 820,579)
1950 - 331,314 (metro 997,666)
1960 - 487,455 (metro 1,312,474)
1970 - 496,973 (metro 1,763,626)
1980 - 425,022 (metro 2,233,324)
1990 - 394,017 (metro 2,959,950)
2000 - 416,474 (metro 4,112,198)
2005 - 470,688 (metro 5,103,766)
2006 - 487,463 (metro 5,240,531) saw the first significant annexations to the city since 1952, in the southwest area around Cascade Road, adding about 5,000 residents. The Sandtown community (population 17,000) has petitioned for annexation as well.
2009 - 540,921 (metro 5,314,283)
2010 - 420,003 - estimates between the years 2000 and 2009 brought into question
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
. 2010 census results varied dramatically with previous Census Bureau estimates, counting 420,003 residents, versus the 2009 estimate of 540,921. Atlanta is the core city of the ninth most populous United States metropolitan area
United States metropolitan area
In the United States a metropolitan statistical area is a geographical region with a relatively high population density at its core and close economic ties throughout the area. Such regions are not legally incorporated as a city or town would be, nor are they legal administrative divisions like...
at 5,268,860 (est. 2010), with a combined statistical area
Combined Statistical Area
The United States Office of Management and Budget defines micropolitan and metropolitan statistical areas. Metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas consist of one or more counties...
of 5,626,400. The population grew steadily for its first 100 years, and peaked in 1970 at around 496,000. While the population within the city limits of Atlanta fell throughout the 1970s and '80s, the metro area continued to grow. In 1990 the city's population bottomed out at around 394,000, and it has been increasing steadily every year since then, growing 29% from 2000 to reach around 540,000 residents in 2009. The City of Atlanta ranks as the 40th-largest in the United States, and the sixth-largest city in the southeastern
Southeastern United States
The Southeastern United States, colloquially referred to as the Southeast, is the eastern portion of the Southern United States. It is one of the most populous regions in the United States of America....
region.
Income
In 2009, the median income for a household in the city was $47,464 and the median income for a family was $59,711. About 21.8% of the population and 17.2% of families lived below the poverty line.Race
The 2010 racial composition of Atlanta was:- Black or African AmericanAfrican AmericanAfrican Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
: 226,894 or 54.0%, vs. 61.4% in 2000 - WhiteWhite AmericanWhite Americans are people of the United States who are considered or consider themselves White. The United States Census Bureau defines White people as those "having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa...
: 161,115 or 38.4%, vs. 33.2% in 2000 - AsianAsian AmericanAsian Americans are Americans of Asian descent. The U.S. Census Bureau definition of Asians as "Asian” refers to a person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan,...
: 13,188 or 5.2%
- Hispanic or LatinoHispanic and Latino AmericansHispanic or Latino Americans are Americans with origins in the Hispanic countries of Latin America or in Spain, and in general all persons in the United States who self-identify as Hispanic or Latino.1990 Census of Population and Housing: A self-designated classification for people whose origins...
(of any race): 21,815 or 3.1%
The city of Atlanta is seeing a unique and drastic demographic increase in its white population, and at a pace that outstrips the rest of the nation. The proportion of whites in the city's population, according to Brookings Institution
Brookings Institution
The Brookings Institution is a nonprofit public policy organization based in Washington, D.C., in the United States. One of Washington's oldest think tanks, Brookings conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in economics, metropolitan policy, governance, foreign policy, and...
, grew faster between 2000 and 2006 than that of any other U.S. city. By 2010, Atlanta's white population had increased by 22,763 people. The white percentage increased from 31% in 2000, to 35% in 2006, to 38% in 2010, more than double the increase between 1990 and 2000. During the same time, the city's black poulation decreased by 31,678 people, shrinking from 61.4% of the city's population in 2000 to 54.0% in 2010. The demographic changes are due to an influx of whites into gentrifying intown
Intown Atlanta
Intown Atlanta is a term very frequently used in metro Atlanta to designate an area containing parts of the City of Atlanta and bordering communities...
neighborhoods, such as East Atlanta
East Atlanta
East Atlanta is a neighborhood of Atlanta, Georgia in the eastern portion of the city. The term "East Atlanta" is frequently misused to refer to the entire eastern portion of the city located in DeKalb County, roughly 10% of Atlanta's area annexed in 1909...
and the Old Fourth Ward
Old Fourth Ward
The Old Fourth Ward, often abbreviated The Fourth Ward or O4W, is a neighborhood stretching east from Downtown Atlanta, Georgia. The Old Fourth Ward is one of the city's most rapidly gentrifying neighborhoods, but is also one of the city's most eclectic, containing a burgeoning nightlife district...
, coupled with a movement of blacks into adjacent suburbs, such as Clayton County
Clayton County, Georgia
Clayton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of 2000, the population was 236,517. The 2008 Census estimate placed the population at 273,718. The county seat is Jonesboro...
.
Other
The city of Atlanta also has one of the highest LGBTLGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
populations per capita. It ranks 3rd of all major cities, behind San Francisco and slightly behind Seattle, with 12.8% of the city's total population recognizing themselves as gay, lesbian, or bisexual. According to the 2000 United States Census (revised in 2004), Atlanta has the twelfth highest proportion of single-person households nationwide among cities of 100,000 or more residents, which was at 38.5%.
According to a 2000 daytime population estimate by the Census Bureau, over 250,000 more people commuted to Atlanta on any given workday, boosting the city's estimated daytime population to 676,431. This is an increase of 62.4% over Atlanta's resident population, making it the largest gain in daytime population in the country among cities with fewer than 500,000 residents.
Timeline
1850 - 2,572- City limits a circle with radius of 1 mile (3.14 square miles)
1860 - 9,554
- 1866 city limits enlarged to 1.5 miles (7 square miles)
1870 - 21,789
1880 - 37,409
- 1889 saw annexation of Inman ParkInman ParkInman Park was planned in the late 1880s by Joel Hurt, a civil engineer and real-estate developer who intended to create a rural oasis connected to the city by the first of Atlanta's electric streetcar lines. The East Atlanta Land Company acquired and developed more than 130 acres east of the city...
1890 - 65,533
- 1895 city limits enlarged to 1.75 miles (9.6 square miles)
- 1896 saw annexation of West EndWest End (Atlanta)The West End neighborhood of Atlanta is on the National Register of Historic Places and can be found southwest of Castleberry Hill, east of Westview, west of Adair Park Historic District, and just north of Oakland City...
(11 square miles)
1900 - 89,872, including 2500 persons of foreign birth and 35,900 of African descent.
- 1909 (January) Copenhill area annexed
1910 - 154,839 (metro 522,442)
1920 - 200,616 (metro 622,283)
1930 - 270,688 (metro 715,391)
1940 - 302,288 (metro 820,579)
1950 - 331,314 (metro 997,666)
- 1952 saw annexation of BuckheadBuckhead (Atlanta)Buckhead is the uptown district of Atlanta, Georgia, United States, comprising approximately the northern one-fifth of the city. Buckhead is a major commercial and financial center of the Southeast, and it is the third-largest business district in Atlanta, behind Downtown and Midtown...
, Adam's Park, Cascade & Lakewood adding 100,000 people (130 square miles)
1960 - 487,455 (metro 1,312,474)
1970 - 496,973 (metro 1,763,626)
1980 - 425,022 (metro 2,233,324)
1990 - 394,017 (metro 2,959,950)
2000 - 416,474 (metro 4,112,198)
2005 - 470,688 (metro 5,103,766)
2006 - 487,463 (metro 5,240,531) saw the first significant annexations to the city since 1952, in the southwest area around Cascade Road, adding about 5,000 residents. The Sandtown community (population 17,000) has petitioned for annexation as well.
2009 - 540,921 (metro 5,314,283)
2010 - 420,003 - estimates between the years 2000 and 2009 brought into question