U.S. Census Office, Rank of the Most Populous Cities at Each Census, 1790 - 1890 (1898)

This graphic from the Statistical Atlas of the United States based upon Results of the Eleventh Census, published in 1898 under the direction of Henry Gannett, visualizes the ranking of the most populated cities in the United States for each decennial Census between 1790 and 1890. The second half of the 19th century was a period of significant change in the United States as cities emerged, grew, and industrialized at a rapid rate. While this graphic does not display population size, it does show change over both time and space by comparing the size of cities to each other over a hundred-year period. Changes in a city's ranking can be traced with a thin black line running right to left that connects each city's symbol. By observing the growth in the number of cities represented with each Census, as well as when cities emerged, disappeared, or changed ranking, viewers can draw inferences about demographic shifts in the country, tied to westward expansion and increasing urbanization. For example, both Chicago and San Fansisco first appear as mid-ranked cities in the seventh Census (1850) and rose to the second- and eighth-ranked cities respectively by the eleventh Census (1890). Another prominant example of western expansion and urbanization is St. Louis, which appears as the twenty-fourth-ranked city in the sixth Census (1840) but as the fifth-ranked city in the eleventh Census (1890). In comparison, eastern cities such as Charleston, Salem, Southwark, and Gloucester each fall in the rankings, eventually disappearing from the list entirely. To help viewers follow the rankings of the most populous cities over time, we have created this bump chart, which will highlight a city's symbol and the line connecting them when you hover over it.