Page:The Philadelphia Negro A Social Study.djvu/94



13. The City for a Century.—The population of the county of Philadelphia increased about twenty-fold from 1790 to 1890; starting with 50,000 whites and 2500 Negroes at the first census, it had at the time of the eleventh census, a million whites and 40,000 Negroes. Comparing the rate of increase of these two elements of the population we have:

OP INCREASE OF NEGROES AND WHITES.

Decade from

Negroes.

Whites.

Decade from

Negroes.

Whites.

1790-1800 1800-1810 . . 1810-1820 . . 1820-1830 . . 1830-1840,.

176.42^

52.93 13.00

31.39 27.07

42.92^

35-55 22.8o

39*94

37-54

1840-1850* . . 1850-1860 . . 1860-1870* . . 1870 1880 . . 1880-1890

^% 12.26

17 43-13 24.20

63-30$ 39.67 19.96

25.08 23.42


 * Decrease for Negroes.

The first two decades were years of rapid increase for the Negroes, their number rising from 2489 in 1790 to 10,552 in 1810. This was due to the incoming of the new freedmen and of servants with masters, all to some extent attracted by the social and industrial opportunities of the city. The white population during this period also increased largely, though not so rapidly as the Negroes, rising from