United States Mortality Statistics, 1900-1948

Jim Saliba, University of Minnesota

Beginning in 1900, the United States published annual mortality statistics for states, cities, and the rural parts of counties, expanding from just a few states to the whole country over time. Depending on the year and geographical unit, these data include counts of deaths by various combinations of cause, age, sex, race, nativity, and other characteristics. First, I describe the series of tables that are available across multiple years as well as unique tables – such as death by occupation – available only for one or a few years. Second, I describe the geographic expansion of the data over time. Finally, I discuss comparability issues within the table series over time, such as changing definitions of racial categories, changing lists of causes of death, and changes from reporting deaths by place of occurrence to reporting deaths by place of residence. Where possible, I propose methods for increasing comparability despite these changes.

No extended abstract or paper available

 Presented in Session 68. The Politics of Data